OAKLAND — An affordable housing development with dozens of residences could sprout in Oakland on the site of the fatal Ghost Ship fire catastrophe nearly eight years ago, city, planning documents show.
The Unity Council is eyeing a possible affordable housing project at the corner of International Boulevard and 31st Avenue in East Oakland, the municipal public records show.
The project envisions a 58-unit development on the property, according to the Oakland city planning files.
The Unity Council, acting through an affiliate, bought the site in May 2023, paying $2.56 million for the fire-wrecked property, Alameda County real estate documents show. The affiliate bought three parcels with addresses of 3073 International Boulevard, 1315 31st Avenue and 1305 31st Avenue.
At the time of the purchase, Local Initiatives Support Corp. provided $4.5 million in financing to the Unity Council affilate to help the community organization complete its acquisition, the county records show.
Now, the Unity Council has filed a preliminary proposal to seek Oakland’s approval for the development of a five-story affordable housing project on the site, which is in the city’s Fruitvale district.
The nonprofit organization, which officially is known as the Spanish Speaking Unity Council, is using provisions of SB 330 to pursue a streamlined approval process for the proposed development.
In 2016, a fire broke in a warehouse known as the Ghost Ship during a music concert, a blaze that killed 36 people, making it the deadliest fire in Oakland’s history. The building had been illegally converted into an artists colony with living spaces.
The fire triggered a criminal prosecution, and settlements of lawsuits brought by a victim who survived and the families of the 36 who were killed in the blaze. The city of Oakland agreed to a settlement of a civil lawsuit, agreeing to pay $33 million. PG&E settled a separate civil lawsuit for an undisclosed amount.
The Unity Council’s current development proposal envisions a 100% affordable housing project.
Some units would be set aside for low-income residents and some units would be set aside for very-low-income residents, the city documents show.
The potential time frame for the construction of the project wasn’t immediately known. The city review process is in its very early stages.
The fire-damaged Ghost House Structure on 31st Avenue was demolished with no fanfare in May 2023, according to the Unity Council.
