Tuesday, February 27, 2024 AGENDA Page 1
P R O C L AM AT I O N
C AL L I N G A S P E C I AL M EE TI NG O F T HE
B E R K E LE Y CI T Y C O U N CIL
In accordance with the authority in me vested, I do hereby call the Berkeley City Council in special session as follows:
Tuesday, February 27, 2024
4:30 PM
SCHOOL DISTRICT BOARD ROOM - 1231 ADDISON STREET, BERKELEY, CA 94702 TELECONFERENCE LOCATION - 1404 LE ROY AVE, BERKELEY 94708 TELECONFERENCE LOCATION – 301 WEST 17TH STREET, AUSTIN, TX 98701
JESSE ARREGUIN, MAYOR
Councilmembers:
DISTRICT 1 – RASHI KESARWANI DISTRICT 5 – SOPHIE HAHN
DISTRICT 2 – TERRY TAPLIN DISTRICT 6 – SUSAN WENGRAF
DISTRICT 3 – BEN BARTLETT DISTRICT 7 – VACANT
DISTRICT 4 – KATE HARRISON DISTRICT 8 – MARK HUMBERT
This meeting will be conducted in a hybrid model with both in-person attendance and virtual participation. If you are feeling sick, please do not attend the meeting in person.
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The City Council may take action related to any subject listed on the Agenda.
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Tuesday, January 23, 2024 AGENDA Page 2
Preliminary Matters
Roll Call:
Worksession
Public comment is limited to items on this agenda only. The public may comment on each item listed on the agenda as the item is taken up.
The Presiding Officer will request that persons wishing to speak line up at the podium, or use the "raise hand" function in Zoom, to determine the number of persons interested in speaking at that time. Up to ten (10) speakers may speak for two minutes. If there are more than ten persons interest ed in speaking, the Presiding Officer may limit the public comment for all speakers to one minute per speaker. Speakers are permitted to yield their time to one other speaker, however no one speaker shall have more than four minutes. The Presiding Officer may, with the consent of persons representing both sides of an issue, allocate a block of time to each side to present their issue.
Action items may be reordered at the discretion of the Chair with the consent of Council.
1. Berkeley Economic Dashboards Update
From: City Manager
Contact: Eleanor Hollander, Economic Development, (510) 981-7530 Adjournment
I hereby request that the City Clerk of the City of Berkeley cause personal notice to be given to each member of the Berkeley City Council on the time and place of said meeting, forthwith.
IN WITNESS WHEREOF, I have hereunto set my hand and caused the official seal of the City of Berkeley to be affixed on this February 22, 2024.
Jesse Arreguin, Mayor
Public Notice – this Proclamation serves as the official agenda for this meeting.
ATTEST:
Date: February 22, 2024
Mark Numainville, City Clerk
NOTICE CONCERNING YOUR LEGAL RIGHTS: If you object to a decision by the City Council to approve or deny an appeal, the following requirements and restrictions apply: 1) Pursuant to Code of Civil Procedure Section 1094.6 and Government Code Section 65009(c)(1)(E), no lawsuit challenging a City decision to deny or approve a Zoning Adjustments Board decision may be filed and served on the City more than 90 days after the date the Notice of Decision of the action of the City Council is mailed. Any lawsuit not filed within that 90-day period will be barred. 2) In any lawsuit that may be filed against a City Council decision to approve or deny a Zoning Adjustments B oard decision, the issues and evidence will be limited to those raised by you or someone else, orally or in writing, at a public hearing or prior to the close of the last public hearing on the project.
Tuesday, January 23, 2024 AGENDA Page 3
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Any writings or documents provided to a majority of the City Council regarding any item on this agenda will be made available for public inspection at the public counter at the City Clerk Department located on the first floor of City Hall located at 2180 Milvia Street as well as posted on the City's website at https://berkeleyca.gov/.
Agendas and agenda reports may be accessed via the Internet at:
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Office of the City Manager
2180 Milvia Street, Berkeley, CA 94704 ● Tel: (510) 981-7000 ● TDD: (510) 981-6903 ● Fax: (510) 981-7099 E-Mail: [email protected] Website: http://www.CityofBerkeley.info/Manager
WORKSESSION
February 27, 2024
To: Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
From: Dee Williams-Ridley, City Manager
Submitted by: Eleanor Hollander, Economic Development Manager Subject: Berkeley Economic Dashboards Update
SUMMARY
The Office of Economic Development (OED) is pleased to present the Citywide Economic Dashboard update for 2023 (Attachment 1), and the updated Commercial District Dashboards (Attachment 2).
CURRENT SITUATION AND ITS EFFECTS
Throughout 2023, the City of Berkeley continued to exhibit sustained economic recovery from the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic, albeit at a slower pace than 2022. Sales tax revenue across most industry sectors has decreased slightly over the last year, and ground floor retail vacancy rates have steadied; rates have dropped in some commercial districts and increased in others, the citywide vacancy rate average remains just above 8 percent, decreasing three tenths of a percent from rates observed in 2022.
Innovation sector businesses have continued to be a driving force in the Berkeley economy, with more than 80 companies raising an excess of $856 million from venture capital, seed financing, and government grants. The attached dashboards present these trends in more detail and include the latest citywide data available through the fourth quarter of 2023, much of which has been collected through on-the-ground fieldwork.
Key findings include:
Unemployment rates increase slightly; overall job growth observed in many sectors. Between December 2022 and December 2023, the total number of jobs located in the East Bay increased by 17,200, or 1.4%. The sectors with the highest year-over-year percent growth in employment included Arts, Entertainment & Recreation (+10%), Construction (+9%), Leisure & Hospitality (+6%), and Accommodation & Food Services (+5%). The countywide unemployment rate trended up, increasing from 2.7% in December 2022 to 4.5% in December 2023. Berkeley’s unemployment rate increased slightly, from 3.3% to 4.0% over the same period. This tracks with the year-over-year increase in the statewide unemployment rate from 3.7% to 4.9%.
2023 Economic Dashboards WORKSESSION
February 27, 2024
The number of startups in Berkeley held steady despite 2023 being a challenging year for fundraising and continued trends for companies to employ a hybrid or remote workforce. In 2023, the City of Berkeley was home to approximately 400 innovation sector businesses in life sciences, software, clean technology, food tech, and other science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) industries. Healthcare and life sciences continue to grow, representing a larger than ever percentage of Berkeley startups (35%). Software is also a key strength, comprising approximately a third (32%). Of the remaining third, 14% are cleantech, 13% are hardware, 2% are food-tech, 2% are education technology, and the remaining 1% are in “other” innovation industries.
The vast majority (81%) of Berkeley’s innovation companies are early stage (“startups”) and many take advantage of UC Berkeley innovation and entrepreneurship programs as well as coworking spaces, accelerators, and incubators citywide. Unfortunately, 2023 was a much harder year for startup fundraising. According to Pitchbook, venture capital fundraising in 2023 versus 2022 globally was down by nearly half (47.6%). In Berkeley, venture and seed capital fundraising was down 60% year over year (from $2.1 billion in 2022), though 73 Berkeley startups still raised $840 million. Berkeley companies Carmot Therapeutics, A3GEO, and Protocols.io secured deals for acquisitions valued at more than $3.1 billion, and publicly-traded Caribou Biosciences reached alignment with the FDA on a pivotal trial to enable broader access to therapy for lymphoma patients and raised $25 million of development capital from Pfizer to maintain its position as a frontrunner in the field of genome-editing. Berkeley also continued to be a hub for research and development (R&D), with 11 companies securing more than $17 million in government R&D grants. Office vacancy rates in Berkeley increased while the market for lab space remained tight. Overall office availability in Berkeley rose to 13.4% in 2023 from the 11.5% observed in Q4 2022, though the figure is significantly lower than the 29% vacancy observed in neighboring Oakland. Asking rents for high quality office space in Berkeley have stayed relatively consistent and are currently $3.45 per square foot. Lab space remains at a premium in Berkeley, commanding rents of $7.00 per square foot. The vacancy rate for Berkeley lab space is 42.1%, which has increased dramatically in 2023, owing to the increase of new inventory from a large project in West Berkeley at 600 Addison Street (539,000 square feet total). For context, without this new inventory factored in, the availability rate for Berkeley in 4Q23, is a more modest 22.7%.
Average citywide ground floor commercial vacancy rates remained slightly higher than pre-pandemic levels. Based on field data collected from September–October 2023, the citywide ground floor commercial vacancy rate did not change significantly from last year (it declined from 8.4% to 8.1%), but is up
2023 Economic Dashboards WORKSESSION
February 27, 2024
from the 2019 citywide vacancy rate of 5.4%. In 2023, San Pablo Avenue, University Avenue, and South Berkeley all experienced a year-over-year increase in vacancy rates—San Pablo rose from 10.8% to 15.6%; University rose from 12.8% to 17.8%; South Berkeley rose from 11.8% to 19.8%. West Berkeley’s vacancy rate decreased to 2.1% from 5.2% and Downtown Berkeley had a slight drop in vacancy from 11.9% (2022) to 10.8% (2023). Occupancy by retail businesses, as a share of total ground floor square footage, held steady. Business and Professional Services dropped 1.3% as a proportion of total commercial inventory from 2022 (now at 4.4%), along with Arts, Entertainment & Recreation which had a drop of 1.1% (now at 5.2%).
Personal Services occupancy has decreased from 15.8% in 2022 to 8.1% in 2023, along with Public/Nonprofit Entities which decreased to 5.3% from the
7.0% of inventory observed in 2022. Some neighborhood commercial districts including Solano, North Shattuck, and Elmwood saw little decline in Retail square footage over the last year, whereas South Berkeley saw a 2% decrease in Retail occupancy (now at 29%). Food & Beverage businesses saw a nearly 2% increase to occupy 11.8% of total ground floor square footage in the city in 2023. In 2023, the City of Berkeley’s sales tax revenue was less robust than 2022, but still shows a recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic years of 2020 & 2021. Berkeley’s annual sales tax revenues decreased 10% year-over-year through the second quarter of 2023, from $16.4 million to $14.7 million. Alameda County (including all 14 cities) reported an annual sales tax increase of 7.3% to $447 million over the same period and the State of California witnessed a 2.4% increase to $9.5 billion. Though sales tax revenue in the second quarter of 2023 at $3.6 million was down 18.5% from the same period in 2022 ($4.4 million), it is higher than citywide sales tax collected in the second quarters of both 2020 ($2.6M) and 2021 ($3.1M) during the more acute phases of the COVID-19 pandemic. Overall, the Retail and Food & Beverage subsectors were the largest contributors to the city’s sales tax revenue (43.7% and 33.1% in Q2 2023, respectively). In the second quarter of 2023, sales tax collection decreases were present in nearly every sector, with the exception of the “other non-retail” category which increased by 6%, likely representing large equipment (or other taxable) purchases made by non-profit institutions.
Even as the housing market cooled slightly, Berkeley home prices and rental costs remained high. With a median sale price of $1.2M for a single- family home in December 2023, Berkeley’s home prices decreased by 8.1% from December 2022, with a 19% decrease in sales volume over the same period. 25 single family homes were sold in Berkeley in December 2023, with an average of 19 days on the market. In the past five years (2019-2023), the median price of single-family homes in Berkeley hit an all-time high ($1,810,000) in April 2022.
For rentals, between December 2023 and the year prior (December 2022),
2023 Economic Dashboards WORKSESSION
February 27, 2024
Berkeley’s rents for studio apartments increased by 6%, rising to an average of $1,895 per month.
The City of Berkeley continues to employ a wide range of approaches to support local economic sustainability. The City’s Small Business Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) and COVID-19 Resiliency Loan Program (RLP) have 24 active loans to Berkeley businesses totaling over $1.5 million in financing. Both the RLF and RLP programs continue to be an ongoing, and favorable source of capital for Berkeley’s small businesses. In addition, OED’s Civic Arts Grants Program continues to support Berkeley’s individual artists, arts organizations, and community festivals. In 2023, the Civic Arts Grants program funded 11 individual arts projects ($44,000 total awarded), 31 festivals ($199,983 total awarded), and 55 arts organizations ($454,799 total awarded).
Other efforts include implementing a path to permanence for parklets and outdoor commerce for nearly 30 businesses, and building on a sophisticated marketing campaign to increase visibility and sales for Berkeley enterprises. In 2023, the #DiscoveredinBerkeley campaign continued to spotlight exceptional, values-driven Berkeley companies that make Berkeley residents, business owners and workers proud. To date, the campaign has exceeded 3.8 million impressions and registered more than 146,000 concrete engagements online.
In 2023, OED continued to offer assistance with Green Business Certification, and a wide range of support for sustainable business networks including Berkeley’s six formal Business Improvement Districts (BIDs) and many other merchant organizations. OED worked to promote equitable economic development through a partnership with Project Equity that helps Berkeley businesses transition to worker owned cooperatives. Further, in 2023 OED participated in the National League of Cities for Inclusive Innovation Ecosystems Accelerator program to conduct outreach to Black and Latinx-owned business to determine their challenges, access to needed capital, and experiences with technical assistance providers. The results of the program included a larger database of minority-owned businesses, greater understanding of the effectiveness of technical assistance organizations, and creation of the Berkeley Business Resource Collaborative which connects local business networks for the purpose of improving the types and levels of support. As part of the Berkeley Startup Cluster's Berkeley Ventures, Berkeley Values initiative, OED also worked to deepen and diversify Berkeley’s talent pipeline by arranging for dozens of Berkeley High School students to visit 11 Berkeley companies during 8 “STEM CareerX Tours” in 2023. The visits to the local companies, organized in partnership with the Institute for STEM Education at Cal State University, provided an opportunity for students to see how their science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) skills apply in the workplace.
2023 Economic Dashboards WORKSESSION
February 27, 2024
BACKGROUND
Since 2015, OED has consistently released two companion publications, the Citywide Economic Dashboard and Commercial District Dashboards, which analyze a wide variety of economic trends and indicators in Berkeley. Attached to this report is the updated version of the Citywide Economic Dashboard and Commercial District Dashboard for December 2023 (Attachments 1 and 2). These dashboards are designed to make current economic and community data and information more accessible to Council, City staff, and community stakeholders. Providing this information also allows investors to evaluate potential markets and provides vital information for policy-makers to better direct different social and economic programs. The reports provide updated information through Q4 2023. OED staff will continue to update these dashboards on an annual basis, as staffing allows, and has posted the most recent version on the City’s website at: https://berkeleyca.gov/doing-business/economic-development/economic- dashboards-and-reports.
To produce these publications, OED staff compiled and analyzed a wide variety of data sources including the Monthly Labor Force “LMI” Data (California Employment Development Department), the Employment Development Department’s (EDD) Quarterly Census of Wage and Employment Data (QCEW), commercial real estate data (Newmark Cornish & Carey, Strategic Economics, Lightcast), housing market data (Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board, Multiple Listing Service (MLS), CoStar, Apartment List, and Redfin) and sales tax data (MUNIServices). Staff also analyzed data from City databases including business licenses, building permits and planning permits.
Information on Berkeley startups and other innovation companies was obtained from Pitchbook, Crunchbase, LinkedIn, the U.S. Small Business Administration, tech industry news sources, and direct communications with businesses or the Berkeley Startup Cluster’s partners including UC Berkeley, the Berkeley Lab, and Berkeley’s startup incubators, accelerators and coworking spaces such as SkyDeck, Bakar Labs, CITRIS Foundry and Bonneville Labs. Finally, in the third and fourth quarter of 2023 OED staff updated its field occupancy survey of ground floor commercial spaces in Berkeley commercial districts (Attachment 2). These publications support the City’s Strategic Plan, advancing our goal to be a customer-focused organization that provides excellent, timely, easily-accessible service and information to the community.
ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY
Many of the City’s environmental sustainability goals are inextricably tied to the overall health of the City’s economy. The continued pursuit of sustainable economic goals, represents a source of resilience for Berkeley.
POSSIBLE FUTURE ACTION
OED staff will, as directed by Council through previous and future referral items, partner with other City departments and community organizations to implement programs and policies that foster a dynamic, sustainable, and locally-based economy.
2023 Economic Dashboards WORKSESSION
February 27, 2024
FISCAL IMPACTS OF POSSIBLE FUTURE ACTION
Actions that facilitate increased economic activity may increase revenues related to sales tax and property tax, and thus have a positive fiscal impact on the city.
CONTACT PERSON
Eleanor Hollander, Economic Development Manager, (510) 981-7536 Elizabeth Redman Cleveland, Office of Economic Development, (510) 981-7532 Vincent McCoy, Office of Economic Development, (510) 981-7043 Rachel Arbios, Office of Economic Development, (510) 981-7531 Attachments:
1: Citywide Economic Dashboard
2: Commercial District Dashboards
2023 Economic Dashboard
Office of Economic Development
1
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Table of Contents
Citywide Economic Dashboard
EMPLOYMENT ACTIVITY 3-4 • Job Growth, Unemployment, Top 25 Employers
SECTOR SNAPSHOTS 5-9 • Hospitality
• Innovation & Startups
• Regional Trends in Life Sciences & Manufacturing
COMMERCIAL ACTIVITY 10-15
• Trends & Transactions – Office, Commercial Inventory
• Commercial Districts – Vacancy Rates, Occupancy by Business Type • Sales Tax Revenues
• Future Development
HOUSING 16-17 • Development Pipeline & Construction
• Rental Costs & Sale Prices
OED EFFORTS TO SUPPORT ECONOMIC SUSTAINABILITY 18-26 • Financing Small Businesses
• Marketing Businesses - #DiscoveredinBerkeley
• Enabling Business Networks
• Greening Business Practices & Expanding Outdoor Commerce • Developing an Equitable Economy & Future Talent Pipeline • Funding Arts & Culture
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Percent change in East Bay employment by sector
(Nov. 2022 – Nov. 2023)
Employment Activity
job growth by industry sector & unemployment
Source: Labor Market Information (LMI-EDD) for East Bay (Alameda and Contra Costa Counties), December 2023.
Unemployment Rates show slight increase year over year:
Source: State of California Employment Development Department (EDD), Y Charts, Labor Market Information (LMI-EDD) 2022 2023
California 3.7% 4.9%
Alameda County 2.7% 4.5%
Berkeley 3.3% 4.0%
Sector (in the East Bay) Percent
Change
% of Total
Jobs
Arts, Entertainment & Recreation 10.9% 1.6%
Construction 9.4% 6.8%
Leisure and Hospitality 6.4% 9.6%
Accommodation & Food Services 5.5% 8.0%
Educational & Health Services 4.5% 18.2%
Real Estate & Rental & Leasing 3.0% 1.7%
Transportation & Warehousing 0.3% 4.2%
Government 0.3% 12.5%
Manufacturing 0.1% 9.3%
Retail Trade 0.1% 8.9%
Architectural, Engineering & Related Services -1.6% 1.5% Computer Systems Design & Related Services -6.5% 1.7%
Administrative & Support Services -7.9% 4.5%
Job Growth
Between November 2022 and November 2023, the total number of jobs located in the East Bay increased by 17,200 or 1.4%. The sectors with the highest percent growth in employment included Arts Entertainment & Recreation (up by 1,900 jobs) and
Construction (up by 7,100 jobs). Other sectors including Accommodation & Food Service and Leisure & Hospitality also continue to increase employment opportunities (both are up, by approximately 5,100 and 7,000 jobs respectively).
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Employment Activity
largest employers
Top 25 Berkeley Employers
Berkeley’s top 25 employers (by number of employees) is reflective of the city’s diverse economy. Top employers include four in the healthcare sector and four in the education sector, including UC Berkeley, one of the city’s main economic engines. There are also a few large private sector corporations in Berkeley, notably Bayer and Meyer Sound. Two startups also made it onto the 2023 list:
Upside Foods and Twelve.
Source: State of California Employment Development Department (EDD), Q1 2023* Twelve’s carbon
transformation
technology
converts captured
CO2 into products
historically made
from fossil fuels
Pictured at right:
The company’s O12
reactor
*Data from Q1 2023 excludes companies no longer in Berkeley by the end of 2023 Company Sector
Backroads Inc. Recreation
Bayer Corp. Biotech
Berkeley Bowl Produce Food & Beverage
Berkeley Cement Inc. Construction
Berkeley City College Education
Berkeley Unified School District Education
City of Berkeley Government
Fieldwork Brewing Co. Food & Beverage
Foresight Mental Health Healthcare
Information Systems and Accounting Business Services
Kaiser Permanente Medical Group Inc. Healthcare
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab Laboratory
Lifelong Medical Care Healthcare
Meyer Sound Laboratories Manufacturing/ R&D
OC Jones & Sons Construction
Twelve Manufacturing/ R&D
Safeway Inc. Food & Beverage
Siemens Corp. Manufacturing/ R&D
Sutter Bay Hospital Healthcare
Target Corp. Retail
The Wright Institute Education
University of California Education
UPSIDE Foods Biotech/R&D
Whole Foods Market Food & Beverage
YMCA of the Central Bay Area Recreation
(Clockwise) Meyer Sound, Fieldwork Brewing, Upside
Foods, Twelve Credits:, Business Wire, Traveler Mag.
Upside Food’s
meat is grown
directly from
animal cells
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Sector Snapshots
hospitality
Tourism & Lodging
Food & Beverage Services
Berkeley’s tourism and lodging sector sustained and built on its post-Covid comeback, posting increases in key economic performance metrics. • Average nightly hotel occupancy made a slight
increase from 2022, rising from 69% to 70%, though
still below pre-pandemic average occupancy rates
of more than 80%.
• The average daily room rate for all Berkeley hotels
rose 2.1% from the year prior, to $181 per night.
• Berkeley hotel tax revenue has now recovered fully
from pre-pandemic levels, to nearly $8 million,
which is especially impressive given the 9.6% drop
in inventory, as several more hotels were converted
to transitional housing in 2023.
• Meetings, conventions, and group travel has
returned, with hotels reporting increased demand
for this high-revenue sector.
• VisitBerkeley.com reached new highs in users and
engagement during the year, with webpages such as
the Event Calendar, Where to Stay, Food & Drinks,
and Things to Do illustrating the city’s many leisure
opportunities.
Restaurants and libations businesses carried on
resiliently with normal ebbs and flows attributed
to the nature of the industry.
The Berkeley Bucks e-gift card
campaign contributed over $18K in sales, which
consisted primarily of food service businesses.
Campaigns such
as Berkeley
Restaurant Week
kept the city’s
culinary scene on
the map.
Berkeley hosted the Bioneers
Conference in Downtown
Berkeley for the first time in
March 2023. Based on the
success of 2023, the conference
will return March 28-30, 2024.
Photo: Visit Berkeley
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Sector Snapshots
startups & innovation businesses
Source: OED, Berkeley Startup Cluster
Source: City of Berkeley Office of Economic Development (OED), UC Berkeley IPIRA *Companies defined as startups are for-
profit businesses that sell innovative
technology products or services
OR substantively use innovative
technologies to develop and manufacture
their products or provide their services AND
are developing repeatable and scalable
business models that aren’t yet profitable.
The Healthcare and Life Sciences sector continues
to grow, representing a larger than ever
percentage of Berkeley startups (35%). Software is
also a key strength, comprising approximately a
third. CleanTech and Hardware are also a vital part
of our innovation ecosystem.
Pitchbook ranked UC Berkeley #1 in
venture-funded startups founded by
undergrad alumni from any university
worldwide and #2 for the overall
number of startup founders.
Berkeley has ~400 innovation
companies citywide; 81% are
startups.
14% 1%
2%
2%
13%
35%
32%
1%
Innovation Companies
by Industry
CleanTech
Consulting
Education
Food & Beverage
Hardware
Healthcare & Life Sciences
Software
Other
0 50
100
150
200
250
300
350
400
2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Number of Startups*
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 6%
10%
1%
81%
2%
Innovation Companies by
Growth Stage
consulting company
established company
incubator or coworking
facility
startup
subsidiary company
Sector Snapshots
startup growth & wealth creation
Despite the difficulties of fundraising in
2023, 84 Berkeley startups raised:
• $840M in venture and seed capital
• $17M in government grants
• $3.316B through acquisitions,
public offerings, and debt financing
Berkeley Innovation Sector
2023 Highlights
• Carmot Therapeutics, a clinical-
stage biotech company addressing
obesity and diabetes, raised $150
million of venture funding and then
was acquired by Roche in a deal
valued at $3.1 billion.
• Kimia Therapeutics, a spinoff from
Carmot, raised $55 million to
address issues related to oncology,
immunology, and inflammation.
• KoBold Metals raised $195 million
to continue efforts using AI to
search for critical metals the world
needs for cleaner energy and EVs.
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Sector Snapshots
regional trends in life sciences & manufacturing - employment In 2023, the East Bay Economic Development
Alliance completed a study on East Bay industrial
lands, including regional job growth analysis and
East Bay subarea profiles. “Northern Alameda”
(including Berkeley) had the second highest
industrial job growth (27%) between 2011-2021,
behind only Southern Alameda (which grew by
77%). Industrial jobs in Northern Alameda
increased by more than 8,600 over the decade,
driven primarily by growth in the Life Science
industry. Total life science jobs in Northern
Alameda increased 51% over this period, from
10,469 to 15,782. During the same decade,
manufacturing jobs in the subregion only grew
by 12% to 11,610.
Source: Resilient East Bay:
Industrial Land Use Analysis & Implementation Toolkit Part I, May 2023 prepared for East Bay EDA by Strategic Economics Sources: Lightcast 2023, Strategic Economics 2023
East Bay
Industrial
Job Growth
by Sector
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Sector Snapshots
regional trends in life sciences & manufacturing - real estate Northern Alameda had a net loss of industrial buildings and industrial square footage between 2013-2023. Only the “Flex/Industrial R&D” real estate category saw net gains, with an increase from 129 to 137 buildings and approximately 396,000 square feet.
$7.00
Q4’23 lab
rent per
square foot,
Berkeley
42.1%
Q4’23 lab
availability,
Berkeley
Sources: CoStar, 2023; Strategic Economics, 2023;
Newmark Q4’23 Life Science Market Report
Resilient East Bay: Industrial Land Use Analysis & Implementation Toolkit Part I, May 2023 prepared for East Bay EDA by Strategic Economics
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Commercial Activity
trends & transactions - office
Q4 2023 Office Market,
Berkeley Indicators
Total Inventory 3,409,325 SF
Availability Rate 13.4%
Average Asking Rent $3.45 / SF
Source: Newmark Cornish & Carey, 4Q23 Greater Oakland Office Market Report Source: Newmark Cornish & Carey, 4Q23 Greater Oakland Office Market Report Office Availability, East Bay Cities Q4 2019 – Q4 2023The number of office jobs in the East Bay has yet to return to pre-pandemic levels, with about 10 thousand
fewer office jobs. Office occupancy across North
America is roughly half of what it was before the
pandemic.
Source: Newmark Cornish & Carey, 4Q23 Greater Oakland Office Market Report; The Economist, November 2023 using data from Kastle key card systems. 0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
4Q19 1Q20 2Q20 3Q20 4Q20 1Q21 2Q21 3Q21 4Q21 1Q22 2Q22 3Q22 4Q22 4Q23 Alameda Berkeley Emeryville Oakland Richmond
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Commercial Activity
trends & transactions – commercial inventory
Source: OED, Q3 2023
Among the three retail sectors, Food & Beverage, Retail, and Office/Other Non-retail, the trend over the past three years is toward stabilization. These three categories comprised 62% of total commercial inventory in 2023 compared to 2019 when the trio were 69% of the City of Berkeley’s inventory. Pending developments recorded in the Office/Non-Retail category has caused an 8% increase in this category since 2021 as development projects move towards completion. Once completed there is the expectation that Food & Beverage and Retail will again occupy the spaces and become a larger part of the overall commercial inventory.
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
30%
35%
40%
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Citywide Commercial Inventory by
Select Categories & Square Footage, 2019-2023
Food & Beverage Services Retail Office/ Other Non-Retail (Clockwise from top) Mixed Use Development under construction at Shattuck and University Avenues, pending future development coming to a bank of retail and food & beverage stores on Center Street, and retail space under construction on University Ave, are all categorized as “Other Non-Retail” in the annual vacancy database field survey.
Photos: OED, January 2024
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Commercial Activity
business district vacancy rates
Vacancy Rates by District, Calculated by Square Footage, 2018-2023 Citywide, the ground floor commercial vacancy rate has decreased to 8.1%*, an drop of 0.3% since Q3 2022. North Shattuck, West Berkeley, and Solano experienced large decreases.
Vacancy rates increased in San Pablo, South Berkeley, Telegraph, University, and C-N districts.
Photos: Berkeley OED Source: Berkeley OED
*Typical commercial
district storefront
vacancy rates range from
5-15% due to natural
market churn. Proposed
projects throughout the
city have an impact on
vacancies as property
owners allow openings
while expansion projects
are in progress.
District 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Downtown 3.1% 5.1% 9.9% 15.7% 11.9% 10.8%
Elmwood 7.3% 7.3% 10.9% 10.9% 7.7% 6.2%
North Shattuck 1.7% 0.7% 4.3% 4.3% 4.3% 1.9%
San Pablo 4.9% 4.6% 4.8% 7.9% 10.8% 15.5%
Solano 4.1% 2.6% 6.7% 4.4% 3.7% 2.6%
South Berkeley 9.7% 7.6% 10.1% 8.8% 11.8% 19.2%
Telegraph 7.9% 4.4% 17.2% 12.6% 8.5% 9.3%
University 11.0% 7.8% 11.0% 9.1% 12.8% 17.7%
Neighborhood
Commercial (C-N) 7.3% 3.2% 2.3% 2.6%
West Berkeley 3.7% 5.8% 3.7% 4.7% 5.2% 2.2%
Citywide Avg. 5.0% 5.4% 6.9% 8.3% 8.4% 8.1%
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Downtown
Elmwood
North Shattuck
San Pablo
Solano
South Berkeley
Telegraph
University
C-N
West Berkeley
Citywide
Ground Floor Commercial Occupancy By Category,
2023 Q4
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment & Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business & Professional Services
Personal Services
Public & Nonprofit Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail
Commercial Activity
ground floor space occupancy by business type
Source: Berkeley OED Photos: OED, Visit Berkeley, J. Furio *
*Other Non-retail consists of properties
that are leased or pending development.
Retail comprises the most significant percentage of
ground floor space across Berkeley commercial districts, with Food & Beverage also representing a large portion, especially in the Telegraph, Elmwood, Solano, and
North Shattuck districts.
• Downtown has the dominant share of
Office/Non-retail (34%) due to the high level of
development activity that includes ground floor retail
and housing above.
• West Berkeley (including 4th Street) has the highest
concentration of Retail (47%).
• South Berkeley has the highest vacancy rate (19%),
followed by University (18%) and San Pablo (16%).
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Commercial Activity
sales tax revenues in 2023
Total Annual Sales Tax Revenue (Q2 + PreviousThree Quarters) July ‘21 to June ‘22 July ’22 to June ‘23 % Change (Year over Year) City of Berkeley $16,385,109 $14,709,995 -10.2%
Alameda County (total including cities) $416,849,170 $447,204,095 7.3% State of California $9,292,057,968 $9,510,809,118 2.4%
In Q2 2023, the Retail subsector was the largest contributor to the city’s sales tax revenue (44%), with Food & Beverage second (33%). Sales tax revenue was down 19% from the same period in 2022, but is higher than citywide sales tax collected in the second quarter of both 2020 and 2021 (acute phases of the COVID-19 pandemic). Compared to Q2 last year, sales tax revenue across business categories is down, except in the “other-non retail” category where collections have increased by 6%. The decrease in Q2 sales tax collection was largely due to significant decreases in the Business & Professional Services sector (down by 38% from Q2 2022), Personal Services (down 30%), and Retail (down 22%).
Source: MuniServices, Quarter 2 (Apr-June) Collections 2018 to 2023 Source: MuniServices, Quarter 2 (Apr-June) 2018 to 2023, Nominal Values $-
$500,000
$1,000,000
$1,500,000
$2,000,000
$2,500,000
$3,000,000
$3,500,000
$4,000,000
$4,500,000
$5,000,000
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Total City of Berkeley Q2 Sales Tax Revenues
$-
$500,000
$1,000,000
$1,500,000
$2,000,000
$2,500,000
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Berkeley Q2 Sales Tax Revenue by Business Category
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage Services Other Non-Retail Personal Services Retail
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Commercial Activity
future development
Opportunity Abounds –
The former Pacific Steel
Casting + Berkeley Forge &
Tool properties changed
hands offering nearly 10
acres for development in
West Berkeley, and netting
the city approximately
$850,000 in sales transfer
tax. The anticipated future
Berkeley Forge project will
bring 900,000 square feet
of innovation space for
research and development
and 2,500 local jobs
available at all education
levels.
Former Pacific Steel Casting Plant, November 2022. Photo: OED Berkeley Forge Conceptual Plan, June 2023. Source: Berkeley Forge Group/Perkins & Will On the Horizon – In 2023 the Golden Gate
Fields horse racetrack just across the I-80
freeway, announced that it would close after
the winter-spring season in July 2024.
The 140-acre waterfront site straddles the
Berkeley-Albany border.
Photo: El Cerrito Patch
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Housing
development pipeline & construction
Pipeline & Construction Highlights
1998 Shattuck Ave (at University)
If built as proposed, 1998 Shattuck Avenue will
become the tallest structure in Berkeley. The
current tallest building in Berkeley is the 1971-
built Chase Building, with a rooftop height of 186
feet. The next tallest is the 176-foot Wells Fargo
Building from 1926, followed by the recently
completed 168-foot Residence Inn By Marriott.
Identity Logan Park Building 2050 Durant (at Shattuck)
In May 2023, as a result of the % for art ordinance, a mosaic mural featuring the poem In This Place (An American Lyric), by the first National Youth Poet Laureate Amanda Gorman was commissioned and celebrated at the opening of the Logan Identity Park housing building on Durant Ave between Shattuck Ave and Milvia St.
Berkeley Commercial & Large Residential Developments, Project Status Housing Development Pipeline
From November 30, 2023 through year end, applicants submitted land use permit applications for 16 distinct projects representing a total of 2,426 new housing units. The plans span several neighborhoods, are typically close to transit and the UC Berkeley campus, and include the potential tallest building in Berkeley (see inset at right).
Sources (from top): SF YIMBY, Trachtenberg Architects, Berkeleyside, OED File Photos, May 2023Sources: City of Berkeley Department of Planning and Development, December 2023, SF YIMBY, Map OED.
December 2023
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Housing
rental costs & sale prices
Median Sale Price, Single-Family Homes, Dec. 2023
Alameda $1,200,000
Albany $1,024,000
Berkeley $1,240,000
El Cerrito $1,224,500
El Sobrante $710,000
Emeryville $500,000
Oakland $825,000
Richmond $560,000
Piedmont $3,357,500
San Leandro $800,000
Source: Redfin
Sources: Redfin, Apartment List, Rent Cafe, and City of Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board Berkeley’s single family home values decreased 8.1% from Dec. 2022 -2023, with a 19% decrease in sales volume over the same period. 25 single family homes were sold in Berkeley in Dec. 2023, with an average of 19 days on the market. Over the past five years (2019-2023), the median price of single family homes in Berkeley hit an all time high ($1.81M) in April 2022. For rentals, Berkeley’s average rents for studios increased by 6.2% between Dec. 2022- 2023 to an average of $1,895 per month.
Home sales soften; rental prices increase a bit
Sources: Redfin, Apartment List, and City of Berkeley Rent Stabilization Board 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
$900,000
$1,000,000
$1,100,000
$1,200,000
$1,300,000
$1,400,000
$1,500,000
$1,600,000
$1,700,000
$1,800,000
$1,900,000
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
$1,800
$2,000
Housing Prices in Berkeley, 2019-2023
Median Rents, Studio Apartment Median Sale Price, Single Family Homes
18
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Revolving Loan Fund (RLF) Portfolio Total Loans Active Loans Number of RLF Loans 45 6
RLF $ Loaned $2,744,987 $740,000
Total Non-RLF $ Leveraged $7,453,083 $2,303,486
Private Sector Jobs Created 204 50
Private Sector Jobs Saved 100 76
COVID-19 Resiliency Loan Program (RLP) Portfolio Active Loans Number of RLP Loans 18
RLP $ Loaned $793,000
Supporting Berkeley’s existing small businesses
Loan Administration Board
members visiting the
Revolving Loan Fund (RLF)
recipient California Jazz
Conservatory during the
annual RLF recipient tour
(Fall 2023).
RLF recipient Kitchen on Fire
uses whole foods and
timeless techniques. Their
chef instructors inspire
students to integrate healthy
cooking practices into their
home kitchen and lifestyle.
Current RLF Borrowers:
Source: Berkeley OED, December 2023
Source: Berkeley OED, June 2023
Financing small businesses through the
Revolving Loan Fund & Resiliency Loan Program
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Marketing businesses #DiscoveredinBerkeley
The Discovered in Berkeley campaign highlighted entrepreneurial women, green caterers, manufacturers, clothing upcyclers, robot designers, community creative space, and many other small businesses selling games, recreational opportunities, and unique holiday gifts.
We exceeded 3.8 million impressions and 146k direct engagements online from the DiscoveredinBerkeley.comwebsite, Berkeleyside articles & banner ads, Instagram @DiscoveredinBerkeleyposts, and other promotions on social media and via business network partners.
At the Berkeley Chamber’s annual “Berkeley Today & Tomorrow” event, more than 200 members of our community celebrated the creativity, resilience and innovation of Berkeley businesses. @ Ciel Creative Space in West Berkeley
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 • Approximately 43% ($2.46M) of OED’s
Operating Budget and Expenditures annually
goes towards distributing special assessments
and offering technical assistance to Berkeley’s
Business Improvement Districts (BIDs).
• OED supports local BIDs, Visit Berkeley, and
the Berkeley Chamber through the Berkeley
Business District Network (BBDN).
• Coming in 2024 – Elmwood BID expansion
and Parking BIDs in the Lorin and
Gilman Districts.
Enabling sustainable business networks
OED Operating Budget by Funding Source ($5.7M) FY23-24
Map of Berkeley’s Commercial Districts
Dedicated for BIDs
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Going Green Helps Companies
Achieve Environmental Benefits
and Cost Savings
OED worked with the California Green
Business Program to support 170
green businesses in Berkeley. Results
from 2023 included:
• 10 new green businesses certified
• 15 green businesses recertified
• 1,015,680 gallons of water saved
• 613,401 kWh of electricity avoided
• 124,597 lbs of solid waste diverted
• 979 gallons of fuel saved
Greening local business practices
See all Green Businesses in Berkeley at
www.greenbusinessca.org
Green Businesses in Berkeley
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Outdoor Commerce – Pathway to Permanence
In 2020 and 2021 the City of Berkeley expanded the range of allowed outdoor activities on both public and private property and streamlined permitting processes. For businesses that wish to continue outdoor commerce installations approved during COVID, the City now offers a path to permanence. Outdoor Commerce Use Fees will be charged starting 5/20/24, 1 year after the COVID-19 emergency was declared over in May 2023. Early estimates indicate that 30+ businesses may take advantage of the pathway.
Expanding outdoor commerce
Berkeley’s early adopters
of outdoor commerce
and dining - Starting in June
2020, the City offered an
option for permitting “outdoor
commerce” (outdoor business
activities in the public right of
way). A selection of existing
program participants are
photographed with their
outdoor installation (clockwise
from left): Viet Vu of Hoi
Polloi, Kelsie Kerr of Standard
Fare, Peter Levitt of Saul’s
Delicatessen, Kara Hammond
of Baker & Commons (credit:
Kelly Sullivan). (Right) The UC
Theater’s OutFront Street Bar
on University Avenue.
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Promoting equitable development
CITIES INCLUSIVE ENTREPRENEURSHIP
Berkeley participated in the National League of Cities’ Cities Inclusive Entrepreneurship project to explore
how the City could work with other local business
network partners to strengthen relationships with
Berkeley’s Latinx and Black-owned businesses and
support their scale-up, expansion, and continuity.
Outreach to black and brown businesses uncovered
that many of their challenges are the same as those
facing other small businesses citywide.
In partnership with Project Equity, OED
convened leaders from across the East Bay to
discuss how to best unlock the power of
employee ownership to build a more resilient
& equitable economy in the Bay Area.
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Deepening and diversifying Berkeley’s
talent pipeline
As part of the Berkeley Startup Cluster's Berkeley Ventures, Berkeley Values programming, and with support from the Institute for STEM Education at Cal State University, dozens of Berkeley High School (BHS) students heard from 11 companies during 8 STEM CareerX Tours in 2023. The visits provided an opportunity for students to see how their science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) skills apply in the workplace.
Quotes from students after the site visit:
Cell Valley Labs: “I learned more about drug startup
companies and how they try to find cures/treatments for diseases. I found it very interesting.”
Valitor Bio: “I learned that drugs administered through the bloodstream cannot reach the retina, so it’s difficult to treat eye conditions.”
Harvest Thermal: “The concept of the field trip where we could see the technology actually being applied in a home was really cool.”
@Berkeley SkyDeck@Channing St Copper
@Conception Bio
@Twelve
CITY OF BERKELEY | OFFICE OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT | 2023 Sustaining Berkeley’s Arts and Culture Sector
The City of Berkeley Civic Arts program provides grants to support a vibrant arts ecosystem, strengthen diverse cultural expressions, and ensure equitable access to arts and culture throughout Berkeley.
Civic Arts Grants Awarded in 2023:
• 11 individual arts projects ($44,000)
• 31 community festivals ($199,983)
• 55 arts organizations ($454,799)
Capital Projects Grants. In order to retain and sustain the vitality of Berkeley’s arts sector through real estate and capital project support, the City allocated $300,000 in December 2023 to launch an annual Civic Arts grant program for Berkeley-based nonprofit arts and cultural organizations to help them stay in Berkeley.
Grants of up to $150,000 each will be awarded in FY24.
Increased Investment in a Vibrant Arts Community
Arts Program Grants. With a $30,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, the City leveraged matching funds to create a new Civic Arts grant program, for a total of $60,000 to support Berkeley arts and cultural programming. Grants of up to $5,000 each will be awarded in FY25 to:
• Nonprofit (not-art specific) organizations in Berkeley for arts and cultural programming produced in partnership with an arts organization or teaching artist; or
• Arts nonprofit organizations from the Greater Bay Area to produce arts and cultural programming within Berkeley.
Left: Berkeley Indigenous Peoples Day Powwow & Indian
Market, community festival grantee. Photo: Ray Chavez.
Right: Berkeley Repertory Theatre, general operating support grantee. Photo: Student matinee, source www.berkeleyrep.org.
Funding arts & culture in Berkeley
Office of Economic Development (OED)
See the OED website for past Economic Dashboards and other economic reports:
https://berkeleyca.gov/doing-business/economic-
development/economic-dashboards-and-reports
Contact OED for more information:
[email protected]
City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 Downtown: 2023 Snapshot
Downtown Berkeley serves as the City’s core commercial district, meeting the daily needs of residents, students, workers, and visitors. The district benefits from a significant concentration of arts and entertainment uses, which occupy
Source: MuniServicesSource: Berkeley OED
15.6% of total ground floor
commercial space in the district
compared to 5.2% citywide. As of
Q4 2023, the vacancy rate in
Downtown is 10.8%, slightly
above the initial COVID year of
2020 (9.9%). Sales tax revenue
generated by Food & Beverage
services reached its nadir in 2021
($565,561) but has returned and
exceeded pre-COVID levels with
$1.2M generated in 2023.
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$200,000
$400,000
$600,000
$800,000
$1,000,000
$1,200,000
$1,400,000
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2018-2023
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail
5.10%
9.90%
15.66%
11.87%
10.78%
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
18%
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by Square
Footage), 2019-2023
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Downtown Citywide
Ground Floor Commercial Business Mix
(by Square Footage), 2023 Q4
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-
Retail
Business & Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public & Nonprofit
Entities
Food & Beverage
Services
Retail
City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 Elmwood: 2023 Snapshot
The Elmwood is a compact three block commercial district along College Avenue near the Berkeley-Oakland border and the neighboring Rockridge shopping district. The Elmwood district is characterized by a high concentration (30.7%) of Food & Beverage services and Personal Services (20.1%), and is a walkable, neighborhood-serving commercial district. As of Q4 2023, the district’s vacancy rate by square footage is 6.2%.
Source: MuniServicesSource: Berkeley OED
Sales tax collected from the
Food and Beverage sector in
the Elmwood increased in
2023 to $210,570, from a low
of $140,812 in 2021. Sales tax
collected from the Retail
sector decreased slightly in
2023 to $112,610, but
remained above retail sales
tax collected in 2021
($88,709) when the pandemic
was in an acute phase.
$0
$50,000
$100,000
$150,000
$200,000
$250,000
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2018-2023
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Personal Services Retail
7.30%
10.90% 10.90%
7.66%
6.20%
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by Square
Footage), 2019-2023
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Elmwood Citywide
Business Mix (by Square Footage), 2023 Q4
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business & Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public & Nonprofit Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail
City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 North Shattuck: 2023 Snapshot
North Shattuck is one of Berkeley’s oldest commercial districts, just north of Downtown. The district is characterized by a high concentration of well-known, long-standing, and celebrated restaurants, including Chez Panisse and the Cheeseboard.
North Shattuck is both a walkable, neighborhood-serving commercial district as well as a global destination for food and dining. As of Q4 2023, the district’s vacancy rate by square footage is 1.9%, a marked decrease from 4.3% in 2022 Q4.
Source: MuniServicesSource: Berkeley OED
Sales tax collected from the
Food and Beverage sector in
North Shattuck increased in 2023
to $533,418, from its 2021 low
($298,196), though sales tax
collected from the retail sector
continued to decline from $154,510
in 2022 to $134,219 in 2023.
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$100,000
$200,000
$300,000
$400,000
$500,000
$600,000
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2018-2023
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail
0.70%
4.30% 4.29% 4.31%
1.90%
0%
1%
1%
2%
2%
3%
3%
4%
4%
5%
5%
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2019-2023
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
North Shattuck Citywide
Business Mix (by Square Footage), 2023 Q4
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business & Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public & Nonprofit Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail
City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 San Pablo: 2023 Snapshot
San Pablo Avenue is Berkeley’s largest commercial corridor, running the entire north-south length of the City. San Pablo is characterized by a high concentration of Trade Services (15.7%), including automobile services.
Source: MuniServicesSource: Berkeley OED
San Pablo functions more as a regional
destination for specific uses rather than a
walkable, neighborhood-serving
commercial district; as such, it features
smaller percentages of Food & Beverage
Services (8.9%) and a larger portion of
Personal Services (13.3%) than the city as
a whole. In 2023, the district’s vacancy
rate by square footage is 15.5%, up from
10.7% in 2022. Retail Sales tax revenue
collected in 2023 has decreased by
$247,779 since 2022, yet continues to be
the corridor’s largest source of tax
revenue.
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$200,000
$400,000
$600,000
$800,000
$1,000,000
$1,200,000
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2018-2023
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail
4.60% 4.90%
7.87%
10.79%
15.55%
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
18%
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2019-2023
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
San Pablo Citywide
Business Mix (by Square Footage), 2023 Q4
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business & Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public & Nonprofit Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail
City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 Solano: 2023 Snapshot
Solano is a small commercial district in North Berkeley, with a total of 148 commercial spaces and approximately 176,800 square feet of commercial space. It shares a border with Albany and is situated next to a large Source: Berkeley OED
elementary school and an
active neighborhood of single-
family homes. The former Oaks
Theatre is due to be occupied
by a climbing gym that will
open in 2024. The district’s
vacancy rate by square footage
decreased from 3.7% in 2022 to
2.6% in 2023.
Sales tax collected from the Food and Beverage sector along Solano Avenue increased by $17,982 from 2022 to 2023, and sales tax collected from the Retail sector decreased from 2022, to $98,055.
Source: MuniServices
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$50,000
$100,000
$150,000
$200,000
$250,000
$300,000
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2018-2023
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Personal Services Retail
2.60%
6.70%
4.00% 3.70%
2.60%
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
6%
7%
8%
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2019-2023
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Solano Citywide
Business Mix (by Square Footage), 2023 Q4
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business & Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public & Nonprofit Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail
City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 South Berkeley: 2023 Snapshot
South Berkeley is a large district stretching over an area known for its cultural diversity and includes the Lorin District, the Sacramento corridor, and the South Shattuck area. South Berkeley includes car dealerships, which accrue retail sales tax revenue for the City.
Source: Berkeley OED
The area also features a high
concentration of Personal
Services businesses (14.2%, vs.
8.1% citywide) but is under-
served by Food & Beverage
services, which account for only
7.1% of ground floor
commercial space, as compared
to 11.8% citywide. As of Q4
2023, the district’s vacancy rate
by square footage was 19.2%, a
7.5% increase from 2022. The
big jump in vacancy rate can be
partly attributed to key large
floorplate retailers closing in
2023.
Source: MuniServices
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$200,000
$400,000
$600,000
$800,000
$1,000,000
$1,200,000
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2018-2023
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail
7.60%
10.10% 8.84%
11.76%
19.26%
0%
5%
10%
15%
20%
25%
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2019-2023
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
South Berkeley Citywide
Business Mix (by Square Footage), 2023 Q4
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business & Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public & Nonprofit Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail
City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 Telegraph: 2023 Snapshot
The Telegraph district has undergone significant change with respect to its ground floor inventory over the past several years. Food & Beverage services have shown a dramatic increase in the last decade, with 31.8% of Food & Beverage services accounting for ground floor commercial space in the district, as compared to 11.8%
Source: Berkeley OED
Citywide. Telegraph’s ground floor
inventory of Retail accounts for
35.7% of the business mix,
slightly more than the 30%
observed citywide. As of Q4
2023, the district’s ground floor
commercial vacancy rate of 9.3%,
was slightly higher than 2022
(8.5%). Food and Beverage
services slightly outperform retail
with respect to sales tax
collected; both increased in 2023.
Source: MuniServices
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$100,000
$200,000
$300,000
$400,000
$500,000
$600,000
$700,000
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2018-2023
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail
4.40%
17.20%
12.59%
8.51% 9.32%
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
18%
20%
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2019-2023
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
Telegraph Citywide
Business Mix (by Square Footage), 2023 Q4
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business & Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public & Nonprofit Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail
City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 University: 2023 Snapshot
University Avenue, from Martin Luther King Jr Way to the waterfront, spans many of the City’s neighborhoods and serves as the gateway to the UC Berkeley Campus. Since 2018, Retail and Food & Beverage services have generated
Source: Berkeley OED
the most sales tax
revenue for the district.
Retail sales tax collected
in 2023 decreased by
$95,758 from 2022, and
sales tax from Food &
Beverage continued to
experience growth. The
2023 vacancy rate
increased by 4.8% from
2022 to 17.7%.
Source: MuniServices
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$200,000
$400,000
$600,000
$800,000
$1,000,000
$1,200,000
$1,400,000
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2018-2023
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail
7.80%
11.00%
9.13%
12.81%
17.66%
0%
2%
4%
6%
8%
10%
12%
14%
16%
18%
20%
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2019-2023
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
University Citywide
Business Mix (by Square Footage), 2023 Q4
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business & Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public & Nonprofit Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail
City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 West Berkeley: 2023 Snapshot
West Berkeley represents all commercial spaces west of San Pablo Avenue, including 4th Street and the Gilman District. There are a number of major, large-floor-plate retailers, and a dense cluster of home supplies and construction businesses. There is also a higher percentage of non-retail commercial uses, including manufacturing and warehousing. Retail accounts for 47% of ground floor
commercial space in the district, as
compared to 30% citywide. West
Berkeley also has a smaller percentage
of square footage devoted to Food and
Beverage (7.2%) businesses than the
citywide rate of 11.8%. The commercial
vacancy rate in Q4 2023 is 2.1%, a big
drop from 2022’s 5.2%. Sales tax
revenue has increased in this area in all
categories except Retail for an overall
sales tax revenue increase of $71,501
(+1.1%).
Source: Berkeley OED Source: MuniServices
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$1,000,000
$2,000,000
$3,000,000
$4,000,000
$5,000,000
$6,000,000
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2018-2023
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail
5.40%
3.70%
4.67%
5.23%
2.14%
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
6%
2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy Rate (by
Square Footage), 2019-2023
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
West Berkeley Citywide
Business Mix (by Square Footage), 2023 Q4
Vacant
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation
Trade Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Business & Professional
Services
Personal Services
Public & Nonprofit Entities
Food & Beverage Services
Retail
City of Berkeley | Office of Economic Development | 510.981.7530 Neighborhood (C-N): 2023 Snapshot
Across Berkeley there are 11 smaller commercial pockets, zoned as “C-N” or “Neighborhood Commercial.” These areas are one or two block collections of commercial enterprises that are distributed throughout Berkeley (see map).
Source: Berkeley OED
The “C-N” areas represent
nearly 190 commercial spaces,
and approximately 390,000
square feet of commercial
space. The C-N areas collectively
generate 3% of the city’s total
sales tax. They also include a
large number of Personal
Services companies (32% by
square footage, compared to 8%
citywide) and Public and Non-
Profit entities (24.5% compared
to 5.3% citywide). These areas
include commercial nodes at the
following intersections:
• Claremont and Prince
• Claremont and Tunnel
• College and Alcatraz
• Gilman and Curtis
• Hearst and Euclid
• Hopkins and El Dorado
• Hopkins and Monterey
• Martin Luther King Jr Way
(MLK) and Dwight
• MLK and Hearst
• MLK and Rose
• MLK and Virginia
Source: MuniServices
Source: Berkeley OED
$0
$50,000
$100,000
$150,000
$200,000
$250,000
2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023
Sales Tax Revenue by Sector, 2018-2023
Business & Professional Services Food & Beverage
Other Non-Retail Personal Services
Retail
7.30%
3.20%
2.31%
2.63%
0%
1%
2%
3%
4%
5%
6%
7%
8%
2020 2021 2022 2023
Ground Floor Commercial Vacancy
Rate (by Square Footage), 2020-2023
0%
10%
20%
30%
40%
50%
60%
70%
80%
90%
100%
C-N Citywide
Business Mix (by Square Footage), 2023 Q4
Vacant
Trade Services
Retail
Public & Nonprofit Entities
Personal Services
Office / Other Non-Retail
Food & Beverage Services
Business & Professional
Services
Arts, Entertainment &
Recreation