Project Details
- Project Name
- Gateway Commons
- Location
-
Oakland ,CA ,United States
- Project Types
- Affordable Housing
- Project Scope
- New Construction
- Shared by
- Editor
- Consultants
-
Larry Taylor,Antonio Bryant,General Contractor: Mohammad Hakimi,Landscape Architect: Rich Seyfarth,Michael Pyatok
- Project Status
- Built
Project Description
2001 RADA
Affordable / Merit
The judges applauded Pyatok Associates' straightforward approach to the challenging site of Gateway Commons. This 17-unit affordable community sits on the border between the cities of Emeryville and Oakland, Calif., and on top of a county-owned underground creek. "We weren't allowed to build on the county's land," says Michael Pyatok, FAIA. "That's why there's a break in the middle of the project."
Before starting design, Pyatok held a series of workshops with the community's future residents, low- and moderate-income buyers who already lived in the neighborhood. He supplied them with three-dimensional modeling kits and asked them to experiment with different densities and configurations. The workshops revealed that the families involved with the project wanted opportunities for home-based businesses and rental income. So, in the final design, the 10 street-facing units contain a potential live/work space, and the seven across the auto court have a ground-floor bedroom that can be rented out.
