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Rocky Rische-Baird Mural Shown August 9th - Oakland Heritage Alliance And SKS Investments



I got this interesting release which I'll show below as it's chocked full of information. It's on an event to take place this Saturday at 11 in the morning at the old Key System building at 11th Street and Broadway in downtown Oakland.

Here's the info:

The Oakland Heritage Alliance along with SKS Investments are unveiling a new mural by artist Rocky Rische-Baird at the site of the historic Key System building in downtown Oakland to commemorate the innovative mass transit system that once served communities throughout the Bay Area.

The 20-by-80-foot mural will be installed at the base of the former Key System building at 1100 Broadway. As part of the redevelopment of the 1100 Broadway site, SKS Investments will restore and preserve the facade of the neo-classical structure which will be integrated into a new 20-story tower that will provide 310,000-square-feet of Class A office space and 10,000-square-feet of ground-floor retail. Upon the start of construction at the site, the mural will be dismantled and auctioned as part of a fundraiser in support of the Oakland Heritage Alliance.

The mural project was the result of a partnership between the Oakland Heritage Alliance, SKS Investments, Swinerton Builders, KMD Architects, Colliers International and the CIM Group/Oakland Marriott City Center which all donated to funds for Rische-Baird’s painting.

“We are very pleased to have had the opportunity to commission this important new artwork from Rocky Rische-Baird,” said Paul Stein, a managing partner at SKS Investments. “It is only fitting that this mural celebrates the Key System at the former headquarters of an innovative transit system that moved thousands of residents around the Bay Area each day. Our development at 1100 Broadway is designed to continue what the Key System started a century ago by encouraging mass transit usage through smart and responsible urban planning.”

A press conference will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, August 9, 2008 at the Key System building at 11th Street and Broadway in downtown Oakland to unveil the mural design.

The Key System operated from 1903 to 1960, serving the cities of Oakland, San Francisco, Berkeley, Alameda, Emeryville, Piedmont, San Leandro, Richmond, Albany and El Cerrito. Much of the system’s territory is served today by AC Transit and BART.

1100 Broadway is sited directly above the 12th Street/City Center BART Station and is one block from 20 AC Transit bus lines. The development will sit near the I-880 and I-980 freeways along a commute corridor used by a large segment of the Bay Area’s highly educated workforce.

“We, along with a number of other highly regarded institutional investors, recognize Oakland’s tremendous potential as a model for urban sustainability and livability,” said Mr. Stein. “Downtown Oakland offers a wealth of cultural amenities, transportation options, and proximity to some of the Bay Area’s best residential neighborhoods and has become one of the Bay Area’s most dynamic urban centers.”

“We are thrilled that publications like The New York Times, San Francisco Magazine, Outdoor Magazine and Bon Appetit have all recently reported on the trends and developments that make Oakland such a wonderful place to live.” said Deborah Acosta with the City of Oakland’s Community and Economic Development Agency. “This mural and the restoration of the Key System building are additional examples of the authentic urban experience that differentiates Oakland from so many other cities.”

The mural will be completed by Mr. Rische-Baird over three months and depicts passengers boarding an iconic Key System orange-colored train at a station. Work on the mural is scheduled to start in August 2008. This is the second mural by Mr. Rische-Baird commemorating the Key System.


“My basic vision of this project is to place a bit of past upon the present.” said Mr. Rische-Baird. “I have always been interested in the repetitive nature of history and the reasons of nostalgia. It has been said that if a society were truly satisfied with their present then nostalgia would not exist. I don't know if I completely agree with that, but the Key Route System, and the strong sentiments felt for it, offer a compelling example towards that argument. If the idea of implementing an efficient, electric rail system that would run throughout neighborhoods were put forth today in our current environmental nutshell, it would be regarded as a long overdue act of wisdom.”


Mr. Rische-Baird’s work is currently on exhibit at the Esteban Sabar Galley in Oakland through August 25th and his art can be viewed online at www.rische-baird.com.“Working with the Oakland Heritage Alliance and SKS on this project has been an absolute pleasure,” he said. “They are a group with real creative vision and it makes the whole artistic process all the more inspiring.”

For more information on 1100 Broadway visit www.1100broadway.com.

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