Crescent Grove

Crescent Grove (Ruby Street Apartments) is a publicly funded, 72-unit housing project between Castro Valley and Hayward in Alameda County. The project introduces much-needed affordable housing while preserving a riparian corridor along San Lorenzo Creek and creating a public creekside trail. Area motifs, materials, and colors are incorporated into the apartments’ design and ease them into the low-density residential context.

Crescent Grove serves families earning between 20% and 60% area median income, with 15 apartments dedicated for individuals and families exiting homelessness, 15 apartments for veterans, and 10 for people with disabilities. Sustainability features include infrastructure for EV charging, a bioretention area, solar photovoltaics, and solar water heating.

The project preserves a majority of its 6.3-acre site as open space. Allocations have been made for a public access point and a creekside easement extending the Bay Trail to Don Castro Park. The primary frontage along Ruby Street will connect three- and four-story residential wings that themselves frame a creek-facing residential courtyard. Two parking lots accommodate residents while extending the riparian zone tree canopy.