Beginning in November 2020, Black Cultural Zone (BCZ) & CAST have partnered to develop Liberation Park, a community-controlled space that reflects over 10 years of organizing and visioning by East Oakland residents. In support of BCZ, CAST provides partnership, resources, and expertise in real estate development.
The project includes a Market Hall and Cultural Hub co-developed by BCZ and CAST, and Eden Housing is partnering with BCZ on the Residences. Both strive to foster Black empowerment, economic opportunity, and cultural expression while enhancing infrastructure, transit-oriented development, and sustainability in the area.
In March 2024, the City of Oakland’s City Council unanimously approved the project that will rise at the 1.22 acre property at Foothill Boulevard and 73rd Ave, currently home to Liberation Park. Black Cultural Zone plans to build 119 affordable housing units on the parcel, along with a bustling three-story “Market Hall and Cultural Hub” that will host a food hall, cultural center, outdoor skating rink, support local businesses and artists, and create a stable economic hub for East Oaklanders.
Visit blackculturalzone.org to learn more about ongoing events at Liberation Park and explore BCZ’s vision to unapologetically center Black arts, culture, and economics to collectively design, resource, transform and build collective power for its communities.
