BART prepared to work with city on construction plans around Concord stations

CONCORD, CA—As plans for development near Concord’s BART move through negotiations, BART expects to work closely with the city during the process.

Assembly Bill 2923 gives BART the right to build mixed-use office space and affordable housing in areas around transit stations that are deemed eligible.

Although not required to work with the city on any part of the developments, BART officials have made it clear they will consult with City Council members and residents.

“We always partner with the local jurisdictions when we do transit-oriented development (TOD) projects,” said Abby Thorne-Lyman, BART’s TOD program group manager. “We don’t consider our piece of property that we own to be in isolation of what is going on around it.”

BART opened the door for the city’s considerations at the Jan. 12 City Council meeting, with a presentation to the City Council which included an update on the two projects planned in Concord.

Concord Mayor Tim McGallian told the Pioneer that BART’s willingness to work with the city is crucial. “It is important for them to say that because under (AB 2923) they do not necessarily have to.”

Options for North ­Concord site

In order for the space around a BART station to be eligible for development under AB 2923, it needs to meet three qualifications:

• Be in Alameda, Contra Costa or San Francisco county.
• Be within a half mile of the BART station’s entrance.
• Contain 75 percent of the total land area within the half-mile radius.

Both the downtown Concord and North Concord stations have significantly sized areas that are eligible, but the city’s main concern lies with the North Concord station. Council members and residents are worried about the distance between current homes and the proposed development.

Community members have proposed the inclusion of a large buffer between their fences and the new developments in order to keep the safety, visibility and privacy of their backyards.

“We understand this housing needs to be built, “McGallian said. “The city has floated the idea to increase that buffer.”

Thorne-Lyman said BART knocked on the doors of all the residents whose backyards run adjacent to its parking lot to get a sense of their concerns. BART plans on taking those accounts into consideration while they continue to plan their next project.

“We have been very active in the past listening to the community members,” she said.

Long-term efforts

As planning continues for both station’s developments, any timeframe for completion is still off in the future.

The North Concord station has been labeled as “under negotiation,” while the Concord station currently sits in BART’s five- to-10-year work plan.

“As long as BART is willing to have the conversation, it allows us to move forward and figure it out together,” McGallian said.