Updated January 2026
Latest News
Construction of the first building in the El Cerrito Plaza TOD broke ground in November 2025.
Construction for this phase will take approximately two years and create 70 family affordable homes.
The developer team of Holliday Development, Related California, and Satellite Affordable Housing Associates (SAHA) will be delivering a multi-phase TOD at the El Cerrito Plaza Station. The TOD will consist of six buildings, delivered in phases.
Once complete, the TOD will transform surface parking lots into 743 new homes, new public open space, and possibly space for a new public library. Approximately half of the homes will be affordable to residents.
The TOD is expected to provide about 145 garage spaces dedicated to BART riders. Future TOD residents will have access to about 260 dedicated vehicle parking spaces and 1,100 secure bike parking spaces, including spaces for cargo/family bikes. Additionally, the City of El Cerrito is working on a parking management plan that will allow BART riders who drive to pay to park on-street.
Site plan for the development
Preparing for Development
To prepare for development of its surface parking lots at El Cerrito Plaza, BART worked extensively with the City of El Cerrito to engage the community, develop a community vision for the TOD, and conduct analysis. This included many efforts, such as:
2023
- Berkeley - El Cerrito Corridor Access Plan (2023): Summarized BART rider access needs and strategies corridor-wide as BART prepares for TOD at the El Cerrito Plaza, North Berkeley, and Ashby BART stations. More information can be found at www.bart.gov/beccap.
2022
- City of El Cerrito adopted the San Pablo Avenue Specific Plan Update
2021
- El Cerrito Plaza TOD BART Goals & Objectives (2021): Defined the community vision for TOD, which was adopted by El Cerrito City Council and the BART Board of Directors.
- El Cerrito Plaza On-Street Parking Study (2021): Feasibility study for a city-led parking management program in the El Cerrito Plaza station vicinity to preserve resident and visitor parking access while allowing BART riders to pay for parking on-street.
2020
- Parking Management Case Studies Memo (2020): Described approaches to municipal parking management in other semi-urban contexts. Revenue and expense data from these case studies informed the El Cerrito Plaza On-Street Parking Study.
- BART conducted competitive developer solicitation process and BART Board authorized selection of the Holliday/Related/SAHA team.
2019
- El Cerrito Plaza Station Existing Conditions Report (2019): Provided information about current patterns of use at El Cerrito Plaza Station.
- El Cerrito Plaza BART Station Access Survey Results (2019): This survey collected information from BART customers who regularly use the El Cerrito Plaza BART station.
2018
- Memorandum of Understanding between BART and the City of El Cerrito (2018): Established preliminary goals for the TOD and the roles and responsibilities of BART and the City of El Cerrito.
View Frequently Asked Questions (last updated November 2023)
The Development team
On November 19, 2020, the BART Board selected the developer team of Holliday Development, Related California, and Satellite Affordable Housing Associates (SAHA) to advance transit-oriented development following a competitive Request for Qualifications process.
Stay updated
To sign up for updates from the BART TOD program, including future solicitations for developers, visit BART's online Profile Center at cloud.info.bart.gov/signup; enter your info in steps 1 and 2; then under "Other" in step 3, check the Transit Oriented Development Projects box.
For any project-specific inquiries, please contact Matt Lewis; Principal Property Development Officer at [email protected]
Archive:
Developer Solicitation Materials
Responses to the developer Request for Qualifications RFQ were due September 9, 2020. The following solicitation-related documents are in PDF unless otherwise noted.
- Phase I Environmental Site Assessment (July 9, 2020, 66 MB)
- Request for Qualifications (RFQ) (July 21, 2020, 5 MB)
- RFQ Questions and Answers (August 20, 2020, 0.2 MB)
- RFQ Addendum (August 28, 2020, 5 MB)
- Pre-submittal conference on August 4, 2020:
- Community Outreach
Community Outreach
BART staff have actively engaged the surrounding community and riders for comment and input on the El Cerrito Plaza TOD project since 2019. Community engagement on the TOD is now being led by BART's selected developer team of Holliday Development and Related. You may sign up for information from them at https://elcerritotod.squarespace.com/sign-up.
Below is a schedule of past events, starting with the most recent. (Note: some links are external to BART’s website)
| Date | Description | Resources |
| November 5, 2025 | In station outreach in preparation for first phase of construction | N/A |
| April 26, 2025 | GO GREEN! Mobility Fair | N/A |
| January 17, 2024 | City of El Cerrito Planning Commission -- Design Review Board joint advisory session on master plan | Link to meeting materials |
| February 23, 2023 | City of El Cerrito Design Review Board advisory review of first phase of TOD, Parcel A South | Link to meeting materials |
| September 7, 2022 | City of El Cerrito Planning Commission - Design Review Board joint study session on master plan | Link to meeting materials |
| July 20, 2022 | Station pop-up event, sponsored by developer team with BART and City | Link to meeting materials |
| October 12, 2021 | BART public meeting on options for riders getting to and from the El Cerrito Plaza BART station | Video of the community meeting |
| August 17, 2021 | El Cerrito City Council - Planning Commission study session on the El Cerrito Plaza BART Station | Link to meeting materials |
| May 25, 2021 | El Cerrito Community Meeting | Link to meeting materials |
| May 4, 2021 | El Cerrito City Council meeting | Link to meeting materials |
| January 9 2020 | BART Board Meeting for TOD Goals and Objectives | |
| November 19, 2019 | El Cerrito City Council Meeting for TOD Goals and Objectives | Link to meeting materials |
| October 3, 2019 | Community open house to inform TOD Goals and Objectives for El Cerrito Plaza, and discuss parking, transportation, and station access | Link to meeting materials |
| August 14, 2019 | El Cerrito Plaza TOD Open House Station Access and Parking Replacement | Link to meeting materials |
BART also did extensive outreach and community engagement in El Cerrito for the Berkeley - El Cerrito Corridor Access Plan, which includes the El Cerrito Plaza BART station.