Presenters: Jordan Klein, Director of Planning & Development, and Alisa Shen, Principal Planner, City of Berkeley

Update on efforts to plan for development at the Ashby and North Berkeley BART Stations.

The City, in partnership with BART, has been working for the past year to develop a statement of joint vision and priorities for development, zoning for the station areas, a request for qualifications to recruit development partners, and more. City staff will provide an update on the process, timeline, community engagement efforts, and next steps.

The City’s interest in BART station development is both driven by changes in State law (giving BART additional powers on its station sites), as well as responding to the region’s recently adopted Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA).  The new requirements mandate Berkeley to amend the housing element in its general plan and create about 9,000 more units in various income levels in the next several years.

BDA has a long history in advocating for additional housing and density throughout the city, especially at transit-rich sites.