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The North Berkeley BART TOD project received its entitlement approvals from the City of Berkeley in December 2024.
Image Credit: David Baker Architects and Yes Community Architects
In close partnership with the City of Berkeley and a team of housing developers, BART is planning a welcoming transit-oriented development (TOD) at North Berkeley station, to complement the surrounding walkable neighborhood and the nearby commercial corridors on University Avenue and Sacramento Street.
The City of Berkeley laid the foundation for the project with an extensive community engagement process. Among the goals that residents of Berkeley identified for TOD at North Berkeley station were new homes affordable to people with a variety of incomes, limited non-residential uses (such as childcare or commuter-focused amenities) that help to reduce the need for driving, and a connection to the Ohlone Greenway serving people walking, rolling, and biking. The new homes and amenities will be built on about 8.2 acres of BART-owned land surrounding the station, including the main parking area.
Project Overview
The development team, North Berkeley Housing Partners (NBHP), is composed of three affordable housing nonprofits – BRIDGE Housing, East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC), and Insight Housing – and a market-rate developer, AvalonBay Communities. NBHP's website provides additional information about the TOD project.
The TOD will consist of five residential buildings built in phases. The entitled development plan anticipates replacing up to 120 spaces of BART parking within a publicly-accessible garage located in one of the new residential buildings. The two auxiliary parking lots located northwest of the project site contain 80 parking spaces and will continue to serve as BART parking.
Image courtesy of North Berkeley Housing Partners
Development Program
The TOD master plan includes the following:
- Housing
- Approximately 743 new homes
- Including 382 affordable homes
- 178 resident parking spaces for the AvalonBay project
- 728 bike parking spaces
- Approximately 743 new homes
- Community or Retail Uses
- 2,000 sq. ft. ground floor commercial space
- 57,420 sq. ft. publicly accessible open space
- 2,940 sq. ft. childcare center
- Access Improvements
- Up to 120 BART rider parking spaces
- 2,190 sq. ft. BART bicycle parking area in the ground floor of a residential building
- Ohlone Greenway connection: new segment of multi-modal trail that runs from southeast corner of the site to the northwest corner of the site
Timeline
2025
- The Exclusive Negotiating Agreement (ENA) between NBHP and BART was extended by 1 year
2024
- Project received planning and entitlement approval from the City of Berkeley.
- City of Berkeley approved the Affordable Housing Compliance Plan for the North Berkeley BART TOD.
2023
- BART signed a two-year Exclusive Negotiating Agreement (ENA) with NBHP.
- NBHP pursued entitlements and refined project plans.
- City adopted Objective Design Standards that include the North Berkeley BART site.
2022
- City and BART signed a Memorandum of Agreement, which included the City’s commitment of affordable housing subsidy for phases that produce new affordable housing units.
- Berkeley City Council and the BART Board unanimously approved the Joint Vision and Priorities for the TOD.
- City adopted updated zoning and General Plan amendments that support TOD at the site.
2020
- BART Board and Berkeley City Council adopted City-BART Memorandum of Understanding (MOU).
2019
- Goals for TOD were established for North Berkeley station and were unanimously approved by Berkeley City Council.
- City of Berkeley and BART developed a Memorandum of Understanding.
2018
- State adopted AB 2923 BART zoning requirements.
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 Melissa Jeng; Principal Property Development Officer at [email protected]
Archives
Community Advisory Group (CAG)
Under the terms of the 2020 MOU, BART and the City of Berkeley worked closely from mid-2020 to December 2021 with a City Council-appointed Community Advisory Group (CAG) through public meetings to lay the foundation for development at both the Ashby BART and North Berkeley stations. The CAG addressed issues of affordable housing, land use, station access, building form, and new public spaces that would benefit the current and future residents as well as BART riders. The eight CAG meetings were public and were complemented by three community meetings, where the general public provided input on development priorities for the Ashby and North Berkeley stations.
City Affordable Housing Funding Reservation
In April 2021, the Berkeley City Council provisionally reserved $53 million of City-controlled funds as the subsidy needed to achieve a minimum of 35% affordable housing at the Ashby and North Berkeley BART TODs. Of that amount, the City has reserved $26.5 million for the affordable housing phases within the North Berkeley BART TOD.
BART’s Corridor Access Plan
The Berkeley-El Cerrito Corridor Access Plan, completed in 2023, provided a rare opportunity to comprehensively analyze how those residents in Berkeley, El Cerrito, Richmond, Albany, Kensington, Emeryville, and Oakland who currently drive and park at the El Cerrito Plaza, North Berkeley, and Ashby stations could continue to access BART along the corridor once TOD is built on the existing parking lots. The plan recommends balancing BART rider parking, which is expensive and occupies a lot of space, with transportation options that enhance community vibrancy and safety.
Developer Solicitation Materials
NBHP's full response to Request for Qualifications (RFQ), Aug. 2022
NBHP's Preliminary Development Concept excerpted from RFQ response, Aug. 2022