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UrbanMain Communities in California Prioritize Place-keeping through Capacity-building and Infill Development Projects
Aerial view of the grand opening of the Downtown Event Center in October 2021: people fill a large, open plaza dotted with booths and flanked with food trucks; new, 4-story mixed-use developments, trees, and gentle hills surround the plaza. Credit: City of Fremont.
When we called on California’s UrbanMain communities to share their latest developments, we weren’t quite sure what the dispatches from the field would reveal. The responses brought forth a treasure trove of innovative initiatives, once-in-a-lifetime opportunities, and profoundly place- and people-based projects. Although diverse in size and scope, each community’s work is distinctly reflective of its commitment to preserving its legacy residents and businesses, and realizing its visions for the future.
City of Fremont Continues Momentum in Developing New Downtown from Ground-Up
A crowd of people explore and enjoy the plaza at the grand opening of Fremont’s Downtown Event Center in October 2021. Credit: City of Fremont.
It’s not very often that communities get to build a new downtown from the ground-up, especially in a place like the San Francisco Bay Area. But that’s exactly what’s happening in Fremont, California. Located in a central, 110-acre area with a concentrated “retail spine” linking two major shopping centers and within walking distance of a regional BART station, Downtown Fremont is the culmination of years of planning and tens of millions of public investments.
Today, Downtown Fremont is on the rise, with its first mixed-use project completed and two more under construction, along with a new 6-story office headquarters for Fremont Bank. The development activity is now creating opportunities for new small business additions, including several prominent local restaurants and an independent bookstore. To cap things off, in October 2021, the City of Fremont celebrated the opening of its Downtown Event Center, which includes an urban plaza for outdoor gatherings and concerts. While there is much work to be done, the progress speaks to the momentum that is gathering in Downtown Fremont.
Contact: Donovan Lazaro, Economic Development Manager, City of Fremont
Pilot Park Activation Sparks Permanent Place-Keeping for Black Art, Culture & Economic Energy in East Oakland
Left: Two Black women, dressed in vibrant African clothing, raise their smiling faces towards the sky as they dance on the grassy lawn of the Akoma Outdoor Market, accompanied by a drummer and vendor booths in the background. Right: A tall Black gentleman wearing a white hat and a young Black girl wearing a checkered dress skate hand-in-hand at the Umoja Outdoor Skating Rink on a bright sunny day. Credit: Black Cultural Zone
The Black Cultural Zone (BCZ)–in partnership with residents, community leaders, and the City of Oakland–recently scored big wins towards the development of a permanent arts, culture, and economic hub at Liberation Park. The 1.2 acre publicly-owned lot is located in the heart of East Oakland, bordered by busy thoroughfares, a struggling shopping center, schools, and neighborhoods. The community and BCZ identified Liberation Park as a keystone asset with transformative multi-use potential.
Activation of the previously vacant and underutilized park began in September 2020 with the launch of the weekly Akoma Outdoor Market, which prioritizes serving the wellness needs of residents and creating opportunities for local farm producers, restaurants/food trucks, and artists/makers. Monthly film screening and performing arts events accompany the market, continuing the area’s legacy of Black culture and entrepreneurship. On Juneteenth 2021, activities at the park expanded to include the Umoja Outdoor Skating Rink. Weather permitting, the rink operates weekly, welcoming skaters of all ages, skill levels, and backgrounds. In October 2021, BCZ’s vision of a “thriving local community that has groceries, clothes, and food from and for the people who live in the same community” moved one step closer to reality with the approval of development plans that seek to bring affordable housing and commercial retail space to the park.
BCZ is also among five community-based organizations recently chosen to receive funding to support BIPOC-led real estate acquisition. This award will be used to help develop BCZ’s first ground-up community arts “Hub” at Liberation Park, which will help ensure that spaces are owned and activated by local artists, cultural leaders, and community-based organizations – a critical component to preserving the neighborhood’s unique identity and safeguarding it from the negative effects of gentrification.
A Parking Lot and Vacant Parcel Give Rise to a Dynamic Development in Downtown Bellflower
Seven men in white hard hats stand in front of construction equipment and joyfully use shovels to ceremoniously break ground for the Edgeway development in Downtown Bellflower. Credit: City of Bellflower.
In early December 2021, officials from the City of Bellflower and the Serrano Development Group donned hard hats and wielded shovels to ceremoniously welcome a new dynamic, mixed-use development to Downtown Bellflower. Construction of the Edgeway Downtown Bellflower is now underway and is expected to bring 91 generously sized one- and two-bedroom units, recreational and wellness amenities for residents, and 14,000 square feet of commercial space by the end of 2023.
“We are thrilled to develop this project in the City of Bellflower,” said Serrano Principal Jason Tolleson. “The Edgeway is a transformative development that will bring housing and entertainment to a walkable downtown district with close proximity to future public transit. The City of Bellflower has done an excellent job of bringing new retail and restaurants to their downtown district, and we look forward to further contributing to the success of Downtown Bellflower.”
Edgeway Downtown Bellflower is expected to bring more pedestrian and cultural activity to this historic urban commercial district. In addition to retail, restaurant, and entertainment ventures occupying the commercial spaces, Edgeway will also create a welcoming atmosphere for residents and visitors through a new exterior public plaza, wayfinding signage, and vibrant public art.
Contact: Jim DellaLonga, Director of Economic Development, City of Bellflower
Bridging the Digital Divide and Building Dream Homes in East Oakland’s Fruitvale Village
Left: Chris Iglesias, The Unity Council (left) and Smitha Seshadri, BRIDGE Housing (right) smile as they participate in the ceremonial groundbreaking of Casa Sueños. Right: Small business advisors meet with entrepreneurs at an open air technical assistance clinic in Oakland’s Fruitvale Village neighborhood, hosted by The Unity Council with support from the Comcast Rose Grant. Credit: The Unity Council
The Unity Council in East Oakland’s Fruitvale Village neighborhood wrapped up an eventful 2021 with back-to-back initiatives designed to invest in community connectivity.
In September, the organization launched Onward Oakland: Adelante Oakland, a new program designed to help local small businesses develop innovative business models, with a focus on pivoting to digital marketing and e-commerce. According to Mayra Chavez, Small Business Service Manager, this program is greatly needed as over “60% of the businesses that are part of the Fruitvale Business Improvement District did not have any online presence when the pandemic started and even less have an e-commerce to sell their products or goods.” The initiative’s first effort, Adelante Fruitvale: Adelante Comericante (Forward Fruitvale, Forward Merchant), focuses on teaching business owners how to use social media accounts to promote their business. The initial cohort of 10 businesses includes Bakery El Sol, Nena’s Hair Studio, and Los Cocos Salvadoran Restaurant.
Also in September, housing advocates, community members, and local leaders gathered for a joyful celebration: the groundbreaking of Casa Sueños, a 181-unit affordable housing development. Situated just steps away from the Fruitvale BART Station, Casa Sueños is the third stage of a community-oriented mixed-use, mixed income development project that began in the early 2000s. Originally planned as a market-rate housing project, The Unity Council, in partnership with BRIDGE Housing, modified the development to respond to the urgent affordable housing needs of Oakland’s working families. When completed, Casa Sueños will provide over 130 apartments, as well as 46 units for individuals experiencing chronic homelessness. The 7500 square feet of affordable commercial space will house a local nonprofit organization, providing further stability to the neighborhood, its residents, small businesses, and community-based groups.
Contact: Mayra Chavez, Small Business Service Manager, The Unity Council
Urban Impact Inc., harnesses strategic investments and collaborative efforts to foster a vibrant and sustainable future, from visionary adaptive reuse ventures to transformative development grants for small businesses and property owners in Birmingham, Alabama's historic 4th Avenue Black Business District.
We are excited to announce the Building Opportunities on Main Street (BOOMS) Tracker, a new free tool to help designated Main Streets unlock the potential of their vacant properties. This user-friendly property inventory tool allows local leaders can gather, store, and showcase information about their district’s built environment to plan and advocate for new property uses.
The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced $20B in federal Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF) awards distributed to eight national non-profit consortiums. Main Street America looks forward to partnership and engagement with awardees and local programs to identify projects and expand impact throughout our network.
Middlesboro Main Street in Middlesboro, Ky., Puerto Rican Cultural Center in Chicago, Ill., and Sugar Creek Business Association in Charlotte, N.C., have each been awarded $100,000 through The Hartford Small Business Accelerator Grant Program in partnership with Main Street America.
Learn how the National Clean Investment Fund (NCIF) and the Clean Communities Accelerator Fund (CCIA) will pump billions of dollars into reducing carbon emissions from the built environment in the coming years.
Main Street America is leading a coalition urging that the EPA make available the GGRF funds for adaptive reuse and location-efficient projects because of the substantial greenhouse gas emissions reduction offered by such developments.
From 19th-century mill girls to Maine's mill redevelopments and the regional manufacturers of tomorrow, learn about the amazing history and promise of the New England mill.
A practical and easily digestible report containing practical “how-to’s” designed to help local leaders support housing development in their communities.
Main Street America's research team takes a look at the data presented in the At Home on Main Street and offers relevant insights for Main Street managers looking to understand downtown and neighborhood commercial district housing trends.
In Fall 2022, MSA partnered with infill developer and small-deal guru Jim Heid and the Incremental Development Alliance to conduct surveys on the barriers to small-scale real estate projects across the United States. Here we share the results.
This article was published on January 10, 2023, by Next City, a nonprofit news organization focused on socially, economically, and environmentally sustainable urban practices.
Interested in implementing a small-scale development project in your district? Mike Scholl of Ayres Associates, who worked with Downtown Laramie Wyoming on their Empress Lofts project, lays out some of the key considerations for Main Streets working on development projects.
Main Street America launches a project to learn more about the specific barriers to small-scale real estate development on our Main Streets and identify solutions for financing small-scale deals.
learn how Rethos: Places Reimagined is encouraging upper-floor development through their program funded by the Paul Bruhn Historic Revitalization Grant Program.
Leverage NC, a partnership between North Carolina Main Street and the North Carolina League of Municipalities, hosted a four-part webinar series titled Better Community Planning & Economic Development led by Ed McMahon, Chair Emeritus of Main Street America and a leading national authority on land use policy and economic development.
In contrast, the Main Street Program in Laramie, Wyoming, is thriving, having successfully cultivated millions of dollars to help fill these vacant, blighted spaces with permanent structures.
In 2016, the North Carolina Main Street & Rural Planning Center partnered with the University of North Carolina at Greensboro’s Department of Interior Architecture (UNCG) to provide design assistance to Main Street communities.