Lakeside

Lakeside is one of the most upscale neighborhoods that Oakland has to offer. It is located in the heart of the city, nestled in between Lake Merritt and Downtown Oakland. More specifically, the area encompasses 14th Street, Lakeside Drive and Webster Street The neighborhood is relatively clean-cut, busy and split evenly between residential quarters and commercial real-estate.

12th Street and 19th Street Bart Station lie just two blocks east of the neighborhood, feeding the out-of-town workforce with easy access to other parts of the Alameda district. There is also a rigorous bus system that loops around Lakeside Drive and 14th Street. Parking is a bit of a crapshoot in Lakeside. Although the neighborhood hosts a plethora of bulky public parking garages, free street parking and large sidewalks for the drive-in workforce.

Lakeside offers a plethora of well-groomed, newly built, three-story residential buildings, an abundance of mixed-use commercial facilities, multiple ground floor retail stores and a handful of historic high-rise apartment buildings. In recent years, housing developers have been chomping at the bit to develop new apartment skyscrapers, but the plan is the center of much controversy with Lakeside residents objecting to its size and relative mass.

The neighborhood has a relatively respectable school system. Lincoln Elementary School, Westlake Middle School and Oakland Technical High School all lie in its borders.