Oakland Memorial Park

On October 17, 1989 at 5:04 pm the Loma Prieta earthquake rocked the Bay Area. Measuring 7.1 in magnitude, the earth shook for 15 seconds. In those 15 seconds a section of the Bay Bridge fell, a fire began in the Marina and on this site, the two tiered Cypress freeway collapsed, killing some outright and trapping others in the cars as the top portion fell sandwiching them between the layers. Before the dust settled volunteers from the neighborhood began scaling the protruding rebar and rubble to aid, comfort and free the survivors, This Oakland Memorial Park is a memorial to the people who died as a result of the Cypress collapse, and a grateful remembrance to the neighborhood for their heroic action in the minutes and hours following the quake. In an even larger context it is a thank you to the people who came from all over the country to offer their assistance or sent donations. As a result of this disaster a nation wide rapid alert system was created.

"Towers of shaky ladders were held together by duct tape."

The Community's Response

The Loma Prieta earthquake sent undulating waves through the community as if, as one person commented, "Mother Nature was shaking her hips". These ripples have been re-created in the rolling landscape of the park. The arcs of the reminiscent text, the ripples of planting, and the flowering trees bring life to this sacred ground. The "15 seconds” wall announces the site to the passer-by. The three curved ladders in the plaza are both literal and symbolic. They represent the ladders the community threw up against the fragile structure in the rescue efforts. Symbolically they stand for hope, the community spirit rising from the dust. The creation of this park is to honor all who died, all who came, all who helped, and all who took this tragedy and lifted it up with their spirit. It is a park to be walked, read, a place to sit, to gather, and remember.

”People from the neighborhood threw up any old ladder they could find and climbed up onto the collapsed freeway to help those trapped."

"It was very quiet."

"When the quake stopped a rain of concrete dust obscured everything."

The Park

The overall design of the park reflects the community's rememberances about the ground moving in waves. Waves, undulations, ripples and arcs form the general layout with the "epicenter” being Story Plaza at the corner of Mandela Parkway and 14th Street. The wave like forms serve as a visual reminder of how the earth rolled during the earthquake. The Cypress Ladders rising from the circular dome of grass twist and undulate as they reach and dance skyward. Stories from the community, about the earthquake were shared with the design team led by April Philips Design Works and artists Gilman and Keefer. Words from these stories are imprinted in the paving as reflections of the community's shared experiences of this powerful event. An arced granite seatwall, ripples of planting, and wave shaped walls and ground forms continue the wave theme.