A Park for the People

Pop City

Somewhere, Mary Schenley is smiling.

Nestled in the heart of central Oakland, a 4.5-acre green oasis bears the name of the 19th-century Pittsburgh heiress who shocked the world and stoked the ire of Queen Victoria by eloping at the age of 15 with a British army captain nearly 30 years her senior. But on a recent, late-summer afternoon, the newly transformed Schenley Plaza — for decades a barren 240-space parking lot — provided the perfect calming antidote to the bustling commotion of one of the city’s busiest neighborhoods. A stunning transformation, for certain. Mary would be pleased. Read full article