Ashby West Lot TOD

In 2015, the City began a robust community process to develop a plan for the Adeline Street corridor which includes the Ashby BART station and its parking lots. Sites close to transit (whether BART or other high frequency transit) present opportunities for adding new housing and jobs and providing economic stimulus to surrounding areas. With funding from the Metropolitan Transportation Commission (MTC) and Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG), the Adeline Corridor Specific Plan was developed and adopted by the City in 2020. The Adeline Corridor Specific Plan identifies several goals for development of the Ashby BART station, but was not specifically focused on the development of the BART property.

In the final stages of the plan’s development, the State of California passed Assembly Bill 2923 (Chiu/Grayson, 2018) which imposed requirements for the minimum density, height, floor area ratio, and parking for zoning of certain BART-owned property including these sites.  Therefore, in 2019, Berkeley and BART developed a Memorandum of Understanding to complete further work to plan for this development opportunity.  

Memorandum of Understanding (2020)

In 2020, the BART Board of Directors and the Berkeley City Council both unanimously approved a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) that established a City-led community advisory process to articulate community-centered goals for zoning and development of TOD at Ashby and North Berkeley BART stations; called for BART’s future developer selection process to consider those community-centered goals; and set deadlines for the City to rezone the sites and to decide whether to reserve City affordable housing funds for projects at Ashby and North Berkeley. 

Community Advisory Group (CAG) 

Under the terms of the MOU, BART and Berkeley worked closely from January 2020 to December 2021 with a Council-appointed Community Advisory Group (CAG) through public meetings to lay the foundation for development at both the Ashby BART and North Berkeley stations and address 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.

Joint Vision and Priorities

The CAG helped shape the City-BART “Joint Vision and Priorities for Transit-Oriented Development for Ashby and North Berkeley Stations” (JVP). In June 2022, the Berkeley City Council and the BART Board of Directors unanimously approved the Joint Vision and Priorities.

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 35% affordable housing at the Ashby and North Berkeley BART TODs. Of that amount, the City intends to dedicate $18.5 million for affordable housing on the Ashby West Lot, with $8.5 million reserved for the Ashby East Lot and the balance for the North Berkeley BART TOD. 

The Future of the Berkeley Flea Market 

The Berkeley Flea Market is an important community asset and resource that is has been held in the West Lot on weekends since the 1970s. In order to satisfy the housing goals articulated in the JVP the Flea Market must be relocated. The JVP anticipates a relocated Flea Market by Ashby station and the new housing.  BART worked with experts to study alternative sites for a permanent home for the Flea Market in a potential linear plaza along Adeline Street. Vendors and representatives of the Flea Market helped shape these alternatives. In November 2022, the Berkeley City Council approved a “road diet” option for Adeline and directed staff to move forward with design. The Adeline “road diet” includes plans for an extended plaza that will provide space for many community activities including a new permanent home for the Flea Market. BART is also requiring the TOD developer to provide below-market rent ground floor interior space for community-based organizations, non-profits, and/or small and minority-owned businesses, including the Berkeley Flea Market. 

Corridor Access Plan

The Berkeley-El Cerrito Corridor Access Plan provided a rare opportunity to comprehensively analyze how 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 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 uses a lot of space, with transportation options that enhance community vibrancy and safety.  BART has approved a maximum of 85 on-site replacement parking spaces at Ashby.

Memorandum of Agreement (2022)

With many of the milestones envisioned in the 2020 MOU completed, BART and the City signed a new Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) on June 30, 2022 following unanimous approval by the BART Board and Berkeley City Council. The MOA clarifies both parties’ next steps for TOD at North Berkeley, as well addressing issues related to realizing a new, vibrant transit village at Ashby that will be home to people with a variety of incomes.

Adeline Roadway Reconfiguration

The Ashby, Adeline, and Martin Luther King Jr. Way roadway pattern is not welcoming or safe for people traveling on foot or bike.  A goal of the Adeline Corridor Specific Plan and JVP is to develop a pedestrian- and bike-friendly TOD. A prior planning study determined that it was feasible to convert some travel lanes on Adeline into a linear plaza – to put Adeline on a “road diet” – while preserving adequate traffic flow. In November 2022, the Berkeley City Council approved a road diet option for Adeline and directed staff to move forward with design. The City’s preliminary planning for this is now underway. 

Objective Design Standards

The Objective Design Standards (ODS) will be the rules approved by the City of Berkeley to govern how the developer designs the new buildings to be constructed on each BART property. These standards will set additional limits on what kind of construction can be built on the properties, and city planning staff will review the architects’ designs for consistency with the standards.  The City released Preliminary ODS for the Ashby West Lot in 2024. Their final ODS for the site will be developed in 2026 through an inclusive process that will include input from residents and other stakeholders. 

2025

• July 10, 2025: The BART Board voted unanimously to authorize staff to enter into an Exclusive Negotiating Agreement (ENA) with the Adeline Alliance Partners team, as recommended by the evaluation panel.
• May 22, 2025: Developer Finalist Presentations. Two teams competing to build TOD at the Ashby West Lot made public presentations on their qualifications and answered questions submitted by attendees.

2024

• December 20, 2024: BART and the City entered into the Ashby BART Station Transit-Oriented Development Exchange Agreement. The Exchange Agreement lays out the terms under which the City will give up its air rights option on the Ashby BART West Lot in return for BART giving the City sole ownership of the East Lot and specified community benefits.
• December 17, 2024: Pre-Submittal Conference for developer team. Event materials may be reviewed here: 
  12/17/24 Pre-Submittal Conference Slide Deck 
  12/17/24 Pre-Submittal Conference and Q&A Video (1:08)
• December 3, 2024:  BART and the City released the Request for Developer Proposals for Transit-Oriented Development Notice of Funding Availability: Ashby BART Station – West Lot
• September 12, 2024: BART and the City held an open house to inform stakeholders about the proposed property exchange terms, which were finalized soon after. Event materials may be reviewed here: 
  9/12/24 Open House Presentation Boards
  9/12/24 Open House Slide Deck
  9/12/24 Open House Presentation Video (27 mins)

2023

• November 16, 2023: The BART Board of Directors update on the Ashby Station TOD planning effort. Download the meeting presentation.
• November 8, 2023: Virtual Community Meeting on Traction Power Substation (TPSS). Download the presentation slides. 

2022

• October 2022: City of Berkeley acts on Adeline Corridor, Flea Market and Air Rights issues.
• June 9, 2022:  BART Board approval of recommended replacement parking maximums, JVP, and MOA.
• June 2, 2022:  City Council certified the Final EIR, approved the draft zoning (Residential – BART Mixed Use or “R-BMU”), General Plan amendments, JVP, and MOA.
• May 26, 2022:  BART Board information item on recommended replacement parking maximums, JVP, and MOA.
• April 19, 2022:  City Council Work Session on draft zoning and General Plan amendments, JVP, Final EIR, and key issues related to the MOA, Flea Market relocation and Adeline road reconfiguration.
• April 6, 2022:  Planning Commission Public Hearing and recommendation to City Council on the draft zoning and General Plan Amendments, JPA, and Final EIR.

BART and the City of Berkeley want to ensure all stakeholders interested in the transit-oriented development at the Ashby BART station are involved, informed, and provide input. Below is a list of organizations that have been active in this discussion to date.

Community Services United - Berkeley Flea Market
Ed Roberts Campus
Healthy Black Families
Friends of Adeline
Livable Berkeley
The Lorin District Berkeley
South Berkeley NOW
Walk / Bike Berkeley