Project Details Page

synopsis

The Olmsted Brothers designed the subdivision of Lake Shore Highlands in 1917. The firm was hired by real estate developer Wickham Havens to design the residential community in Oakland, CA and also to create a “plan for a portion of a tract of land of seventeen thousand acres, more or less known as Palos Verdes.”

The Olmsted Brothers designed the subdivision of Lake Shore Highlands in 1917. The firm was hired by real estate developer Wickham Havens to design the residential community in Oakland, CA and also to create a “plan for a portion of a tract of land of seventeen thousand acres, more or less known as Palos Verdes.” (job 05950) [J.M. Dawson to Walter Leimart_04-17-1914_LOC-OAR-B-R275_im.16] The uniqueness of the Oakland project laid with the fact that land was “topographically divided into three sections, namely, the valley called Indian Gulch; the steep slopes and plateau south of the valley, and the ridge or spur north of the valley to Mandana Boulevard in the next valley northward” [J.M. Dawson to Walter Leimart_04-17-1914_LOC-OAR-B-R275_im.25] The final design accommodated these grading differences by creating new roads and entry points. The layout resulted in 20 tracts, each with several single-family homes within them.

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