An additional floor has been added to the plan for a nearly 125-foot-tall apartment complex on the corner of Russell Street and Shattuck Avenue and across from Berkeley Bowl Marketplace. This makes the residence 11 stories tall and increases the total number of units included in the project.
The original application, submitted in 2022 by NX Ventures, included only 10 stories. With the additional floor, the total number of housing units in the application will increase from 221 to 242 units.
The project is being designed by Stackhouse De La Peña Trachtenberg Architects. The housing units will include a mix of studios, one-bedroom, two-bedroom and three-bedroom units. The ground floor of the complex would feature retail space, and the top floor would include a rooftop tenant lounge.
Additionally, the complex would include 22 “very-low-income” units and eight “moderate-income” units, making a total of 30 below-market-rate units.
The complex would be less than half a mile away from the Ashby BART station. It would also be in close proximity to multiple AC Transit bus lines, including the 18, 27, 800, 7 and F.
“There’s just not a lot of retail along that quarter right around Berkeley Bowl, but a lot of people walk to Berkeley Bowl from that neighborhood,” said co-founder of NX Ventures Nathan George. “I think providing some additional retail and activity … it’s going to really be net positive.”
NX Ventures is a housing development company which George said aims to create housing that is “affordable by design.” One way that they have tried to achieve this is by using modular construction — a building technique that creates “modules” of the building off-site to lower costs.
According to George, the lower costs and quicker delivery from the module system allow them to not charge top market rents to fund large housing projects like this one.
“We’re excited about this,” George said. “I think it will be good for the area and the neighborhood, and provide new housing for people — more affordable housing.”
The lot currently contains multiple one-story structures and a parking lot, which would be demolished for the project. The construction is estimated to take 16 months from demolition to completion.
Some residents have cited concerns about the building’s height and the density that it will bring to the area, while others believe it will bring in much-needed affordable housing and business.
Jeffrey Baker, a Berkeley resident, said he thinks the development offers “many advantages,” including its proximity to the Ashby BART station and development of the land for a more permanent project, noting that the plot of land has had “repeated redevelopment.”
“It’s clear to me that the developers of the existing buildings in the area considered their work a disposable first draft, rather than a durable monument,” Baker said in an email.