The 2022 ULI Hines Student Competition, taking place this year in Oakland, has announced four graduate teams from across the nation as finalists. This year’s competition asked students to create a plan for a mixed-use, mixed-income area in downtown Oakland. Key considerations included equity, housing affordability, access to neighborhood services, sustainability, and connectivity to surrounding neighborhoods. The finalists were chosen from 93 entries by a jury of 15 ULI members representing a broad variety of real estate and related disciplines, including ULI SF members Geeti Silwal, Lydia Tan, Riki Nishimura, Rod Roche, Stephanie Ting, and Tom Leader.

The four team selected as finalists are:

• From the Georgia Institute of Technology: LINKUP OAKLAND by Priyanka Shyamal Adhikari, Aparna Reghukumar, Kishore Kandasamy, Bea Wang, Yilun Zha. Fueled by Downtown Oakland’s long history of social inequities, racial injustice, and the resultant fractured development, LINKUP OAKLAND strives to become a pilot intervention in reinforcing historically significant and culturally imbued sites for Downtown Oakland and reestablishing the links for an equitable, inclusive, and well-connected Oakland. The team envisions the proposal to strengthen the links of historical importance, allow for cultural diversity, strive for ecological sustainability, and become an economic backbone for the whole of Oakland.
• From Harvard University: JUST OAKLAND by Radhakrishnan Thanjavur Ramakrishnan, Saad Boujane, Siddarth Somana, Pranav Thole, Chandani Patel. JUST OAKLAND places equity at the center of the design to reframe the relationship of divisive infrastructures within the BIPOC community. The freeway is reframed to connect the neighborhood and activate the site to become a resource center and place for justice. The mixed-use development is anchored by cultural expression, affordable housing, and health that drive the growth of the site as a model for marginalized neighborhoods.
• From the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Harvard University: Konstellation by Vladimir Bogdashkin, Jin Gao, Akrisht Pandey, and Nwakaego Uzoh from MIT; and Boya Zhou from Harvard University. Through integrative site design and equitable community services, Konstellation seeks to create a connected and cohesive neighborhood that reflects the broad history and culture of Old Oakland.
• From the University of Texas at Austin: The Stack by Sanket Kamdar, Sophia Aitken, Margaret Gallagher, Alay Thakrar, and Kent Carlson. The Stack supports three pillars: health, culture, and connection. This LEED Platinum, transit-oriented development would create a thriving, diverse, and integrated community reflective of Oakland’s culture and would be a catalyst for uplifting the city’s vulnerable residents. The Stack’s ambitious proposal transforms the area into a cultural and transit hub with a mission-driven, mixed-use program that drives positive social change for Oakland.

The competition simulates a design, planning, and development scenario – and reflects Oakland’s desire to make its downtown district a dynamic place that serves all residents. The four teams will advance to the final round of the competition April 7. The winning team will receive a $50,000 prize, with $5,000 of the total going to the university or universities the team represents. Each of the remaining three finalist teams will receive $10,000. During the last phase of the competition, the finalist teams will have the opportunity to expand their original projects and provide more detail for their plans. The finalists will tour the site on March 4 and rehearse their presentations on March 18 before making their pitch in the finals three weeks later.

Proposals from nine teams received Honorable Mention recognition: The VIBE from the University of California, Berkeley; Tapestry from the University of Miami; The Stitch from University of Cincinnati; CIRCUIT from Cornell University; Scion from the University of Pennsylvania; The Roots from The Ohio State University; MOSAIC from Ryerson University, University of Toronto, and University of Miami; Seize the Freeway from the Georgia Institute of Technology; and Common Roots from Harvard University.

Congratulations to the finalists, and a job well done to hundreds of students that participated in this year’s competition. We look forward to the final presentations and celebrating the finalists at a reception following the close of the competition on April 7th!

You can find a full press release and more information about this year’s competition here.