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404:, though a new gate has been installed. However, the rear section of the lot has become an abandoned junkyard. Adjacent to the building, there used to be an auto repair shed along the Chestnut Street line, and several small 1-story structures, including a 1956 concrete block addition, a 1939 frame bottle storage shed altered in 1946, are slated for demolition. Brick 1-story entry, storage, and mechanical rooms at the rear angle of the L-plan will be retained.
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To attract the car driving public, the hotel's owners added a "motorists patio" in 1933, with a separate entrance from the parking area directly to the lobby. Next to the patio was a garage building, a service station and a repair shop. An advertisement in the 1943 Oakland City
Directory described
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The hotel opened in difficult economic times. The hotel's first manager, Axel Bern, an experienced hotelier, was also an investor. Just four months after the grand opening, Bern was arrested and charged with disturbing the peace after a quarrel in the hotel's lobby. According to a story in the
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Since its inception, the structure has seen minimal changes. Initially intended as a 150-room commercial hotel with ground-floor commercial spaces and permanent units, the hotel/residential floors have remained vacant for the past twelve years. There are ongoing plans to rehabilitate and convert
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Each unit's bathroom features glazed ceramic tile wainscot in various color combinations, showcasing a range of unique designs. The building's roof, offering a 360° view, once hosted a neon-lit roof sign, "CALIFORNIA HOTEL," between the towers. The sign framework still stands, albeit empty and
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During World War II, the hotel was known for the blues, jazz and similar 'race music' being played in its ground floor bars and ballrooms. African
American patrons were denied rooms due to segregation, but they came in large numbers to hear the music. On January 16, 1953, new ownership took
389:, forming a polygonal lot resembling a flatiron with the tip cut off. The main arm of the L-plan contains a lobby, commercial spaces on the ground floor and mezzanine, and hotel units on the floors above. The northern arm extends 80 feet back from San Pablo, housing a balconied lobby and
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The
California Hotel opened its doors on May 18, 1930. A 5-story structure with mezzanine and penthouse, it was the tallest building in the area. It cost $ 265,000 to build the 150-room hotel with commercial space on the ground floor. Though situated
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After the 1960s, the hotel, as with many dedicated
African American institutions and businesses in the area, declined; black entertainers could now stay in any hotel, and patrons followed them to white-owned clubs and other venues.
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The San Pablo facade is a two-part vertical composition, divided into five bays with off-white stucco panels and featuring balconies resting on consoles. The storefronts maintain their original
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these floors into low-income housing. Despite being in a run-down condition with some missing ornaments and minor vandalism, the
California Hotel retains its original character, including tiled
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273:. The hotel attracted many high-profile black visitors to Oakland. At that time, it was the only full-service hotel that welcomed black people in the East Bay. The 1956 edition of
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miles from
Oakland's city center, the new hotel was within walking distance of the passenger stations for both the Santa Fe Railroad and the regional Key System streetcars.
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windows behind 1971 metal cladding, with bases clad in glossy black glazed ceramic tiles. The lobby windows, although altered, retain the original metal marquee and entry
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the hotel amenities as "commodious airy rooms, all with shower and tub baths, dining, banquet and meeting rooms, coffee shop and cocktail lounges, garage adjoining".
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In 2012, a start was made on restoring the building and in 2014, after a renovation costing $ 43 million, it was once more opened as low-rental housing.
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features two off-square towers, making it the tallest building in the vicinity. The ground floor houses a well-preserved original southwest-style
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rickety. Despite the wear and tear, the
California Hotel reflects its historic charm, awaiting potential restoration and revitalization efforts.
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control, and the hotel ended its discrimination policies. A grand "reopening" was held with invited guests that included
Oakland-born comedian
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By the 1970s, the hotel was in bad condition and was boarded up. In the 1980s, it was repaired and rented out as subsidized housing.
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The hotel was located at 3501 San Pablo Avenue, near major highways, and passing traffic was increased in 1937 by the opening of the
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415:. The lobby itself, though unfurnished, preserves its original design, including a mezzanine balcony, stenciled ceiling panels, a
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blocked the street view of the hotel but made it visible to hundreds of thousands of bridge commuters.
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The hotel parking lot, accessed through the original gateway on San Pablo Avenue, retains its brick
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room, apartment units on floors two through five, and a penthouse with observation towers.
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634:"Oakland celebrates groundbreaking for renovation of historic California Hotel"
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This article is about the building in
Oakland. For the hotel in Las Vegas, see
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and became an important cultural center for the
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African American entertainers who lodged and performed at the hotel included
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during the 1940s, 50s and 60s. On June 30, 1988, the hotel was placed on the
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524:"Oakland: California Hotel reopens as a home for low-income residents"
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The California Hotel, constructed in 1929–1930, is a 5-story and
650:"Renovation begins at historic California Hotel in West Oakland"
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334:, L-plan structure made of reinforced concrete, designed in the
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also lists five smaller, less sophisticated Oakland hotels.
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The building's L-plan spans approximately 214 feet along
500:"National Register of Historic Places Registration Form"
502:. National Register of Historic Places. January 1988
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Residential buildings in Alameda County, California
543:"Historic California Hotel Reopens In West Oakland"
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738:African-American segregation in the United States
733:African-American history in Oakland, California
703:Buildings and structures in Oakland, California
201:, hotel which opened in the early days of the
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708:Music venues in the San Francisco Bay Area
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583:Polk's Oakland, California City Directory
42:U.S. National Register of Historic Places
354:, complemented by off-white and painted
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346:and adjacent to the MacArthur Freeway (
239:. In 1962 construction of the elevated
477:. National Register of Historic Places
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698:Hotels in the San Francisco Bay Area
671:National Register of Historic Places
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211:National Register of Historic Places
640:, Yirmeyah Beckles, July 26, 2012
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728:Hotel buildings completed in 1930
718:1930 establishments in California
549:, May 16, 2014 By Anna Duckworth
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237:San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge
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624:, Victor H. Green and Co., 1956
612:, Volume 12, No. 1, Summer 1992
530:, May 15, 2014, By Matt O'Brien
610:Oakland Heritage Alliance News
336:Spanish Colonial Revival Style
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622:The Negro Motorist Green Book
452:San Francisco Bay Area portal
275:The Negro Motorist Green Book
23:United States historic place
18:California Hotel and Casino
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723:Hotels established in 1930
263:Eddie "Rochester" Anderson
97:3443–3501 San Pablo Ave.,
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358:trim. Notably, the north
171:NRHP reference
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207:San Francisco's East Bay
165:Spanish Colonial Revival
161:Architectural style
59:California Hotel in 2009
585:, RL Polk and Co. 1943
269:and acclaimed singer
652:. By Anna Gallegos,
561:, September 27, 1930
374:, a galvanized iron
127:37.8261°N 122.2785°W
573:, February 19, 1933
342:near the border of
338:. Situated in west
199:Oakland, California
123: /
85:Location in Oakland
667:"California Hotel"
528:Contra Costa Times
265:, boxing champion
132:37.8261; -122.2785
282:Big Mama Thornton
241:MacArthur Freeway
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101:, California
676:January 24,
506:November 6,
481:November 6,
425:Mayan-style
322:Description
302:Ray Charles
294:James Brown
130: /
118:122°16′43″W
106:Coordinates
692:Categories
438:References
409:Clerestory
400:and metal
344:Emeryville
286:B. B. King
271:Lena Horne
115:37°49′34″N
475:NPS Focus
421:Fireplace
332:penthouse
328:Mezzanine
298:Sam Cooke
290:Lou Rawls
267:Joe Louis
151:Architect
417:Terrazzo
413:lanterns
372:parapets
178:88000969
94:Location
391:Banquet
380:marquee
376:Cornice
340:Oakland
227:⁄
217:History
146:1929–30
99:Oakland
398:pylons
360:facade
356:Stucco
423:with
364:lobby
143:Built
678:2024
508:2015
483:2015
402:Arch
330:and
304:and
193:The
173:No.
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