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Daily Planet Staff 

UC Berkeley formally announced plans Friday to build new housing for nearly 900 students and construct a parking facility for at least 1,000 cars through the “Underhill Area Projects.” 

The proposals, outlined in a draft Environmental Impact Report, set the stage for perhaps the final round of battles over the Southside’s controversial Underhill site, bordered by College Avenue, Channing Way, Bowditch Street and Haste Street. 

Major elements of the proposed projects include three new multi-story residence halls; two apartment-style student housing complexes; central offices for housing and dining operations; demolition of two dining halls deemed seismically unsafe and construction of a new central dining facility; a three-story parking garage; and a sports and recreation field on the parking structure’s rooftop. “Amongst our many challenges as an institution, seismic safety and student housing are two big issues,” Ed Denton, vice chancellor for capital projects, said during a Friday morning press conference. “This addresses both needs.” 

But many aspects of the various projects are sure to draw criticism from Southside activists and preservationists, and some students are likely to argue that the university isn’t proposing enough new housing. 

“Whether you agree or disagree with the number of parking spaces being proposed, it appears that the university is snubbing its nose at the neighborhood and students,” said City Councilmember Kriss Worthington, whose district includes the heart of the Southside neighborhood. “A year ago, there were more than 100 neighbors and more than 100 students who came out to the university’s meetings, and virtually all of them said less parking, more housing on the Underhill site. But I don’t see major modifications in this draft.” 

In 1993, the university demolished the parking garage that sat in the Underhill block after engineers determined it was seismically unsafe. Four years later, UC released its first proposal for development at the site through its Auxiliary Facilities Replacement Project. That report evolved into a master plan for the Underhill area, and has culminated in the environmental impact study for the various projects being proposed. 

Underhill lot 

The university wants to build two structures in the Underhill block: the parking garage and the combined dining facility/housing and dining offices building. 

The peak of the garage would be level with College Avenue on the east. A sports field would be on top of the structure. 

The dining/housing complex, located along the Bowditch side of the block, would vary in height from 38 feet tall to 82 feet tall. 

Right now, the Underhill lot is a 325-space surface parking lot. With attendant parking spaces, it can hold up to 425 vehicles. 

One of the controversial elements for preservationists is the fate of the historic Fox Cottage, located in this block. A few months back, the university announced plans to demolish the Channing Way structure unless a buyer came forward. UC would sell the building for just $1, as long as the buyer paid for the transport. The draft EIR doesn’t completely close the door on relocating Fox Cottage, but the primary recommendation is to demolish the structure. The university says the estimated $750,000 cost for relocation is “infeasible and inconsistent with the project objectives.” Officials also assert that all options for keeping the Cottage on the Underhill site were “untenable.” 

New housing 

UC is proposing new student housing on four different sites, with a total of 870 new “beds” provided. 

At Units 1 and 2, after the dining structures are demolished, infill dorm buildings would be constructed. The Unit 1 addition would provide 360 additional beds, and the Unit 2 addition would have 180 additional beds. The Unit 2 project also would include room for “academic support.” 

The Channing/Bowditch Apartments, located in the northwest corner of that intersection, would provide 210 beds in apartment-style units. The project would not displace the historic Shorb House. 

The first building that the university wants to undertake is the College/Durant Apartments at the southeast corner of that intersection. It would provide 120 beds in apartment-style units. 

The College/Durant project would cost an estimated $12 million, and all of the housing projects would total around $83 million. 

The first public hearing on the draft Environmental Impact Report will be held at 7 p.m. April 24 in UC Berkeley’s Unit 1 Residence Hall at 2650 Durant Ave. Officials say the EIR is scheduled to go to the UC Board of Regents in September.