A transit-oriented development (TOD) project at the Bay Area Rapid Transit’s (BART) West Oakland Station has been approved by the BART Board of Directors.
The project includes 762 housing units, of which, more than 30 percent have been designated as affordable. The approval by the BART Board comes after the city of Oakland approved the specific plan and environmental impact report for the project.
In addition to affordable housing, the Mandela Station TOD will include more than 50,000-square feet of neighborhood-serving retail and 300,000-square feet of office space. The plan also features a host of access improvements such as wider sidewalks and more crosswalks.
“Transit oriented development is critical to the future of the Bay Area and I’m confident this will be a transformative and inclusive project for West Oakland,” said BART General Manager Bob Powers. “Our stations are embedded in many communities and we have a chance to make those areas work better for everyone.”
The TOD will be built on parking spaces at the West Oakland Station. While some existing ridership will be lost due to reduced parking, BART says its latest analysis suggests 55 percent of displaced parkers will continue to take BART. The plan will be a net gain for BART ridership as 1,237 new daily trips are expected to be generated by the development.
“This is a critical point in Oakland’s history and West Oakland’s history to bring much needed housing that is walkable to amenities and to meet one of BART’s goals of creating East Bay job employment centers with the planned office product,” said Oakland City Councilmember Lynette Gibson McElhaney, who represents the neighborhood where the development will be located. “Being able to work, live and shop in my community is what transit-oriented development is all about.”
A Community Advisory Committee has been in place for this project for nearly five years. The project team consists of China Harbour Engineering Company, Strategic Urban Development Alliance, MacFarlane Partners, local community members, BART and other stakeholders.
The BART Board in April updated its TOD policy to support the production of affordable housing. The policy amendments allow for a discount of 30 percent from fair market value for its land for projects with affordable housing characteristics like the West Oakland TOD. Projects with a greater share of affordable housing are eligible for a higher discount.
