Ohlone Greenway Improvements near both BART Stations in El Cerrito

El Cerrito Ohlone Greenway BART station Improvements graphicThe Ohlone Greenway BART Station Area Access, Safety and Placemaking Improvements (Ohlone ASP) Project will improve the Ohlone Greenway at the El Cerrito del Norte and El Cerrito Plaza BART Stations. Currently, in the two BART Station areas, the Ohlone Greenway becomes narrower than other segments of the Greenway and has an irregular alignment at street crossings, and at the same time, it has higher pedestrian, bicycle, automobile and bus traffic that contribute to increased conflicts between all modes of travel.

The Ohlone ASP Project will improve and widen the mixed-use path; upgrade and expand existing crosswalks on adjacent streets to create high visibility pedestrian zones with new striping, special pavement, improved signage, curb bulb-outs, upgraded curb ramps and flashing lights; and enhance landscaping, lighting, seating, and other amenities. 
 
The goals of the project are to:
  • improve bicycle and pedestrian routes leading to transit, commercial nodes and housing;
  • bring new vibrancy to the areas around the BART stations to encourage housing development specifically within a regionally-designated Priority Development Area;
  • increase safety and accessibility for BART riders and Greenway users; and
  • improve the integration of the El Cerrito Plaza and El Cerrito del Norte BART Stations with the surrounding community.
The design and construction of the Ohlone ASP Project is funded by the $3,468,000 federal One Bay Area Grant Program (OBAG) grant, $300,000 of BART Measure J funds, $149,387 of Park In-Lieu funds, $300,000 of Subregional Transportation Mitigation Program funds, and $500,000 of WCCTAC Measure J funds totaling $4.7 million. 
 

Background on the Ohlone Greenway Access, Safety & Placemaking Improvements Project

Report to city council awarding construction contract

Report to City Council Awarding Construction Contract to Vanguard Construction on November 21, 2017

November 10, 2015 Community Meeting

On Tuesday, November 10, 2015, the City of El Cerrito hosted a final community meeting at the Castro Clubhouse to review the preferred plan for the Ohlone Greenway at the El Cerrito del Norte and El Cerrito Plaza BART station areas. This was the last of several outreach efforts to engage the public in the process of re-designing the Ohlone Greenway at two key areas in the City.

Community members had a chance to voice their opinion on the preferred plan to create gateway elements and outdoor gathering spaces around the Greenway and BART stations, improve the mixed-use bicycle and pedestrian path and intersection crossings, and other enhancements.

Meeting Materials:
Del Norte BART Station Concept Board
El Cerrito Plaza BART Station Concept Board
Powerpoint Presentation
Final Community Meeting Summary

june 18, 2015 community meeting

On June 18th, 2015, the City hosted a Community Meeting at the Castro Clubhouse. At the meeting, several transportation and pedestrian improvements were discussed, including how the Ohlone Greenway can best be improved to reduce vehicle-miles traveled and foster a healthy, active, and more connected community.

Community members had a chance to voice their views on how opportunities to create gateway elements and outdoor gathering spaces around the trail and BART stations, how to best reconstruct the bicycle and pedestrian trails around the Del Norte BART station between and at Cutting Boulevard and Hill Street and around the El Cerrito Plaza BART station between and at Fairmount Avenue and Central Avenue, and other multimodal circulation enhancements.

Meeting Materials:
Powerpoint Presentation
Del Norte BART station concept board
Del Norte BART station image board
El Cerrito Plaza BART station concept board
El Cerrito Plaza BART station image board
Community Engagement Survey Results

Background

The ASP project was conceptually developed in the City’s Ohlone Greenway Master Plan adopted in 2009. 
 
The following reports provide more information regarding the grant funding and the awarding of the design contract:

Report to Council Awarding the Design Contract to BKF Engineers on April 21, 2015

Report to Council for federal funding on June 18, 2013