Posted on: April 18, 2024
Source: SF YIMBY; Author: Andrew Nelson
The San Francisco Bay Area Rapid Transit Board of Directors recently reviewed the latest plans for the El Cerrito Plaza BART Station. The public presentation includes a tentative phasing schedule, which says construction on the several-hundred-unit masterplan could start as early as next year. The transit agency is working with Related California and Holliday Development.
The agency’s Board of Directors reviewed the project last Thursday, April 11th. BART Director of District 3, Rebecca Saltzman, emphasized the scale of the project for the city during Thursday’s meeting, saying, “the fact that we will meet half of the city’s RHNA goals with this project, other cities would dream to have that happen.” El Cerrito, a Contra Costa County city within District 3, has a population of roughly 26,000 people and is tasked by the Regional Housing Needs Allocation to build 1,391 units by 2031.
While details have not been shared about individual projects, that broad overview is that the development will include 743 units across six structures, of which 47% will be affordable. Parking will be included for 260 cars and nearly 1,200 bicycles. An additional 145 vehicular parking spaces will be provided for BART riders.
Construction is expected to start sometime next year on a 70-unit affordable complex at Parcel A South and 259 market-rate units at Parcel B. The latter structure will include parking for BART Riders. The affordable housing on Parcels C and D are projected to all be under construction by 2026. The final phase of construction is the 133-unit market-rate complex at Parcel A North.
The project aims to increase ridership, promote foot traffic in the area, and potentially integrate a 20,000-square-foot public library. The site plans will enhance what is currently the northernmost end of the Ohlone Greenway, a 4.5-mile trail that connects to the North Berkeley BART Station.
PYATOK and Van Meter Williams Pollack are co-architects, with Einwillerkuehl as the landscape architect. The developers have brought in Factory_OS, a modular construction firm that boasts faster timelines for completion with reduced emissions. The team and city have procured roughly $50 million, mostly from the State, to facilitate building the housing and infrastructure improvements.
Berkeley-based Satellite Affordable Housing Associates will be a co-developer working with Related. According to the developer presentation, the next step for El Cerrito will be negotiations on the term sheet and ground lease, additional state funding for Parcel A South, and coordination on station access during construction.
Read the full article here.
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