May 28, 2019
On May 17, Berkeley finally released its draft plan for the Adeline Street Corridor in South Berkeley, and protected bike lanes are included the whole way. Residents along Adeline Street asked for a safer, more community-centered street with protected bike lanes ever since public outreach began two years ago. Many Bike East Bay members weighed in by attending community workshops and stopping by the City’s pop-up design center on Adeline Street over the course of public outreach. The plan’s protected bike lanes are continuous and extend right up to the Oakland city line on Martin Luther King Jr Way, leaving it to Oakland to redesign their section of that busy street.
Disappointingly, the plan is problematic for its land use and affordable housing provisions. Density was down zoned, which means affordable housing may be difficult to construct. Bike East Bay will continue to work with community members and allied groups to address these issues and ensure that affordable housing gets built in Berkeley. As one of the widest streets in the East Bay, Adeline Street is an obvious location for affordable housing and good mobility.
The City will host a Community Meeting to present and gather input on the draft plan on May 29, 2019 from 6:30pm – 8:30pm at the Judge Henry Ramsey Jr. South Berkeley Senior Center.