When:
October 22, 2007, 10 AM

What:
Groundbreaking Presentation

Where:
Water Street between Harrison & Webster in Jack London Square

Who: 
Senator Don Perata, Oakland City Council President Ignacio De La
Fuente, Port of Oakland officials and Jack London Square Investors

October 16, 2007– Oakland, CA – The Bay Area’s sustainable food movement and cuisine culture will receive a huge boost and a new home at Jack London Square. Jack London Square Investors will hold a groundbreaking ceremony to launch its next phase of the one million square foot Jack London Square redevelopment, including a 170,000 sf mixed use building that will house the Jack London Market and waterfront offices. The public market will be the largest on the West Coast.

Located on Oakland’s historic waterfront, Jack London Market will be a crossroads of California’s agriculture, culinary creativity and cultural diversity, where food lovers will experience a mix of local produce, fresh foods, restaurants, ethnic bistros, special events and cuisine-related businesses.

“The history of California is a history of food, and Oakland has always played a central role in this relationship,” said Jim Ellis of Ellis Partners LLC, the developer of the project. “Our goal was to create the largest and most authentic public market on the West Coast. While Pike Place of Seattle and Granville of Vancouver are strong reference points for us, what we are building here will be an unprecedented model for bringing together the best local artisan food, gourmet cuisine and sustainable agriculture businesses,” he added.

The Jack London Market will rise six stories and feature local produce and artisan foods with fresh meat and fish halls on the first floor. It will also house ethnic bistros and fine dining on the second floor; culinary businesses and a professional chefs’ kitchen on the third floor; and Class A office space on the top four floors.

Oakland has been home to the food industry ever since the first tomato canneries were established in the early 1900s; by the 1930’s Oakland was the leading port on the Pacific Coast for canning and shipping of food stuffs. More recently, Oakland’s central location and proximity to the Bay Area gourmet market has stimulated the growth of many new small and medium sized food businesses.

“We are creating a regional destination for cuisine, culture and commerce that establishes an important tie among a celebrated culinary community, the diversity of cultures that represent Oakland and the East Bay — all within a vibrant working waterfront,” adds Jim Falaschi, of Jack London Square Investors and a long-time investor and visionary of the Jack London Square redevelopment.

The well-known and respected slow food icon, Renato Sardo will serve as the food and wine consultant to the Jack London Market. A native of Italy and Board Member of Slow Food International, Renato established the Advisory Board for the Jack London Market that identified six core values of the project:

• Sustainability
• Innovation
• Support of local producers and retailers
• Involving and serving the local community
• Educating the public
• Diversity

“With these core values in place, the Jack London Market promises to be the first Bay Area marketplace and food destination that is both values-driven and financially successful,” said Sardo. He added, “Our purveyors will be role models for the world and will demonstrate that they can succeed while adhering to principles of responsible behavior towards the environment, working practices and Oakland’s local, diverse community.”

The top four floors of the Jack London Market building will provide a waterfront office environment with world class architecture. The building, to be located between Harrison and Webster at Water Street in Oakland, will host an opportunity for businesses to be located within the Jack London District. The district now features significant housing that has been and continues to be added, along with exceptional access to local and regional transportation.

Jack London Square Investors estimate the Jack London Market will open for business in early 2009. When opened, it will join a thriving collection of quality waterfront offices, a world-class hotelier, Joie de Vivre, and revitalized retail space for exciting locally-based food artisans, purveyors and related retail uses.

About Ellis Partners:
Ellis Partners LLC (www.ellispartners.com) was founded in 1993 for the purpose of acquiring and developing commercial real estate properties. The firm has a long history of championing and completing architecturally significant renovation and development projects.