Category Archives: Urban planning
Inside Berkeley’s newest, most discreet, building
In a few weeks, a brand new, 145,000 sq. ft. building will open its doors in Berkeley. Architects, engineers and construction crews have been working on it for almost three years, and the scale of the endeavor cannot be underestimated. However it’s likely you haven’t even spotted this building; and, even when it’s fully operational by the beginning of next year, it will continue to be largely hidden from public view.
Cal’s new Student-Athlete High Performance Center, built at a cost of $150 million in private donations, has been designed to be almost entirely invisible. Sited largely underground, it hugs the west side of the Memorial Stadium. From the street, the facility appears to be simply a long, stone-clad wall which follows the curve of the stadium.
“The beauty of the design is that it maximizes views of the stadium and keeps that as the architectural focus,” said Bob Milano, Assistant Athletic Director at UC Berkeley as he took this reporter on a tour.
A’Cuppa Tea move raises issues of Elmwood quotas
Update, 9:50pm: At its meeting tonight, the Berkeley City Council upheld the ZAB decision to give a use permit to A’Cuppa Tea in the Elmwood.
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At tonight’s City Council meeting, the 36th item on the agenda is an appeal against a decision of the Zoning Adjustments Board (ZAB) to allow A’Cuppa Tea to move to a vacant site on College Avenue in the Elmwood. Why would a unanimous decision of the ZAB on a zoning adjustment for a business to move two blocks by a City Council matter? It’s the vexed issue of neighborhood business quotas.
The Elmwood Commercial District is one of several in Berkeley with quotas for different kinds of businesses. In the Elmwood, only seven so-called quick-service food establishments are allowed in the quotas, but there are currently eight operating, and licenses have been issued for 10.
A’Cuppa Tea is currently on the corner of College and Alcatraz, but plans to move to 2992 College, just north of Webster in to space formerly occupied by H. Tulanian & Sons Oriental Rug Cleaning & Repair– about four-tenths of a mile. Its current site, however, is outside the Elmwood quotas. … Continue reading »
Downtown PBID passes overwhelmingly
The Berkeley City Council last night approved the formation of the third property-based improvement district (PBID) in the city, increasing fourfold the funds available to the Downtown Berkeley Association (DBA) for environmental enhancement and economic development programs. A ballot count showed 71% of downtown property owners approved of the PBID.
“Now we get to work on implementation, not campaigning,” said John Caner, executive director of the DBA. “It’s all about making downtown a lively and vibrant place. It gives us the opportunity to accelerate and build on the successes we’ve already had downtown.” Caner pointed to the coming openings of the Magnes Museum, the Helios Center and the refurbishment of the BART Plaza as key building pieces for the downtown. … Continue reading »
Citizen groups sue city over West Berkeley proposals
Two citizens’ groups have sued the City of Berkeley over proposed zoning that they say would radically restructure West Berkeley.
The Sustainable West Berkeley Alliance (SWBA), an organization of Berkeley residents and businesses, and the Council of Neighborhood Associations (CNA), filed their suit in Alameda County Superior Court under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) on May 11.
The suit concerns proposed Master Use Permit (MUP) sites – developments of more than four acres — and focuses on three aspects: the proposal to increase building height limits from 45ft to 75ft, the impact of taller buildings on residents, and the effect of proposed development on the environmental resources of Aquatic Park. … Continue reading »
Help to Google-map public drinking fountains in Berkeley
Peter Gleick is upset about the dwindling number of public drinking fountains in our communities and is determined to do something about it.
“It’s harder and harder to find public water fountains and there is bottled water everwhere,” Gleick, president and co-founder of the Pacific Institute and an internationally recognized water expert, told Berkeleyside.
Gleick became acutely aware of the decline of public drinking fountains when he was working on his book, Bottled and Sold, which was published last year. It’s a detailed look at our society’s “obsession” with bottled water. Part of the history Gleick recounts in the book is the growth of public drinking fountains from the late eighteenth century, when access to reliable water supplies was a rarity.
“There were huge celebrations when they were opened,” Gleick said. “You couldn’t call a city civilized unless it had public drinking fountains.” … Continue reading »
John King talks cityscapes, including his Berkeley picks
John King, staff writer at the San Francisco Chronicle, is a skilled observer of the urban terrain. His new book, “Cityscapes: San Francisco and Its Buildings” (Heyday; $14.95), is drawn from his “Cityscapes” column in the Sunday paper and celebrates serendipitous juxtapositions of 50 of his favorite buildings. Berkeleyside caught up with King, who lives in Berkeley, and asked him about his perspectives — including on Berkeley buildings that speak to him.
Do you bump into a lot of … Continue reading »
Urban homesteader challenges city on sale of edibles
Should city dwellers be allowed to sell their backyard bounty?
Sophie Hahn thinks so. The North Berkeley resident wants to share the abundance from her residential produce plot and offset some costs she incurs maintaining her edible garden.
But Hahn ran into hiccups with the city last year trying to get her idea off the ground. “I had no idea it would be so complicated,” she says. “It’s actually easier in Berkeley to have a pot collective than to have a vegetable collective,” a frustrated Hahn told a New York Times reporter in August.
Or pretty much any other home-based business. That’s because Berkeley’s zoning codes prohibit selling or otherwise conducting commerce outside a house in a residential neighborhood. Never mind that many residents (this writer included) toil from inside their homes. City codes allow for small, low-to-moderate impact home businesses, such as piano teachers, explains Dan Marks, director of planning and development for the city. … Continue reading »
Historical north Berkeley corner is renovated
Update, 04.10.11: Commenting on this story, several readers have mentioned Ninepatch, a store which served the community for 36 years in this building. Pam Zelnik, daughter of the store’s founder, sent in a photo of the shop, which you can find at the foot of the piece.
Update, 4:40pm: Because this story provoked a lively discussion about the architectural renovation under way for this building, we are publishing some additional photographs of the building in its pre-remodeling state, as well as some more renderings from the architect of what the finished result will be like. They can be found at the foot of the story…
The building at the corner of El Dorado Avenue and Sutter Street, near the entrance to the Northbrae Tunnel, has been through myriad incarnations. And now it is undergoing an overdue renovation with a new purpose in mind.
Berkeley architect David Trachtenberg is working with Kaufman Construction, another Berkeley business, to transform the neglected structure into a 7,900 sq ft office building with two retail spaces on the first floor. The $3.2 million re-build will create offices to house Tom Sawyer Software which is moving its headquarters to Berkeley from Oakland. There is no news yet on who will occupy the stores.
Berkeley’s Sacramento Street post office to close
Marcell Walls rode his bicycle up to the blue mailbox outside the Park Station post office, dropped in a letter, and sped away. It’s a trip Walls often makes, since his grandparents in Baton Rouge, Louisiana mail packages to his post office box a few times a month.
But, starting in May, Walls will have to ride to a different post office. The Postal Service announced on Monday that the Park Station at Sacramento and Russell Streets would close on April 30. All the post office boxes and will be transferred to a post office, Station A, on San Pablo Avenue near Addison.
The news came as a blow to nearby residents who have been trying to stave off this possibility. Ever since the Postal Service put the Park Station on a closure list in the fall of 2009, those living on the south side of town have worked to keep it open. They circulated a petition, wrote letters to the Postmaster General, and met with Congresswoman Barbara Lee to plead their case. … Continue reading »
City honors planning pioneer Dorothy Walker
By Alan Tobey
The Berkeley City Council last night approved a proclamation honoring longtime resident Dorothy Walker for her exceptional life record of contributions to the Berkeley community.
As the proclamation states: “Over the past five decades, Dorothy has served the City, and contributed to significant improvements to the quality of life in Berkeley today, including leading campaigns to fund new parks and school buildings, protecting neighborhoods from traffic, preserving the waterfront, improving transit, supporting affordable housing and advocating for social and economic justice.” Overall, “Dorothy has spent over 10,000 hours in community meetings in the interest of making Berkeley a better city.” … Continue reading »
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