Restore Oakland’s Cleveland Cascade

Restore Oakland's Cleveland Cascade

The Cleveland Cascade was born in Oakland, California, in 1923, conceived and midwifed by noted landscape architect Howard Gilkey.

A stunning Italian-inspired water feature, it hugged the steep hill, falling almost into Lake Merritt from the Cleveland Heights hill above. Water spilled from bowl to bowl, illuminated at night by colored lights ordered in rainbow sequence.

Two flights of steps, flanking the Cascade on the left and right, ascend the hill. Today these steps are heavily trafficked by walkers, runners, and even more-extreme exercisers.

Goal: Restore the Cascade
The Cascade’s underlying concrete structure was in great shape (for an 81 year old). Between the artifacts we retrieved and the photographs we have found, we feel confident we have enough information to create historically accurate reproductions of the missing pieces.

The beauty of that ALA photograph, our love for our neighborhood, the great progress we so quickly made, and the encouraging condition of the Cascade’s foundation combined to unite us behind the obvious ultimate goal: We want to restore the Cleveland Cascade to its original flowing-water gurgling vitality!

The information above can be found on the official website of Restore Oakland’s Cleveland Cascade. For more details about the organization and to find out how you can volunteer, please visit their website: http://www.clevelandcascade.org

This entry was posted in Community Development, East Bay, Oakland. Bookmark the permalink.