Our Chinatown Complete Streets Plan Public Survey is live now!
We are seeking input on what improvements are needed on these important streets in Chinatown: 10th Street, 7th Street, the 8th & 9th Streets pair, and the Webster & Harrison Streets pair.
Plan Goals
The Plan will work with community members and local non-profits to identify a set of key corridors with multimodal upgrades through outreach to complete the conceptual designs necessary to advance the project. The conceptual designs created by this plan will be advanced for future construction grant funding opportunities and coordinated with future developments or regional projects that will position Chinatown to safely accommodate new residents and visitors.
This plan aims to shift the course for Oakland's Chinatown by creating a path for implementation of community-developed and approved projects. This project will address creating safer streets for disadvantaged communities in 4 phases:
- Phase 1 - Examine past planning recommendations and identify a set of key corridors for development.
- Phase 2 - Agree on final project description for multimodal upgrades on key corridors and connection points - Current
- Phase 3 - Perform conceptual designs for capital improvements on key corridors
- Phase 4 - Designs ready for grant development
Engagement
The East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC) is working to engage residents and stakeholders for the Chinatown Complete Streets Plan. EBALDC is a non-profit community development organization with over 48 years of experience in building healthy, vibrant and safe neighborhoods in Oakland and East Bay. they address the specific needs of individual neighborhoods by connecting the essential elements of health and wellbeing through their Healthy Neighborhoods Approach. For this plan, EBALDC has developed an engagement plan honoring past planning processes to minimize engagement fatigue in Chinatown.
- Neighbor Group Discussions
Oakland Chinatown Coalition May 17
Chinatown Chamber of Commerce/ OCIC May 9 & 16
Family Bridges Senior Affordable Housing Meeting TBD
Lincoln Summer Nights May 11th
Lincoln Summer Nights July 14th
- Survey
Online survey: Chinatown Complete Streets Public Survey
- Sitewalk Workshop
June 24th, 2023 please register at: Chinatown Complete Street Sitewalk
- “Pre-Enactment” Event: A Temporary Complete Streets Installation
Early 2024
Chinatown Context
Chinatown is a central neighborhood in Downtown Oakland bordered by Broadway, 14th St, Fallon St, and Interstate 880. It is a vibrant, bustling neighborhood that is a centerpiece of Oakland’s cultural identity. Unfortunately, Chinatown is also home to the highest concentration of pedestrian and bicycle collisions in the city.
- 137 pedestrian collisions and
- 71 bicycle collisions in the five years from 2015 to 2019, and collisions are trending upwards.
- 30% of streets are on Oakland’s High Injury Network – the 6% of Oakland streets that see 63% of severe and fatal crashes. This is a central equity issue for Oakland, as Asian Americans in the City are 3.5 times more likely to be killed while walking than Whites.
Chinatown is also one of the most transit-dependent neighborhoods in Oakland. Compared to Oaklanders citywide, residents in the project area are almost twice as likely to take transit versus driving alone. 7% of residents also identify biking as their primary mode compared to a citywide 5%. Of the two census tracts that contain Chinatown, 1388 of 3612 households (38%) do not have access to a vehicle, compared to a citywide average of 16%.
Chinatown is a dense area with a high concentration of retail and commercial activity. One-way road patterns create wide, fast streets that are imposing for those walking or biking. Double parking and loading in the street are the norm, which creates issues with pedestrian visibility and conflicts with people biking. This results in a very dangerous pedestrian environment that is in need for improvements immediately.
What is a "Complete Street"?
Complete Streets are streets designed and operated to enable safe use and support mobility for all users. Those include people of all ages, abilities, regardless of whether they are traveling as drivers, pedestrians, bicyclists, or transit riders. Complete Streets are designed to accommodate all methods of transportation to allow people to easily travel even if they are unable to drive a car.
This form of transit equity would bring much more safety and less stress to business patrons by improving access to local institutions and businesses through alternate modes of transportation.
Updated: June 16, 2023
Posted: February 1, 2023
