Berkeley has opened the door to much taller housing along San Pablo Avenue. At its Sept. 29 meeting the City Council adopted the San Pablo Avenue Specific Plan, which lets developers build up to seven stories along the West Berkeley corridor, Berkeleyside and The Daily Californian reported.
The plan covers roughly 2.3 miles of the avenue, from the Albany border to the Oakland border. It raises the height limit from three stories to seven for both residential and commercial projects. It also lets builders put apartments, instead of shops, on the ground floor of projects outside five commercial "nodes" around San Pablo's intersections with Gilman Street, Cedar Street, University Avenue, Dwight Way and Ashby Avenue.
The fight over five stories
The height cap was the main point of debate. Councilmember Brent Blackaby proposed a five-story base instead, arguing that a lower limit would push developers to use California's density bonus law, which lets projects exceed local height limits if they include affordable units. The Berkeley Neighborhoods Council backed that approach during public comment. Blackaby's motion failed 7-2, with only Councilmember Shoshana O'Keefe joining him, according to Berkeleyside.
City planners told the council they expect most projects under the plan to top out around eight stories, because buildings taller than that face building code requirements that make construction much more expensive.
The final version reflects changes made after a city Planning Commission hearing in June, when staff dropped an earlier tiered approach in favor of a uniform seven-story, 75-foot limit across the corridor, city documents show. Work on the plan began in 2023 with pop-up events, surveys and community meetings.
New oversight chief
At the same meeting, the council confirmed Mary Opler as Berkeley's director of police accountability after a long search for a permanent leader, The Daily Californian reported. Her contract took effect the following Monday. Council members also passed a first reading of an ordinance that changes how the city writes contracts with surveillance technology vendors.
Update: Oct. 13 second reading and preference policy
On Oct. 13, 2026, the City Council completed the second reading of Ordinance No. 8,034-N.S., the zoning amendments that create the San Pablo Commercial (C-SP) district and implement the specific plan, according to the council eAgenda. The first reading had passed with all ayes.
The Daily Californian reported that the same meeting also adopted a resolution changing Berkeley's Affordable Housing Preference Policy, replacing a points system with a tier system so applicants document only their highest-qualifying preference. Councilmember Ben Bartlett said the change helps families reconnect after generational displacement; Councilmember Rashi Kesarwani said the San Pablo corridor plan "paved the way for thousands of new homes." Some public commenters again questioned whether the seven-story plan is the best path to affordable housing, the Daily Cal reported.