NORTH BERKELEY
BART
North Berkeley BART bridges interests.
Yes Community Architects (YCA), serving as associate architects, partnered with BART and the City of Berkeley to lead an extensive community engagement process—over 48 meetings—for a transformative project that will replace vast surface parking lots at the North Berkeley BART station with 750 new homes.
Through collaborative charrettes, diverse listening sessions, and hands-on workshops grounded in fact-finding and trust-building, YCA helped design and entitle the development in record time, advancing under California’s latest pro-housing legislation (AB2011).
While many community members voiced concerns about height, affordability, and the project’s impact on the neighborhood’s history, YCA acted as a bridge between the development team and the community. By casting a wide net of inclusion, we strengthened local voices, built trust, and guided all parties toward shared solutions. The result is a plan shaped directly by community requests—making the new neighborhood truly feel like home.
Community requested features make the space home.
Edges of the site are softened with low-scale townhomes, welcoming stoops, and shared gardens. New public open space, lushly planted over the underground BART tracks, will feature an outdoor amphitheater and playground, while a diagonal connection along the Ohlone Greenway weaves pedestrian-friendly pathways through the site.
Parking is tucked into a garage wrapped by housing and activated at the ground floor with retail, art, and landscaping. A childcare center, neighborhood-serving shops, community space, and a bike station for BART riders further anchor the site.
New affordable housing anchors the development.
At the heart of the development, new affordable housing provides stability and opportunity. YCA worked closely with EBALDC to design and entitle a 60-unit affordable family building at the project’s main entry, negotiating complex issues such as BART’s Zone of Influence and Access Plan with Multi-Phasing. In parallel, we collaborated with city officials to craft a comprehensive set of Objective Design Standards, ensuring the project serves as a model of equitable, community-centered urban design.
