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"Oakland has retained such a strong sense of itself," says Naomi Schiff, board president of the Oakland Heritage Alliance. "We've escaped the self-conscious cuteness of a tourist Mecca, while our regional park edge and waterfront have prevented the city from experiencing the relentless homogeneity of suburban sprawl." Oakland's neighborhoods reflect the diversity of the city as a whole on a micro scale. "Each neighborhood has its own character, and it's often influenced by the culture of the people in the area," says Prudential real estate agent Mary Dresser, a 42-year Oakland resident. "Our city is actually like living on a mini planet, because we're in daily contact with cultures and people from all over the world."
"Part of what makes Oakland so interesting is that it has these distinct districts that each have such a unique feel to them," says Erika Mailman, an Oakland resident and author of two books about the city, Oakland's Neighborhoods and Oakland Hills.
Given the amazing range of Oakland's neighborhoods, choosing one to live in might seem daunting. But we're easing the difficulty by offering a taste of what makes a few of Oakland's neighborhoods so great.
Temescal
One of Oakland's oldest neighborhoods, Temescal is beautiful in its historical riches and modern sensibilities. Originally a town, Temescal--bordered by Highway 24 on the west, Broadway on the east, 51st Street on the north and 40th Street on the south--wasn't annexed by the city of Oakland until 1897. It once housed the terminus of the Oakland streetcar line, likely the impetus for the town's formation.
Its main business corridor, Telegraph Avenue, is teeming with activity. Temescal business owners recently voted to form a business improvement district, or BID, assessing themselves extra fees for some city services. The building that houses many of the area's most popular shopping and dining destinations--Article Pract, Dona Tomas, Pizzaiolo and Temescal Cafe--is a city landmark and the oldest commercial building in Temescal, dating back to the 1870s. The Temescal Library--one of a handful of Carnegie libraries built in Oakland--is also a city landmark and was fully renovated and reopened in 1998.
The neighborhood has seen an upswing in home values since the dot-com days. Temescal homes are largely two-bedroom, one-bath bungalows similar architecturally to nearby neighborhoods. "Up until relatively recently, Temescal has remained affordable, so there have been a lot of young people living here," says resident and artist Jeff Norman. "It's a very unassuming neighborhood, and yet on the other hand, there's a lot of pride among people who live here."
Culturally diverse, Temescal was home to a large Italian population in the early 1900s. These days, the area has a large Eritrean and Ethiopian immigrant population, many of whom own businesses and eateries along Telegraph Avenue. Temescal has always attracted artists, perhaps in part due to the presence of the Temescal Art Center and Studio One, a historic, city-run art program on temporary hiatus from the neighborhood while the Temescal building is undergoing renovations.
"This neighborhood has a lot of really creative people in it," says Norman. "There's a great energy."
Norman has taken part in numerous public art projects that focus on Temescal's cultural and natural history, and many refer to him as a local historian. "My work is about creating neighborhood identity," he says. "But also about encouraging neighborhood connection."
That neighborhood connection runs pretty deep in Temescal. "Politically, this neighborhood is very active," says Norman. "There's the Neighborhood Crime Prevention Council, which provides a forum for people to discuss all kinds of issues; there's a neighborhood newsletter that's been going nonstop since 1992; and there's a group called Temescal Neighbors Together that formed about six years ago around land-use issues."
Fruitvale
Often described as the East Bay's Mission District, Fruitvale has seen major revitalization over the last decade.
Bounded by 14th Avenue to the west, the Oakland Estuary to the south, High Street to the east and Interstate 580 to the north, Fruitvale is a lively, colorful neighborhood full of architectural gems. Street vendors abound, foot traffic is abundant and the cultural diversity of Oakland is on full display. The largest concentration of Oakland's Latino population resides in Fruitvale, and the district hosts some of Oakland's most popular cultural events--an annual Cinco de Mayo parade and a Dia de los Muertos festival. Historically the second downtown of Oakland, Fruitvale got its name from the orchards planted in the area in the 1850s. "Fruitvale is just such a vibrant neighborhood," says Martha Becker, an East Bay real estate agent with Thornwall Properties. "It's so alive and amazing, and you see so many different kinds of people there."
Much of the credit for Fruitvale's progress goes to the Unity Council, a nonprofit community development organization that has won national awards for its creation of Fruitvale Village in the early 1990s. A transit village situated next to BART and AC Transit stations, Fruitvale Village includes a medical clinic, library, computer center, job bank office and a senior center. Affordable housing units sit atop the project, retail spaces below.
From the Fruitvale Village, pedestrians are transported directly to the area's commercial district on International Boulevard. The Fruitvale Commercial District has also seen a decade of renewal through the Main Street program, also administered through the Unity Council. Darlene Rios- Drapkin, who served as the manager of Fruitvale's Main Street program for five years, attributes the groundswell of community involvement for the upswing in the commercial district. Dramatically increased property values have accompanied the commercial improvements, says Montclair Better Homes real estate agent Jennifer Hobbs.
"From day one, Fruitvale knew what its niche was and nurtured it," says Drapkin, who now runs her own community development organization, Urban Transformation. "Some other districts are still trying to figure out what they want to become when they grow up."
Francis Aviani, founder of Fruitvale's Deep Urban Roots Tea House, has lived in Fruitvale for the past six years, and she's had her tea house at International and 34th Avenue for a year and a half. She describes Fruitvale as a "walking neighborhood."
"This is the only neighborhood I know of where every person you pass on the street says 'hi' back to you," says Aviani. "There's really a feeling of genuine neighborhood connection, which is why I really love it here."
Rockridge
Mention Rockridge to anyone who knows Oakland, and a carefully restored bungalow or a great meal naturally comes to mind, because the neighborhood has plenty of both.
Bounded by Telegraph Avenue and Broadway and extending southeast from Berkeley to 51st Street, Rockridge has become one of Oakland's most coveted neighborhoods over the past 10 years. "Rockridge is so popular because of BART, the shopping and the restaurants," says Prudential real estate agent Dresser. "Not to mention that there are so many beautiful old homes with tons of character."
Rockridge boasts some of the city's most renowned restaurants--Oliveto, Citron and A Cote, for starters--and the neighborhood's gourmet shopping Mecca, Market Hall, attracts foodies from afar. The California College of the Arts, in the southwest corner of the Rockridge district, gives the area a touch of collegetown feel.
Annalee Allen, who runs the city of Oakland's walking tours program, has lived with her family in Rockridge since the early 1980s. "It's always been a really walkable neighborhood," she says. "That's one of the things I really enjoy ... seeing all the houses and gardens on foot, running into people I know."
Rockridge, like so many other Oakland neighborhoods, has a strong history of community involvement. The Rockridge Library was largely a grassroots community effort, says Allen. The Rockridge Community Planning Council has published a monthly newsletter, The Rockridge News, since 1986.
Montclair
Situated in the Oakland Hills just east of Piedmont, Montclair is distinguished by its heavily forested neighborhoods. At the heart of Montclair lies a busy, pedestrian-friendly shopping district, Montclair Village, which is filled with shops, restaurants, cafes and bars. On Sundays, it hosts a weekly farmers' market filled with fresh produce.
Montclair has some of the best elementary schools in Oakland, which is probably what attracts a lot of families to the neighborhood, says Montclair Better Homes real estate agent Jennifer Hobbs.
"Montclair tries to establish the aura of a small village," says Mailman, an Oakland author who writes a regular history column for the Montclarion newspaper. "And it really does have that feel to it."
There's a very eclectic mixture of architecture in Montclair, along with some particularly fascinating and notable buildings. Montclair's 1930 Storybook Library and 1927 firehouse appear as if they emerged from a fairy tale. Many of the houses are former vacation homes for San Franciscans, built at the turn of the century. Many homes in the area also experienced the ravages of the 1991 Oakland Hills fire.
The appeal of Montclair properties is really their placement among the hills and trees, with views of San Francisco Bay and proximity to regional parks. "People don't come here for the houses as much as for the area," says Dresser. "I have a client who said she loves living here, because it's like living in a national forest."
Laurel
Once filled with dairies and vegetable gardens, Laurel is now home to a diverse crowd and bungalow-style houses.
The neighborhood boundaries are Interstate 580 on the low side, Wisconsin on the hills side, Maple Avenue to the north and High Street to the south. The city recently completed streetscaping and installed decorative gates at the ends of the Laurel commercial area along MacArthur Boulevard.
Dresser, an Oakland resident since 1965 who has lived in Laurel for the past 12 years, waxes eloquent about her little neck of the woods. She loves the weather, the diversity and being able to walk to good restaurants and an organic market. "I also love that it's not so perfect here [and] that people can be themselves," she says. "It's very individualistic; there aren't any rules police."
The Laurel has always been a diverse neighborhood, and Dresser likes its multiculturalism. "There doesn't seem to be any ethnic or cultural majority in our neighborhood," says four-year Laurel resident Molly Stoufer.
Laurel residents have coffee shops, a bookstore, grocery stores and restaurants within walking distance along MacArthur. "The retail district has improved dramatically in the past few years," says Stoufer.
Residents themselves are responsible for much of Laurel's improvements, with active neighborhood groups organizing around many issues. "There's a lot of community involvement in making the neighborhood better," says Dresser. "You often see things like people out planting gardens in public spaces."
