OAKLAND, CA—Historically, the East Bay has served as a second-tier choice for top-tier employment, as a large collection of housing submarkets and as mostly suburban retail territory. However, the East Bay's role in the Bay Area economy is changing fast. As Silicon Valley and San Francisco hit historic peaks, the East Bay is attracting increasing attention in this cycle, but everyone is wondering if the eastward expansion will continue?
An East Bay outlook event was hosted by ULI San Francisco at the SPUR venue in Oakland last week to ask that question and explore the trends in development and investment shaping East Bay real estate. The inaugural event convened experts in housing and retail to review recent transactions and look into the near future.
Led by moderator, Bryan Wenter with Miller Starr Regalia, the panel consisted of Brad Blake, founder and managing partner, Blake | Griggs Properties, which has delivered numerous suburban multifamily/retail projects; Rachel Flynn, vice president, FivePoint Communities, developer of large-scale redevelopments; Chris Homs, vice president, Lockhouse Retail Group Inc., which has successfully combined street retail and mixed use; and Christine Firstenberg, senior vice president, JLL retail.
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Lisa Brown
Lisa Brown is an editor for the south and west regions of GlobeSt.com. She has 25-plus years of real estate experience, with a regional PR role at Grubb & Ellis and a national communications position at MMI. Brown also spent 10 years as executive director at NAIOP San Francisco Bay Area chapter, where she led the organization to achieving its first national award honors and recognition on Capitol Hill. She has written extensively on commercial real estate topics and edited numerous pieces on the subject.
