After years as a pop-up cultural hangout, Liberation Park in East Oakland is finally on track to trade tents for steel and concrete. The Black Cultural Zone and partner Eden Housing are planning a two-building complex that pairs 119 affordable apartments with a multi-story market hall and cultural hub meant to bolster local Black businesses, artists, and small entrepreneurs. Organizers say the goal is to hold onto neighborhood culture while creating jobs and permanent community space.
The Black Cultural Zone Community Development Corp. has filed construction permits for the project, which is slated to break ground in 2026, according to the San Francisco Business Times. The outlet reports that the plan will formalize the Akoma Market’s longtime home and add a year-round commercial hub next to the housing, marking a shift from interim programming to long-term development on the site.
Contractor chosen and schedule
The Black Cultural Zone and Eden Housing have tapped the Guzman-Focon Joint Venture as general contractor, and a project press release sets June 2026 for the official groundbreaking, with an estimated 21-month construction timeline. The announcement underscores commitments to local hiring, SLBE participation and BIPOC ownership in the joint venture. Project materials on Eden Housing provide additional detail on the development team and residential set-asides.
What will be built
Plans call for a multi-story Market Hall and Cultural Hub with tens of thousands of square feet for a food hall, performance spaces, office and co-working suites for cultural entrepreneurs, plus an outdoor skating area that nods to the site’s current programming. Next door, a six-story residential building will hold 119 apartments reserved for households earning roughly 20% to 60% of the area's median income, with live/work features for artists and space prioritized for special-needs households.
Early renderings and program outlines are available from project designers, with RELM showcasing the market hall concept and SF YIMBY documenting massing studies for the overall scheme.
Funding and neighborhood connections
The financing stack pulls from a mix of public and philanthropic sources. The Black Cultural Zone lists a $28 million Measure U commitment from the City of Oakland as part of the project budget, and city planning materials show state AHSC funding tied to nearby streetscape and transit improvements that are intended to better link the site with surrounding corridors. City and project leaders have pitched the street upgrades as a complement to the housing, aimed at improving pedestrian and bicycle access around the Eastmont area. For a deeper dive, see the Black Cultural Zone project page and the City of Oakland for funding and planning context.
