Developed over the course of more than five years of extensive planning, public engagement, and rigorous environmental review, UC Berkeley's plans for People's Park incorporate four fundamental objectives.
We invite you to learn more about a vibrant new future for People’s Park:
- Urgently needed student housing for more than 1,100 undergraduates.
- Permanent supportive housing for more than 100 unhoused and extremely low-income persons.
- Preserve and revitalize more than 60% of the site as public park space.
- Create permanent commemorations of the site's history.
We solicited extensive public feedback regarding plans for People's Park. Throughout this process, we listened carefully. Feedback from students, faculty, staff, city leaders, and neighbors has helped to shape and improve the finalized plan and to create a visionary project that is a win-win-win-win for the campus and the community.
Plans for a vibrant new future for People's Park have gained support from the mayor, members of the city council, the media, our neighbors, local churches, faculty experts and professionals who have dedicated their lives to helping and supporting unhoused people. We are grateful for their endorsements.
The project also reflects the university's long-standing efforts to support those in need and its commitment to providing better solutions for unhoused people than sleeping outdoors in unsafe and unsanitary conditions.
The campus committed to proceed with construction only after having a plan in place that offers access to shelter and services to all the people currently sleeping in the park. The campus, the City of Berkeley, and community partners announced a unified plan that honors all these commitments(link is external) -- and more:
- Interim housing for people currently living in People’s Park with services that support a transition to permanent housing.
- Construction and funding for a new community-led daytime drop-in center.
- Permanent 24-hour public restroom in the Telegraph neighborhood.
- Full-time social worker who will continue servicing the needs and interests of unhoused people near campus.
- Permanent homes for 100+ unhoused and extremely low-income people.
We are grateful to the City of Berkeley and community organizations for their ongoing support and partnership in these life-changing efforts.
