San Antonio Park - Playground Renovation

Project TypeCapital Improvement Project
Contractor nameDesign Consultant - PGA Design
Completion DateOctober 30, 2027

A new playground is coming to San Antonio Park!

San Antonio Park, one of the oldest and largest parks in Oakland, is getting its playground renovated!

Formerly known as Independence Square in 1854, it has been around for almost just along as the State of California was named an official state. Re-named San Antonio Park in 1910, the park's legacy continues to expand being one of Oakland’s gathering points for festivals, recreational activities and the enjoyment of nature.

In 2021, through an extensive community visioning process held by Friends of San Antonio Park; Safety, Cleanliness, Maintenance, Activation, Connection were amongst the common themes heard from the neighborhood. Community members want a new playground and sports facilities and bathrooms to be safe and well-maintained. Community Members want the park to be safe, welcoming for people of all ages, clean, well-maintained, vibrant with activities and events, and full of people using the park for its intended purposes. Community members value the park for its nature, its trees and views and open space, and its convenient location in a neighborhood with little green space. Community members value the activation that groups like Trybe have brought in the last year and a half, and the cultural events that groups like Eastside Arts Alliance have organized over the last 20 years. Community members value the opportunity to come together as group, have conversations, and share ideas for the park with the City of Oakland.

Based on this feedback, FOSAP developed four draft community recommendations. These recommendations lay the groundwork for the shared vision that emerged during the FOSAP-led community engagement process. Renovating the playgrounds, which was one of the recommendations from the community vision also became one of the priorities on the Master Plan!

Now, the City of Oakland has brought on PGA Design Landscape Architects to assist in the re-envisioning of a playground that becomes a destiny for the community, reflects the socio-cultural dynamics of the neighborhood, and becomes an extension of the beloved San Antonio Park.

The project will replace and expand an existing playground to accommodate inclusive playground areas for children aged 2 to 5 and 5 to 12. Improvements are anticipated to include, play structures, benches, picnic tables, lighting, enclosure fencing, accessible circulation, planting & irrigation and a nature play area!

Project Timeline:

We are currently in the design phase and seeking community feedback. The design consultant, PGA Design, in collaboration with community Stakeholders (FOSAP, PAR, TYRBE, EBAYC, East Side Arts Alliance) the City of Oakland have been doing an amazing job at preparing this multilingual 1st Community Engagement Meeting that will be held on June 7th from 10am-12pm in the Tennis Courts of San Antonio Park.