Livable Berkeley promotes ideas and policies that make our community a better place to live, work, learn, and raise a family. We embrace great governance, environmental sustainability, economic vitality, and equity as the foundation of urban excellence.

Great Governance. Livable Berkeley advocates for a City government that operates professionally, transparently, effectively, and efficiently.

Housing Choice. Livable Berkeley works toward diverse housing options spanning all levels of affordability in order to meet the needs of Berkeley’s present and future residents.

Vibrant Economy. Livable Berkeley promotes economic development to provide job opportunities and grow the city’s tax base.

Transportation. Livable Berkeley supports high-quality transportation options to increase mobility and decrease reliance on fossil fuels.

Environment. Livable Berkeley pursues measures that reinforce local and global sustainability.

Fun. Livable Berkeley endeavors to improve quality of life and make Berkeley a fun, exciting place to live.

We’re thrilled to be a part of the exciting Smart Growth and positive change underway in Berkeley.

Conscientious development brings increased vitality, housing choice, and economic growth to our community, and helps our region become more sustainable. The projects below are only a small sample of the exciting developments coming to Downtown...

Mixed-Use

Located at the intersection of Shattuck and University, the 205-unit Acheson Commons project  is the largest mix-used project ever proposed in Berkeley. Acheson Commons will preserve existing historic facades on the site, while renovating the Acheson Physicians Building and constructing two new six-story apartment buildings. Livable Berkeley strongly supported this project and is happy to see it approved and on it’s way to a Fall 2014 start of construction.

"Look out Acheson Commons! The Residences at Berkeley Plaza may prove to be Berkeley’s most notable mixed-use project, and the first high-rise built in Berkeley in over 40 years! This ground-breaking proposal stems directly from the success of Downtown Area Plan. The Residences at Berkeley Plaza would feature retail space, a modernized movie theater, and 355 new units of housing. Stay tuned for more news on this exciting project!

Read the Berkeleyside article on the many exciting mixed-use development projects proposed in Berkeley:

"More than 1,400 housing units are currently in development in downtown Berkeley ....

"There are eight projects, including a hotel, planned in the downtown core, with two more planned just south, on Dwight Way, and another proposal on University Avenue just west of downtown..."

Public Spaces

It seems everyone has been talking about the potential sale of the Berkeley Main Post Office in Downtown Berkeley. Not everyone is pleased, of course, but Livable Berkeley has high hopes for this unique opportunity to bring something new and exciting to Downtown Berkeley. Adaptive reuse could turn the post office into a museum, an arts space, or even a public market hall like San Francisco’s Ferry Building. With a hot-off-the-presses letter, Livable Berkeley hopes to inspire the Planning Commission and the City Council to think openly and creatively about the future of the Main Post Office.

With the City Council’s May adoption of a Pilot Parklet Program, Berkeley will soon get to experience the benefits of reclaiming street parking for cars as public places for people. Popular merchants in North and West Berkeley are already lining up to get their parklets approved. Check out what Livable Berkeley’s had to say about this innovative program!

Transportation

The 51B is one of the most heavily used bus lines in the East Bay. AC Transit is now proposing 51B line upgrades to improve speed and service on this popular route. Potential improvements include signal priority for transit vehicles, bus stop bulb outs, new traffic signals, and rush-hour bus-only lanes. Livable Berkeley recently urged the Berkeley Transportation Commission to follow through with the City’s commitments to climate action and transit-first policies by supporting these and further improvements.