Community
NEW HOUSING DEVELOPMENT in LOWER BOTTOMS
Former Black Panther Leader Elaine Brown Heads Development Team Building West Oakland Affordable Housing Complex
Oakland & the World Enterprises (OAW) and co-developer/owner McCormack Baron Salazar (MBS), the 7th & Campbell Development LP, hosted t the inaugural meeting of the 7th & Campbell Community Support Committee at the site last Saturday.
As CEO of the nonprofit OAW, former Black Panther Party leader Elaine Brown acquired the three-quarter-acre lot at 7th and Campbell from the City in late 2014, which the city had left vacant and blighted for over 30 years.
Now, with development partner MBS, OAW is set to break ground in November on this 79-unit, 100% affordable housing complex, rentals for people with incomes of 30% AMI and under, or for very low- and extremely low-income people.
Supportive Services will be provided for chronically homeless and special needs residents. The building will generate enough on-site solar electricity through over 20,000 square feet of rooftop solar panels to power all residential electric demands.
The ground floor of the complex will house four OAW-launched businesses, to launch and sustain for-profit businesses for ownership by formerly incarcerated and other extremely socioeconomically marginalized people, including: a fitness center, a neighborhood market, a light manufacturing and retail clothing business and a restaurant.
Presently, OAW maintains West Oakland Farms on the site, operated by a cooperative of all formerly incarcerated people earning $20 per hour, which will sell produce to local outlets. In the next two weeks, OAW will launch its second business, a cooperatively owned food truck.
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