Jack London Aquatic Center
Oakland, California

murakami/Nelson and J. H. Fitzmaurice, Inc., comprised the core design/build team for this fast track project. murakami/Nelson developed construction documents in three months and provided construction administration support for this new boating and rowing facility at Jack London Square. This 13,000 square foot center serves rowing clubs from Oakland and other East Bay communities and provides public access to the water. The project includes a 7,500 square foot first floor for boat storage, a 5,500 square foot second floor with offices, a community meeting room, and shower/locker facilities for male and female rowers. The “board and batten” exterior with its signature banded green and off-white shingled roof alludes to the traditional boat houses of the East Coast. The project is integrated into the City of Oakland’s Estuary Park and frames one side of the Lake Merritt Channel. Site improvements include a shoreline promenade, docks, an outside boat staging area and landscaping. This is the first public rowing facility on the Oakland waterfront.