Finding the Right Neighborhood for Your Family - A Guide to The East Bay’s Communities
February 13TH
The 31 neighborhoods that make up the East Bay each differ in what they offer their residents. Although they are different, no area is better than the other.
Selecting which East Bay neighborhood best fits your needs, wants, quality of life, and lifestyle is a very personal decision, and to help you with your research is a list of 11 out of the 31 East Bay neighborhoods and their notable features.
*The 20 remaining neighborhoods will be featured in two future blogs.
Oakland
Oakland is one of the most desirable cities in the entire Bay Area, and professionals with careers based in San Francisco are moving to Oakland for more than just rent control. “The Town” is full of local art, and culturally diverse cuisine, and has the perfect mix of that urban city life and calm suburbia.
“The Town” has welcomed growth and offers an appealing mix of brand-new housing options and charming single-family homes in walkable neighborhoods with access to BART. The burgeoning restaurant scene, numerous BART stations, annual cultural festivals, music venues, and local pride just add to Oakland’s growing appeal.
ADAMS POINT
Adams Point is situated just East of Uptown Oakland and North of Lake Merritt. This neighborhood offers all of the conveniences of living Downtown but is more family-friendly with great access to locally-owned cafes, restaurants, Oakland's parks playgrounds, and BART.
Despite its reputation as a hipster neighborhood, many young families here meet up with their kids at parks and community events and parks in the area. Three playgrounds, including the newly renovated Snow Park, are within a 20-minute walk; and Lake Merritt, the “crown jewel” of Oakland, provides Adams Point residents with three-plus miles of continuous waterfront access.
TEMESCAL
Situated just north of downtown Oakland near MacArthur BART Station, Temescal is one of the oldest neighborhoods in the City. You’ll find great restaurants down Temescal’s main drag, Telegraph Ave. but don’t forget to stop off in Temescal Alley where you can find an eclectic mix of local clothing boutiques and plant shops and a classic walk-in-only barbershop.
UPTOWN/DOWNTOWN
Oakland’s Uptown neighborhood has changed dramatically over the past decade. Oakland has taken a pro-development stance and multiple new high-rise builds now mix in with renovated warehouse lofts, indie boutiques, beer gardens, and treasured Art Deco event venues (Fox and Broadway Theaters) conveniently located within a ten-minute walk of the 19th Street BART station.
The Uptown is a mural-enhanced arts, entertainment, and foodie hub that’s only a 15-minute BART ride to SF’s FiDi and a 15-minute walk to Lake Merritt, Oakland’s recreational jewel.
Both the Uptown and Downtown neighborhoods in Oakland are among the few Bay Area neighborhoods where residents may easily live without a car. The 12th Street BART Station and the 12-block “City Center” are downtown Oakland's heart.
ROCKRIDGE
Rockridge is conveniently centered around Rockridge BART Station and College Avenue. Once a sleepy collection of cottage-style homes and bungalows with residents who preferred the quiet life, Rockridge has evolved into one of the most desirable neighborhoods in Oakland for a variety of reasons.
It’s a prime example of an urban-suburban mix that offers fine dining options, and an environment of cafes, groceries, and local bookstores. College Avenue is peppered with cafes specialty shoe stores, vintage clothing jewelry, and home decor boutiques. It also boasts several options for grocery shopping easily accessible to residents.
ALAMEDA
An island situated just off the shore south of Oakland is accessible by bridge, tunnel, and ferry, with the same family-friendly feel as parts of Oakland, without the price tag. This island city attracts many young families for its small-town vibe, beach areas (yes, beaches!), dog-friendly parks along the shore, good quality schools, and a safe and charming downtown.
Many professionals choose to live here and commute to SF via ferry, express bus, BART (via a bus transfer), or car. Any way you travel, you can usually get to the City within 25 minutes. Alameda has sweeping views of the SF skyline from the shoreline areas. There are many locally-owned restaurants, a weekend farmer’s market, and celebrated local breweries and distilleries from repurposed military warehouses.
BERKELEY
This medium-sized city is home to a large and diverse population of students, university staff and professors, families, and young professionals. The community has a deep love of the arts. There are multiple farmers' markets, a great network of libraries, and resources available in the city.
Notable features of this city are its unique historic buildings that are rich in architecture, its robust bus system served by AC Transit, and shuttles, and its extremely bicycle- and pedestrian-friendly street network. However, Berkeley’s best feature is the one it is famous for, it has a multitude of farm-to-table restaurants.
LAFAYETTE & Orinda
Lafayette and Orinda are renowned for their excellent schools, rolling hills, and quiet, peaceful residential neighborhoods. These towns have their own unique set of characteristics, school districts, and housing options but offer similar lifestyles and qualities of life. Orinda's town center has two sides bisected by Highway 24 and the Orinda BART Station. On one side, you’ll find a small commercial district, a community large park, a golf course, access to the San Pablo reservoir, and a recreation center. On the other side, you’ll find a cinema, local shops, restaurants, and cafes that anchor Orinda’s community.
Lafayette is also served by a BART Station but unlike Orinda, Lafayette has had better success over the years in developing housing around BART. This makes Lafayette popular for families and young professionals (those who wish to work in SF but like the slower pace of life) alike. Lafayette has a sizable, picturesque downtown with plenty of shopping, dining, and grocery stores centered along Mt. Diablo Blvd.
WALNUT CREEK
Walnut Creek is a bustling regional hub in the greater East Bay, making it a great option for those who work in San Francisco but want the quiet comfort and space of a suburban center. This large city is centrally located and offers highway and two BART connections to Oakland and San Francisco.
Walnut Creek is known for its active downtown, shopping, and dining, but the city is beloved by its residents for its quaint neighborhoods, access to parks and open space, and high-quality schools.
Piedmont
Piedmont is an incredibly desirable city. With Oakland's historic Grand Lake District to the southwest, the Montclair District to the northeast, and the Crocker Highlands and Glenview Districts to the south, Piedmont is an almost entirely residential city with a very small commercial area and precious few multi-family dwellings.
Once dubbed “the City of Millionaires,” Piedmont’s early 20th-century mansions still stand among larger, architecturally unique, and pricier homes that draw executives looking for luxury, prestige, and high-quality education for their children. These top-rated public schools have a private school feel, they are some of the highest-rated public schools in the Bay Area.
Fremont
Fremont is the fourth most populous city in the Bay and provides the easiest access by car to Silicon Valley. It also boasts a BART line and two stations (with a third on the way) into San Francisco. Fremont is so south in the East Bay that some consider it a part of Silicon Valley, and is a multicultural community rich in history and taking pride in its diversity and contributions to the Bay Area scene. Tesla and Kaiser have campuses here employing thousands of Bay Area residents.
Fremont is separated into distinct neighborhoods that offer quite different lifestyles, price points, and housing options: from the Mission Valley, Warm Springs, and Weibel Mission Hills neighborhoods to the flatter parts of the city located near the Dumbarton bridge, so it is good to have a guide when looking for homes here.