OAKLAND, CALIF. — Healthcare behemoth Kaiser Permanente has unveiled plans to build a new headquarters dubbed The Kaiser Permanente Thrive Center in downtown Oakland. Local developer Lane Partners will break ground on the project in 2020 with a planned opening slated for 2023. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that the $900 million office tower will rise 29 stories.
The new campus will consolidate 7,200 Kaiser Permanente employees who are currently working in seven different locations around Northern California. Situated at 2100 Telegraph Ave., the new building will span 1.6 million square feet of office space and will reduce the company’s operational costs by more than $60 million annually, according to Bernard Tyson, chairman and CEO of Kaiser Permanente.
The building’s design is set to include dedicated space for a health clinic and health education, healthy food options and 20,000 square feet of public space for weekly farmers markets, exercise and cooking classes and a showplace for community-inspired art. Lane Partners is aiming to achieve LEED Platinum certification for Thrive Center.
Kaiser Permanente is the largest private employer in Oakland, and Lane Partners estimates that the new building, which was formerly known as Eastline, will generate a one-time $23 million economic benefit for the city in addition to more than $15 million annually in local tax revenues.
The 29-story campus will consolidate 7,200 Kaiser Permanente employees who are currently working in seven different locations around Northern California.
“Kaiser Permanente has been an anchor in Oakland’s community for more than 70 years,” says Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf. “We are so pleased that this organization has reaffirmed its commitment to Oakland with this decision to establish a new headquarters, a central home for its employees and a place for our community to connect and thrive.”
Over the coming months, Kaiser Permanente will engage its employees and the Oakland community in the planning and development of its new location, as well as in seeking best uses for public spaces in the building. The San Francisco Chronicle reports that Lane Partner’s joint venture partner for this project is Strategic Urban Development Alliance LLC, an Oakland-based company that is self-described as a development and construction management firm. The newspaper also reports the City of Oakland owns portion of the development site, and sale of that portion requires Oakland City Council approval.
The East Bay Times reports that Kaiser Permanente will pay construction costs and will own the building upon completion. Lane Partners plans to acquire the existing buildings currently owned by Kaiser Permanente for renovation and commercial use.
Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente, a manage care system, currently serves 12.3 million members in eight states and Washington, D.C. As of year-end 2018, the company employed more than 217,712 people, including physicians, nurses, administrators, technicians, researchers and other faculty members.
— John Nelson