Dimond News

by Hoang Le Banh

From Hillcrest Motel to Lincoln Courts

The first of the buildings of the shuttered Hillcrest Motel fell on October 15, making way for Lincoln Courts. Of course, that name won't necessarily stick, as the to-be-owner/developer, Meea Kang of Domus Development, expressed in a well-attended community meeting at Dimond Recreation Center, also on October 15. She welcomes other name suggestions as well as any community input on the design of the proposed four-story mixed-use building, with 120 units of senior affordable housing (all one-bedroom) on three stories, and about 15,000 square feet of commercial space on the first floor facing MacArthur Blvd. An adult day center is expected to take up about a third of the first floor, leaving the remainder possibly for a clinic and/or other retail. The next community meeting will be in spring 2004, when escrow is expected to close.

Demolition should be completed before mid-November. The developer will continue to apply for financing and planning approvals. According to her plan, construction would start in October 2004 and finish in October 2005. When completed, the building, although proposed at four stories, would reach essentially the same height as the current motel because the hill would be excavated and the poorly constructed retaining wall removed to construct the commercial space and a 45-car garage. Also, the sidewalk on MacArthur would be stretched to 17 feet, and a landscape buffer of 20 to 40 feet would minimize noise and other impacts on Boston and Lincoln Avenue neighbors.

The developer, Meea Kang, can be reached at (415) 558-9500 or meea\@domusd.com. Dimond residents are also encouraged to visit the Dimond message board at www.dimondnews.org/message.html to post questions that Meea will be answering herself. A proposed timeline for the project has already been posted to the message board, where more information will be added, including contact information for the architect and property manager for the new building.

Fruitvale Corridor Awarded Environmental Justice Grant

More than a year after the Oakland Pedestrian Safety Project, Unity Council, and Dimond Improvement Association jointly submitted an application to Caltrans for an Environmental Justice (EJ) planning grant, just about all hope had been lost, especially because of the state budget crisis. For the Dimond and Fruitvale, though, 2003 seems to be a lucky year. We recently received word that $170,100 (along with a 10 percent city match) will be coming our way for streetscape and transit improvement planning along the Fruitvale Ave. corridor, from the estuary to MacArthur Blvd., particularly to ameliorate the adverse impacts of Highways 580 and 880. Some at the city are nervous about what the new governor may do with the state's money, but Caltrans has assured us that the EJ funds are secure.

The EJ award will help leverage additional planning and capital funds, including the MTC planning grant that a DIA committee has been working on with various departments in the City. All of this planning will tie in with the developments at the Hillcrest and Altenheim.

Free Parking!

The best kept secret in the Dimond is the Bienati parking lot behind the Little Book Shop on Fruitvale and Bienati Way. The many large parking lots and metered spots in the Dimond often get full on weekends. As the holiday shopping season is coming up, it should be nice to know that the lovely Bienati lot is nearly empty everyday and allows for four hours FREE PARKING! Take advantage of it while shopping Dimond.

Hoang can be reached at hbanh\@lmi.net.