The board of the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) system, which covers San Francisco, Oakland, and Berkeley, recently passed a policy to ensure that future residential developments at its stations would offer at least 20% affordable housing.
According to BART officials, most developments at its stations have included about 30% affordable housing, although there are some developments where this rate is down to 17% as developers were unable to find the necessary funding.
However, the board did approve the construction of a new housing development with 110 units on land that BART owns at the Coliseum station in Oakland. Half of the project would be affordable housing, while the other half would be for people employed as teachers, nurses, or others in the workforce.
Funding for the project will come from $9.6m in tax credits, a $12m loan from the city of Oakland, and $4.9m in state cap-and-trade funds. The loan was secured by City Councilman Larry Reid, as he said the area around the Oakland Coliseum is a jewel and has great potential for development outside of the city.
This project is the beginning of a plan to develop the area around the station and add more housing and retail space.
BART may want to turn to a local newsletter printing company to announce its plans for developments in housing, retail, and commercial spaces around its stations.
