Ashby and North Berkeley BART Station Planning 

Planning is underway to re-imagine the Ashby and North Berkeley BART stations as vibrant places that include housing, open space and community amenities.  Both sites are owned by the San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART).  The City of Berkeley is working with BART to develop zoning and site planning parameters for the station areas that reflect a shared community vision.  After the zoning is complete, BART, as the property owner, will choose the developer and oversee construction of any projects at their stations.

Project Overview | Project Timeline | Community Process and Community Advisory Group (CAG)| Frequently Asked Questions | Related Documents and Videos | Contact

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NEWLY ADDED!!

•  The agenda and presentation for Community Advisory Group (CAG) Meeting #6 have been posted below, as well as a video recording of the meeting.  CAG Meeting #6 was held Thursday, April 29th, 2021 and focussed on how people get to and from BART stations (station access). Comments on the material covered in CAG Meeting #6 are due to bartplanning@cityofberkeley.info by Friday, May 7, 2021.

• See below for a video recording of Community Advisory Group (CAG) Meeting #5  (held on  Monday, March 22, 2021) and for the dates, times and log-in information for next week's CAG Office Hours sessions. A summary of CAG Meeting #5 (which includes copies of all emails received) has also been completed.

• Follow this link to review a draft of the proposed zoning for the BART stations.

• "Estimating the Need for Housing Subsidy for the Ashby and North Berkeley BART Stations" is a memo prepared for the Measure O Bond Oversight Committee and the Housing Advisory Commission which summarizes the affordable housing subsidy needed from the City of Berkeley to achieve specific levels of affordable housing at each station. 

• DRAFT Joint Vision and Priorities Document The December 10, 2019 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) between BART and the City of Berkeley calls for the City and BART, with input from the City’s Community Advisory Group (CAG) to establish a Joint Vision and Priorities (JVP) document to provide concise, high-level expectations (such as goals and minimum thresholds) for future developers on key topics. The JVP document will be incorporated into future Requests for Qualifications (RFQs) for development at the Ashby and North Berkeley BART stations and will help guide BART's selection of the eventual project developer(s). The draft language will continue to evolve as additional analyses and discussion occur.

Project Overview 

In September 2018, Governor Jerry Brown signed Assembly Bill 2923, state legislation that affects zoning requirements on existing BART-owned property within 1/2 mile of stations in Alameda, Contra Costa and San Francisco Counties.  Cities and counties have until July 1,2022 to rezone BART's property to conform with the standards established in AB 2923.

The current zoning at the North Berkeley and Ashby BART stations does not comply with AB 2923, so the City of Berkeley must develop new zoning for these stations.  Zoning sets rules for the range of what is allowed and/or required on a particular piece of property (e.g. maximums building size/height/density; parking and open space requirements; allowed uses).  

Changes in zoning require the approval of the City Council.  The City Planning Commission must first make a recommendation to the City Council about any changes to zoning before the City Council can act.

The City of Berkeley is working closely with BART to develop zoning and site planning parameters that meet the requirements of AB 2923, the goals of the City and the community, and the goals of BART as the property owner.  The City an BART have agreed upon a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that establishes a framework for development of the Ashby and North Berkeley BART stations, including a community advisory process and other community engagement; milestones and a timeline to develop zoning that complies with AB 2923; solicitation of developer(s); and further studies/planning for the two station areas.

As outlined in the MOU, the planning effort moving forward will build upon separate community engagement efforts that have been underway for several years relating to the Ashby and North Berkeley BART stations, and other adopted plans and policies of the City and of BART.

As part of this station planning effort, the City Council has created a Community Advisory Group (CAG) to provide input to the City Planning Commission.

The first phase of planning for the Ashby and North Berkeley station areas will ultimately result in new zoning language added to the Berkeley Municipal Code.  Development of new zoning will also require environmental review and the preparation of an Environmental Impact Report.  

Please see this Frequently Asked Questions document for more information about the project.

Please see these station information sheets from BART for more information on the Ashby and North Berkeley BART stations sites that are part of this project.

Project Timeline

Planning for development of these stations is a multi-year, multi-phase process, starting with the development of zoning and site planning parameters.  The basic timeline for completion the zoning and site planning parameters is shown below.

Community Process and the City's BART Community Advisory Group (CAG)

This station planning effort relies on a community process to envision the future of these station areas that builds on previous community input for the Adeline Corridor Specific Plan and the North Berkeley BART.  It includes many different opportunities to provide input such as:

1. Community Advisory Group (CAG) meetings;
2. Community-wide meetings and workshops;
3. The City Planning Commission Public hearings; and
4. The City Council public hearings.

Community Advisory Group (CAG) 

As part of the City's Ashby and North Berkeley BART station planning effort, the City Council has created a Community Advisory Group (CAG) to provide input to the City Planning Commission.  Per Council direction, CAG members have been appointed by Mayor Arreguin, Councilmembers Ben Bartlett and Rashi Kesarwani and a variety of City Boards and Commissions.  The members of the CAG are: 

• Ambrose Carroll
• Tony Corman
• Hayley Currier
• Charles Gary
• Barnali Ghosh (Transportation Commission appointee)
• Alex Ghenis (Commission on Disability appointee)
• Liz Hitchcock Lisle
• Lillian Lew-Hailer
• Peter Lydon
• Mari Mendonca (Housing Advisory Commission appointee)
• Blaine Merker
• Chris Schildt (Planning Commission appointee)
• Betty Seto
• Rhonda Simmons
• Peter Waller

 The responsibilities of the CAG, and the process by which they will make their recommendations to the City Planning Commission, can be found here.  CAG member biographies can be found here.

Community Meetings/Workshops and Surveys  

Community-wide meetings/workshops and surveys will provide additional opportunities for public input to allow Berkeley residents and other interested parties to share ideas and provide feedback.

Scheduled Meetings 

Related Documents