Reflecting the diverse perspectives that comprise the Oakland community, The Lark embraces varied design directions and the creativity of music.
Located in emerging Uptown Oakland, California, The Lark is a Holland Partner Group development that is supporting the rapid change happening in the neighborhood around it. With interiors inspired by the diverse perspectives of the Oakland community as well as the feel of a jazz club, the project introduces an upscale, sophisticated living option to The East Bay. Waypoint initially provided three separate concepts, with each concept created by individual designers within our team. The winning design direction spoke to guitar strings (with a nod to the fact that each string creates a unique sound reflecting the community’s diverse perpsectives) while introducing a combination of gold laminate and black acrylic to support the project’s stylish, urban story. The unit ID was a specific focus area, as the developer wished to have each residence’s doorbell integrated into the sign, with positioning under a sconce to provide mood and lighting. The doorbell’s position needed to be rather low on the wall and the unit number and braille could not be any lower than 48 inches per ADA requirements. After significant coordination with interiors, the developer, the GC team and the electrical team, the unit ID emerged as a long, slender piece that worked to tie all of the corridor elements together. Waypoint provided design, fabrication and installation services for the wayfinding (inclusive of code and ADA signage), as well as the exterior signage for the project. The Lark is a 400,000 square foot high-rise tower with 16 stories, 320 units, ground floor retail and a rooftop terrace. Solomon Cordwell Buenz, of San Francisco, California was the architect and Holland Construction was the general contractor.