The Cathedral of Christ the Light resonates as a place of worship and conveys an inclusive statement of welcome and openness as the community's symbolic soul. The glass, wood, and concrete structure ennobles and inspires through the use of light, material, and form.

Project Facts

Completion Year: 2008
Site Area: 2.50 acres
Project Area: 250,000 ft²
Building Height: 136 ft
Number of Stories: 1

Project Awards

2009 • AIA • National Honor Award for Architecture
2009 • AIA - East Bay • Honor Award
2009 • AIA - San Francisco Chapter • Excellence in Architecture: Honor Award
2009 • D&AD British Design and Art Direction • Annual National Award
2009 • Forest Products Society • Wood Engineering Innovation Award
2009 • International Interior Design Association • Best of Competition
2009 • International Interior Design Association • Interior Design Award
2009 • International Interior Design Association - Northern California Chapter • Best in Show
2009 • International Interior Design Association - Northern California Chapter • Honor Award
2009 • Pro AV Magazine • Pro AV Spotlight Award (led by Shen Milsom Wilke, Inc.)
2009 • San Francisco Business Times • Best Community Impact - Inner East Bay
2009 • San Francisco Business Times • Best East Bay Public or Cultural Space
2009 • Society for Environmental Graphic Design • Honor Award
2009 • Structural Engineers Association of Illinois • Jurors' Favorite Honor Award
2009 • Structural Engineers Association of Northern California • Award of Excellence: Large Project, Landmark Structures Category
2009 • WoodWorks • California Wood Design Award: Landmark Category
2008 • California Construction Magazine • Outstanding Architectural Design
2008 • California Construction Magazine • Overall Top Project
2008 • McGraw-Hill Construction • Best of the Best Award
2008 • treehugger.com • "Ten of the World's Most Beautiful Green Buildings"
2008 • Wallpaper Magazine • Best Building Site of the Year
2008 • Wood Design & Building Magazine • Wood Design Awards: Honor Award
2007 • American Concrete Institute - Northern California and Western Nevada Chapter • Regional Architecture Award for Use of Concrete
2003 • AIA - San Francisco Chapter • Unbuilt Design Award

The Cathedral of Christ the Light resonates as a place of worship and instills a sense of solace, spiritual renewal and respite from the secular world—it provides be a sanctuary in the broadest sense of the word. Located in downtown Oakland, and composed of an 1,350-seat sanctuary with side chapels, a baptistery and dependencies, the cathedral honors its religious and civic obligations to both the Catholic Diocese and the city.

With a building form based on an inner wooden vessel contained within a veil of glass—both of which are anchored on an architectural concrete base—the design conveys an inclusive statement of welcome and openness as the community’s symbolic soul. The design achieves an extraordinary level of lightness and luminosity through the highly innovative use of modest materials and sustainable design strategies.

The Cathedral is part of a larger complex woven together by gardens by landscape architects Peter Walker and Partners. Praising its design as well as its cultural and civic role within the city, the Oakland Planning Commission granted unanimous approval of the project in 2004. Construction began in spring 2005 and was completed in 2008.