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Agenda Item
7 26-0179 Subject: A Feasibility Study For A Potential San Antonio Bart Station
From Councilmember Wang
Recommendation: Adopt A Resolution Expressing The City Of Oakland's Support For A San Antonio Bart Station And Calling On The Bay Area Rapid Transit District (BART) To Conduct A Feasibility Study
As a resident of the San Antonio neighborhood, I strongly support conducting a feasibility study for the proposed San Antonio BART Station. Our community is often overlooked and underserved. This station would be a relatively straightforward addition to the existing rail system and would offer significant benefits that extend far beyond improved accessibility.
As a resident of district 2 I see this as an excellent step forward. There has been immense support from the media and the community. Decades of transportation and city planning have cut off this neighborhood from some of it's nearest resources. This is an a clear opportunity to further understand the opportunities and impacts that would come with investing in rail transit in this area. This investment almost certainly will bolster denser housing and improve accessibility to and from the corridor. We want to know more concretely what can be expected from this development. Looking at old photos of the E. 14th and 14th ave corridor was before the 880, makes me think how this investment could revitalize commerce in the area. This is a good initiative for the people and the businesses in this area and will help deter crime.
As a resident of District 2, I strongly support the recommendation to conduct a feasibility study for the potential of a San Antonio infill BART station. Our neighborhood is one of the most racially and ethnically diverse places in Oakland, and even the greater Bay Area, and has become home to many communities that make Oakland special. Part of what makes that possible is affordable housing options and transportation options for those without cars. But if investment isn't made in improving transit options and building more housing, the neighborhood will no longer be able to accommodate the great diversity it does. Conducting a feasibility study is an important first step in quantifying the costs and benefits of a potential new station and would make Oakland a leader in considering infill BART stations as a cost-effective way to meet transportation needs and serve existing communities. This initiative has broad support across the local community and strong local advocates that are ready to work along city leaders to push this forward. I urge you to adopt this resolution and conduct a feasibility study on this important project for one of Oakland's oldest, yet most vibrant, neighborhoods. Thank you for your consideration.
The proposed feasibility study for an infill station at 14th Avenue is an important step for the City to take towards improving transportation access and addressing decades of disinvestment and racist planning in East Oakland. As a long-time resident of E. 19th Street, a neighbor, renter, affordable housing advocate, and transit rider, I urge the Council to take up this initiative. I do so also professionally, as an urban planning professor and research associate of the Mineta Transportation Institute.
The neighborhoods surrounding 14th Avenue are among the most diverse, dense, and walkable in the East Bay, rich in affordable housing and local businesses, right on the BART line but without a stop. To argue that residents of this area should be excluded from the region's premier transit network for fear of changes such improvement could bring is akin to suggesting they also should not have their streets made safer or schools improved. Gentrification is a real and legitimate concern. But we have models for prioritizing improvement without displacement, including through affordable community driven transit-oriented development.
Of course this proposal is not to decide whether there will be a new station; it’s to study whether there could and should be. Indeed, the study must investigate affordable housing development here, much as BART has fostered at Fruitvale and Lake Merritt stations. This study is a straightforward, positive step for Oaklanders, for our Town, and for BART.
As a long time resident of east Oakland, I strongly support the development and construction of the proposed San Antonio infill BART station. It's plainly feasible and would be a boon to the neighborhood and the city. Please move this forward as fast as possible!
As a neighborhood resident, I strong support exploring the feasibility of an infill BART station in San Antonio. I would like our neighborhood to be more easily connected to the BART system. We are such a densely populated neighborhood, it would make sense to expand our transit options, and also better connect us to Brooklyn Basin/the waterfront area.
This vote is a crucial, low-risk step. It is not final project approval; it is a resolution supporting BART's feasibility study to explore what's possible. As others have said, "funding follows vision," and this resolution provides that vision.
The arguments for this study are rooted in equity, opportunity, and common sense:
1. Correcting Historic Inequity: This station begins to repair the harm from "skipping over" this dense, diverse, and transit-dependent community. The nearly three-mile gap between Lake Merritt and Fruitvale disconnects thousands of low-income residents, immigrants, and people of color.
2. Addressing Mobility Needs: While Tempo is an asset, it's no substitute for regional rail. A BART station provides a fast, reliable, and safe connection to jobs, education, and services across the Bay Area.
3. Unlocking Economic Opportunity: This is also a community-building project. It can anchor a neighborhood center, revitalize businesses in Little Saigon, and connect to major employers like Highland Hospital.
4. Creating a Connected Waterfront: The location offers a unique chance to create a green connection to the waterfront, reconnecting San Antonio to parks and waterfront.
Regarding valid gentrification concerns: We must not deny a community a public good out of fear. The purpose of this study and planning process is to intentionally build in anti-displacement strategies from day one.
This study is the first step toward a more equitable and connected Oakland.
Oakland resident and BART rider. This project could be an excellent addition to our transportation network. It may be easier to infill a station than the other BART extension projects, increasing ridership during a financially tenuous time for the agency could be a big win. The neighborhoods that this will serve were skipped over in the past for discriminatory reasons. It will encourage growth in housing, commerce, cut down on highway and street traffic on International and on the freeway.
I grew up riding BART to school and work. And now, as a resident of San Antonio neighborhood D2, I fully support the movement to build an infill BART station at 14th Ave. This is a beautiful and historic neighborhood with important features like Highland Hospital, San Antonio park (the oldest park in Oakland), and Little Saigon, but we are disconnected from the rest of the Bay Area because BART skips right past us. This makes it hard and expensive for people like me to work at jobs in downtown Oakland or SF- it takes me 40 mins to get to downtown Oakland on the bus even though my house is only a block from the stop. In fact, I was nearly late for my first day at a new job back in 2021 even though I had budgeted an hour to take the bus to Oakland City Center! An infill station is an important piece toward building a more resilient, and equitable Oakland.
As a lifelong resident of Oakland, I strongly support building an infill bart station in San Antonio. Our neighborhood is dense, but could be denser! Better transit access means more neighbors, more neighbors means more businesses and less empty lots, blight, and crime. We need less car-centric spending and more safe streets that lead to public transit stations!
As a resident of District 2, I strongly support a feasibility study for a potential San Antonio BART Station. The San Antonio Station Alliance (SASA), which began as a small resident group two years ago, now has over 1,500 signatures supporting new transit infrastructure in our corner of Oakland. The grassroots campaign has brought together many neighbors and local organizations to discuss what quality public transit looks like for all of us. There is agreement that while there are buses, such as the TEMPO, residents deserve a route that is more connected to the broader network, BART. And while very valid concerns about gentrification are at the forefront of our discussions, there is agreement that a major project such as this one requires intentionality and strong anti-displacement efforts to coincide with infrastructure. We should never deny a community public, affordable mobility out of fear that it will lead to gentrification. Public transit is a public good, and the diverse residents of San Antonio deserve the same level of access that is provided in adjacent neighborhoods—especially given that this area is a significant population and employment center.
As a long time area resident I strongly support this measure. Adding more transit options to the neighborhood makes for a more equitable city. The cost of owning and operating a car is too high not just fiscally but also environmentally. The San Antonio BART station would allow our neighbors quick and safe access to the greater Bay Area. And would allow better access to Highland Hospital, Little Saigon, and Brooklyn Basin to the rest of the Bay Area.
As a long-term neighborhood resident, I strongly support this resolution. Our dense neighborhood needs equitable access to jobs and educational opportunities that a BART station would provide. The trip to BART is time consuming and can be challenging for some that live in the midst of the long gap between the Fruitvale and Lake Merritt stations. For me this is personal, as it includes a member of my family. A new BART station project has the potential to bring more housing to the neighborhood with transit-oriented development. The proposed location, at the base of 14th Avenue, is closer to the waterfront than any East Bay BART station. The project has potential to create local and regional access to the public trails and parks along the waterfront, and to bring the waterfront residents to the local businesses in our neighborhood. And, although it’s hard to envision now, it has the potential to bring outside funding to improve the lives of Oaklanders. This is the first step. I ask the council to support it.
As a resident of the San Antonio Neighborhood, I strongly OPPOSE the creation of a San Antonio BART Station, which will gentrify the surrounding area, displace people, and make our lives much worse. The area near the San Antonio Station is well-served by bus lines, including the Tempo rapid bus, which is quick ten-minute ride to Fruitvale BART.
Adding a San Antonio infill BART Station is a no brainer for anyone who wants to see a thriving Oakland in the future. With the current alignment this would be a cost effective way of adding a new station to Oakland while also connecting the neighborhood with the waterfront. It would also support BART by providing additional riders and increase connectivity between East and North Oakland.
As a neighborhood resident, I strongly support the City Council resolution expressing support for a feasibility study for the proposed San Antonio BART Station. Our community has been underserved by regional transit for far too long. The nearly three-mile gap between Lake Merritt and Fruitvale Stations leaves thousands of residents - many low-income, immigrants, and people of color - without equitable access to reliable transit service despite our neighborhood being one of the densest in the East Bay. A feasibility study is a vital first step toward correcting this inequity, improving safety, reducing commute times, and connecting our neighborhood to jobs, education, and essential services. It would also begin the process to establishing a long overdue neighborhood center and green connection to the waterfront. This study will help ensure that future transit investments finally include San Antonio, strengthening mobility and opportunity for everyone in our community. I urge the City Council to support this resolution.
As an Oakland native, and resident of San Antonio Neighborhood, I strongly recommend passing this legislation. San Antonio Neighborhood is one of the most dense and diverse neighborhoods in the Bay Area and we have been divested in for decades due to redlining. That needs to change. SA is an amenity desert; we do not even have a pharmacy in our neighborhood. Instead we have liquor stores, "gift shops" and smoke shops catering to human trafficking. My neighbors are long time residents like me, some do not drive, and depend on public transportation and their children to visit and bring them to where they need to be. Having an infill BART station and/ or an Amtrak station (like the Millbrae Station) will greatly benefit our community by providing a safe, affordable, reliable mode of transportation that will increase our quality of life. We should not be passed by. We are here. Like the old proverb: “The best time to plant a tree was 30 years ago, and the second best time to plant a tree is now" Today is our day, please pass this legislation for the benefit of San Antonio’s future.
As a long time resident of the area, I strongly recommend passing this legislation. Such a resolution will open up pathways to fund crucial studies on the feasibility of this station. As an organizer with San Antonio Station Alliance, I have seen firsthand how strongly people in our community resonate with the possibility of a BART/regional rail station that could connect us to the waterfront with a green bridge, revitalize our business districts and housing, and make our neighborhood stronger and safer while connecting us to the rest of the Bay Area. We are a transit dependent community with thin transit support, and all of Oakland would surely benefit from San Antonio Station.
Our neighbors rarely agree on everything, but it is difficult to find anyone who doesn't think this station would be a great investment. We have 1500+ signatures on our petition, the support of several businesses and organizations such as Trybe and EBAYC, and an active organization of our own.
This is a resolution that is the first step of many-- we understand that a project like this takes time. Please help us move this forward to the planning processes of BART, CCJPA, the MTC, and other powers by passing this resolution. FUNDING FOLLOWS VISION.
As a resident of the San Antonio neighborhood, I strongly support conducting a feasibility study for the proposed San Antonio BART Station. Our community is often overlooked and underserved. This station would be a relatively straightforward addition to the existing rail system and would offer significant benefits that extend far beyond improved accessibility.
As a resident of district 2 I see this as an excellent step forward. There has been immense support from the media and the community. Decades of transportation and city planning have cut off this neighborhood from some of it's nearest resources. This is an a clear opportunity to further understand the opportunities and impacts that would come with investing in rail transit in this area. This investment almost certainly will bolster denser housing and improve accessibility to and from the corridor. We want to know more concretely what can be expected from this development. Looking at old photos of the E. 14th and 14th ave corridor was before the 880, makes me think how this investment could revitalize commerce in the area. This is a good initiative for the people and the businesses in this area and will help deter crime.
As a resident of District 2, I strongly support the recommendation to conduct a feasibility study for the potential of a San Antonio infill BART station. Our neighborhood is one of the most racially and ethnically diverse places in Oakland, and even the greater Bay Area, and has become home to many communities that make Oakland special. Part of what makes that possible is affordable housing options and transportation options for those without cars. But if investment isn't made in improving transit options and building more housing, the neighborhood will no longer be able to accommodate the great diversity it does. Conducting a feasibility study is an important first step in quantifying the costs and benefits of a potential new station and would make Oakland a leader in considering infill BART stations as a cost-effective way to meet transportation needs and serve existing communities. This initiative has broad support across the local community and strong local advocates that are ready to work along city leaders to push this forward. I urge you to adopt this resolution and conduct a feasibility study on this important project for one of Oakland's oldest, yet most vibrant, neighborhoods. Thank you for your consideration.
The proposed feasibility study for an infill station at 14th Avenue is an important step for the City to take towards improving transportation access and addressing decades of disinvestment and racist planning in East Oakland. As a long-time resident of E. 19th Street, a neighbor, renter, affordable housing advocate, and transit rider, I urge the Council to take up this initiative. I do so also professionally, as an urban planning professor and research associate of the Mineta Transportation Institute.
The neighborhoods surrounding 14th Avenue are among the most diverse, dense, and walkable in the East Bay, rich in affordable housing and local businesses, right on the BART line but without a stop. To argue that residents of this area should be excluded from the region's premier transit network for fear of changes such improvement could bring is akin to suggesting they also should not have their streets made safer or schools improved. Gentrification is a real and legitimate concern. But we have models for prioritizing improvement without displacement, including through affordable community driven transit-oriented development.
Of course this proposal is not to decide whether there will be a new station; it’s to study whether there could and should be. Indeed, the study must investigate affordable housing development here, much as BART has fostered at Fruitvale and Lake Merritt stations. This study is a straightforward, positive step for Oaklanders, for our Town, and for BART.
As a long time resident of east Oakland, I strongly support the development and construction of the proposed San Antonio infill BART station. It's plainly feasible and would be a boon to the neighborhood and the city. Please move this forward as fast as possible!
As a neighborhood resident, I strong support exploring the feasibility of an infill BART station in San Antonio. I would like our neighborhood to be more easily connected to the BART system. We are such a densely populated neighborhood, it would make sense to expand our transit options, and also better connect us to Brooklyn Basin/the waterfront area.
This vote is a crucial, low-risk step. It is not final project approval; it is a resolution supporting BART's feasibility study to explore what's possible. As others have said, "funding follows vision," and this resolution provides that vision.
The arguments for this study are rooted in equity, opportunity, and common sense:
1. Correcting Historic Inequity: This station begins to repair the harm from "skipping over" this dense, diverse, and transit-dependent community. The nearly three-mile gap between Lake Merritt and Fruitvale disconnects thousands of low-income residents, immigrants, and people of color.
2. Addressing Mobility Needs: While Tempo is an asset, it's no substitute for regional rail. A BART station provides a fast, reliable, and safe connection to jobs, education, and services across the Bay Area.
3. Unlocking Economic Opportunity: This is also a community-building project. It can anchor a neighborhood center, revitalize businesses in Little Saigon, and connect to major employers like Highland Hospital.
4. Creating a Connected Waterfront: The location offers a unique chance to create a green connection to the waterfront, reconnecting San Antonio to parks and waterfront.
Regarding valid gentrification concerns: We must not deny a community a public good out of fear. The purpose of this study and planning process is to intentionally build in anti-displacement strategies from day one.
This study is the first step toward a more equitable and connected Oakland.
Oakland resident and BART rider. This project could be an excellent addition to our transportation network. It may be easier to infill a station than the other BART extension projects, increasing ridership during a financially tenuous time for the agency could be a big win. The neighborhoods that this will serve were skipped over in the past for discriminatory reasons. It will encourage growth in housing, commerce, cut down on highway and street traffic on International and on the freeway.
I grew up riding BART to school and work. And now, as a resident of San Antonio neighborhood D2, I fully support the movement to build an infill BART station at 14th Ave. This is a beautiful and historic neighborhood with important features like Highland Hospital, San Antonio park (the oldest park in Oakland), and Little Saigon, but we are disconnected from the rest of the Bay Area because BART skips right past us. This makes it hard and expensive for people like me to work at jobs in downtown Oakland or SF- it takes me 40 mins to get to downtown Oakland on the bus even though my house is only a block from the stop. In fact, I was nearly late for my first day at a new job back in 2021 even though I had budgeted an hour to take the bus to Oakland City Center! An infill station is an important piece toward building a more resilient, and equitable Oakland.
As a lifelong resident of Oakland, I strongly support building an infill bart station in San Antonio. Our neighborhood is dense, but could be denser! Better transit access means more neighbors, more neighbors means more businesses and less empty lots, blight, and crime. We need less car-centric spending and more safe streets that lead to public transit stations!
As a resident of District 2, I strongly support a feasibility study for a potential San Antonio BART Station. The San Antonio Station Alliance (SASA), which began as a small resident group two years ago, now has over 1,500 signatures supporting new transit infrastructure in our corner of Oakland. The grassroots campaign has brought together many neighbors and local organizations to discuss what quality public transit looks like for all of us. There is agreement that while there are buses, such as the TEMPO, residents deserve a route that is more connected to the broader network, BART. And while very valid concerns about gentrification are at the forefront of our discussions, there is agreement that a major project such as this one requires intentionality and strong anti-displacement efforts to coincide with infrastructure. We should never deny a community public, affordable mobility out of fear that it will lead to gentrification. Public transit is a public good, and the diverse residents of San Antonio deserve the same level of access that is provided in adjacent neighborhoods—especially given that this area is a significant population and employment center.
YES I think this would be such a boost for neighborhood accessibility and economic opportunity. Fully support!
As a long time area resident I strongly support this measure. Adding more transit options to the neighborhood makes for a more equitable city. The cost of owning and operating a car is too high not just fiscally but also environmentally. The San Antonio BART station would allow our neighbors quick and safe access to the greater Bay Area. And would allow better access to Highland Hospital, Little Saigon, and Brooklyn Basin to the rest of the Bay Area.
As a long-term neighborhood resident, I strongly support this resolution. Our dense neighborhood needs equitable access to jobs and educational opportunities that a BART station would provide. The trip to BART is time consuming and can be challenging for some that live in the midst of the long gap between the Fruitvale and Lake Merritt stations. For me this is personal, as it includes a member of my family. A new BART station project has the potential to bring more housing to the neighborhood with transit-oriented development. The proposed location, at the base of 14th Avenue, is closer to the waterfront than any East Bay BART station. The project has potential to create local and regional access to the public trails and parks along the waterfront, and to bring the waterfront residents to the local businesses in our neighborhood. And, although it’s hard to envision now, it has the potential to bring outside funding to improve the lives of Oaklanders. This is the first step. I ask the council to support it.
As a resident of the San Antonio Neighborhood, I strongly OPPOSE the creation of a San Antonio BART Station, which will gentrify the surrounding area, displace people, and make our lives much worse. The area near the San Antonio Station is well-served by bus lines, including the Tempo rapid bus, which is quick ten-minute ride to Fruitvale BART.
Adding a San Antonio infill BART Station is a no brainer for anyone who wants to see a thriving Oakland in the future. With the current alignment this would be a cost effective way of adding a new station to Oakland while also connecting the neighborhood with the waterfront. It would also support BART by providing additional riders and increase connectivity between East and North Oakland.
As a neighborhood resident, I strongly support the City Council resolution expressing support for a feasibility study for the proposed San Antonio BART Station. Our community has been underserved by regional transit for far too long. The nearly three-mile gap between Lake Merritt and Fruitvale Stations leaves thousands of residents - many low-income, immigrants, and people of color - without equitable access to reliable transit service despite our neighborhood being one of the densest in the East Bay. A feasibility study is a vital first step toward correcting this inequity, improving safety, reducing commute times, and connecting our neighborhood to jobs, education, and essential services. It would also begin the process to establishing a long overdue neighborhood center and green connection to the waterfront. This study will help ensure that future transit investments finally include San Antonio, strengthening mobility and opportunity for everyone in our community. I urge the City Council to support this resolution.
Please connect our neighborhood to the rest of the city with a BART station. I am in full support of this effort!
As an Oakland native, and resident of San Antonio Neighborhood, I strongly recommend passing this legislation. San Antonio Neighborhood is one of the most dense and diverse neighborhoods in the Bay Area and we have been divested in for decades due to redlining. That needs to change. SA is an amenity desert; we do not even have a pharmacy in our neighborhood. Instead we have liquor stores, "gift shops" and smoke shops catering to human trafficking. My neighbors are long time residents like me, some do not drive, and depend on public transportation and their children to visit and bring them to where they need to be. Having an infill BART station and/ or an Amtrak station (like the Millbrae Station) will greatly benefit our community by providing a safe, affordable, reliable mode of transportation that will increase our quality of life. We should not be passed by. We are here. Like the old proverb: “The best time to plant a tree was 30 years ago, and the second best time to plant a tree is now" Today is our day, please pass this legislation for the benefit of San Antonio’s future.
As a long time resident of the area, I strongly recommend passing this legislation. Such a resolution will open up pathways to fund crucial studies on the feasibility of this station. As an organizer with San Antonio Station Alliance, I have seen firsthand how strongly people in our community resonate with the possibility of a BART/regional rail station that could connect us to the waterfront with a green bridge, revitalize our business districts and housing, and make our neighborhood stronger and safer while connecting us to the rest of the Bay Area. We are a transit dependent community with thin transit support, and all of Oakland would surely benefit from San Antonio Station.
Our neighbors rarely agree on everything, but it is difficult to find anyone who doesn't think this station would be a great investment. We have 1500+ signatures on our petition, the support of several businesses and organizations such as Trybe and EBAYC, and an active organization of our own.
This is a resolution that is the first step of many-- we understand that a project like this takes time. Please help us move this forward to the planning processes of BART, CCJPA, the MTC, and other powers by passing this resolution. FUNDING FOLLOWS VISION.