Rockridge, berkeley, lake Merritt, 4th st, what? (Oakland, Richmond: apartments, rental)

[Rina120]

Hello all!
Just wanted to first thank all the people who comment and help out others on this forum! It is much appreciated.

So here is my newbie question. We are a gay female couple in our late 30's (ok, fine, I'll be 40) we will be relocating to the area. Not sure why I mentioned the gay thing other than to break down our demographic a bit.

We took a city tour with a rental agent of Rockridge, Berkeley (college ave and 4th st), Piedmont avenue, and lake Merritt. We also did walnut creek but that was too far from the city for my liking.
Our criteria for the tour was:
1) walking distance or short bike ride to bars, restaurants. Shops.
2) the same for BART. We want to be able to get to the city relatively easily.
3) I'm lucky and can get a shuttle bus to work. So no daily commuting problems.
We would have looked in the city, but my other half wants sun and some warmth to be the norm!

Out of the above locations, rockridge was really cool and so was The Berkeley side of College ave.
But now that we are looking, it seems we have more housing options if we expand to piedmont ave area, lake Merritt or near 4 th str in Berkeley. But I can't remember if those areas are near BART. I recall them being all near each other, but they look far apart on the map.

Two things to consider please.
1) we like to indulge in alcoholic beverages often so we definitely want somewhere we can bike to or walk to (yes I know you can also get a DUI on a bike).

2) we plan to invest in electric bicycles to aid us in distance and hills and would like to know if these areas are close enough to each other that perhaps focusing on getting housing in rockridge only, for example, is really not that important.
Is the 4 th st area really cool? Or is it up and coming?

Thank you oh so much in advance!

[artemis78]

I've lived or worked in almost all of these, so...

- 4th Street is a PITA to get to from BART. If you want BART proximity, it comes off the list. It also shuts down at night, for the most part (changing a little with new housing and restaurants, but still not the same vibe as Rockridge or Uptown). The new apartments in this area are also right up against the freeway and the railroad tracks--not ideal IMO.
- Rockridge is the best for BART accessibility, with some parts of Elmwood (Berkeley side of College) that are near Ashby BART a close second. Lakeside Apartment District is also close to BART (< 0.5 miles).
- The rest of Elmwood, Piedmont Ave/Temescal, and some of the northwest lake neighborhoods (Adams Point, Harrison/Oakland) are a long but doable walk (0.5 to 1 miles) to BART (either MacArthur or 19th Street), and walkable to commercial/entertainment districts. During the day, there are also Kaiser and Alta Bates shuttles to BART that can shorten the walk from some of these areas.
- Grand Lake is a great neighborhood, but not walkable to BART. There is a Transbay bus that runs all the time that gets you to the Transbay Station in SF, though. The east side of the lake is also not particularly BARTable (probably closest to Lake Merritt BART but pretty far from that, too).

If your budget will accommodate Rockridge, it sounds like the best fit for you. Elmwood, Piedmont Ave, Temescal, or the NW lake neighborhoods (and maybe Uptown Oakland--close to restaurants/bars, though not many shops there yet) would be my next picks. Temescal, Adams Point, and Harrison/Oakland have a lot of LGBT couples and young families if that's a factor (but I wouldn't anticipate any concerns in any of these areas). Beware of hills in the lake neighborhoods and in some parts of Rockridge east of College if you plan to bike a lot, though--some of them are extremely steep! Good luck (and welcome!)

[jade408]

I live in Piedmont Ave area near the Rose Garden. There are a few buses, most all day that go to either 19th or MAcarthur BART. There is also the transbay bus during the work week. So for me, door to door to downtown SF is less than 30 minutes. Even when taking the bus to BART. I don't find it a big deal, even though it isn't walkable. I realized, I don't need to be in walking distance to BART to define good walkability. At the end of the day, I might go to SF once a week, but I go to the grocery store/pharmacy/etc way more often. Having that stuff walkable is way more important. I can sacrifice 5-10 minutes for BART proximity.

All these areas are daily bikable (if you can get over the hills ). IF you factor in proximity with a bike and being within 1-2 miles of everything, you are fine.

Te Adams Point area is good for walkability to shops, and poor for transit access to BART. But if you only need to hop on BART 1-2x a week, biking a mile or taking Uber/Cab/etc is no big deal.

Oh one more note. For example, where I live in Piedmont Ave area is about 2 miles from Rockridge, 1 mile from Grand Lake, 1 mile from Uptown, .75 miles from Temescal........it is all super close even on a bike. Bus options to Temescal are limited, but the rest are even bus able. And definitely bikable. Well besides the pesky hill on my way home from nearly every direction. I just got a bike and I am still trying to find a flatter route home.

[artemis78]

Adams Point (at least the western half of it) is under a mile to 19th Street BART. People always forget about that one! It's a long walk, but doable, especially if it isn't your daily commute. I'd put it in the same category as Piedmont Ave and most of Temescal as far as BART access goes. They're all around a mile from BART on average, which is about a 20-minute walk for most people. The Lower Temescal/Mosswood area is a lot closer to BART, though, so that could also be an option.

[jade408]

Originally Posted by artemis78

Adams Point (at least the western half of it) is under a mile to 19th Street BART. People always forget about that one! It's a long walk, but doable, especially if it isn't your daily commute. I'd put it in the same category as Piedmont Ave and most of Temescal as far as BART access goes. They're all around a mile from BART on average, which is about a 20-minute walk for most people. The Lower Temescal/Mosswood area is a lot closer to BART, though, so that could also be an option.

I agree, there are tons of good options within about a mile to BART, most served by buses to BART as well. Particularly around Macarthur, 19th and Rockridge.

I do walk to BART or Uptown from my place pretty often. But not all shoes I choose to wear are conducive to walking a mile straight, although it isn't very far and a walkable distance. For me "walkable" means a 10 minute walk or less. Otherwise it is a little far for every day travel. I.E. if it is a 10 minute walk and I forget something at home, it is no biggie to turnaround and get it. Once that walk hits 15 minutes, then it is too far.


I personally think much of the area around Ashby BART is too sketchy/pricy. That would be pretty low on my list considering the other options available. I don't love downtown or North Berkeley...a few too many students, but within 1 mile there are good neighborhoods walkable to shops and restaurants. With North Berkeley BART being the outlier. It is pretty residential in most directions and a bit of a hike to the shops and such.

[bay2bay]

If you live near a hospital you can ride the hospitals free shuttles to and from MacArthur BART. Kaiser shuttle drops off at the hospital, the clinic, and top of the little hill on 40th St. which is a block behind the Piedmont Ave. CVS.

[Rina120]

Thanks for the tips!!
Even though I signed up for email alerts to this thread, I got none so only checked them out today.
Thanks for eliminating 4th street. Sometimes having too many options is a pain, so nice to have one off the lost.

I agree that a mile to the BART (especially if there is a bus!) is ok if it is not my daily commute. You're right! I would walk to grocery stores, local bars, pharmacies more often.

We are so very excited for this opportunity to move there!

[jade408]

Originally Posted by Rina120

Thanks for the tips!!
Even though I signed up for email alerts to this thread, I got none so only checked them out today.
Thanks for eliminating 4th street. Sometimes having too many options is a pain, so nice to have one off the lost.

I agree that a mile to the BART (especially if there is a bus!) is ok if it is not my daily commute. You're right! I would walk to grocery stores, local bars, pharmacies more often.

We are so very excited for this opportunity to move there!

From my apartment, there is a bus about every 10-15 minutes to a BART station from around 7-7 within 3 blocks. After 8ish it is more like 15-20 minutes. Plenty acceptable from my book.

When searching for a place, make sure you are off one of the core bus lines that run all day: 51, 57, 72, or the 1. The 72 is mostly sketchy so I wouldn't want that as my primary route but parts are ok. (I think the 18 also has good service levels as well..but I'll let someone else chime in).

I live 1 block from the 57. And 3 blocks from the 51. 51 goes downtown and through Berkeley and Alameda. The 57 runs up MacArthur through all of Oakaknd. The 72 runs up San Pablo though to Richmond. The 1 is on International and Telegraph through Berkeley.


On an autocorrecting iDevice.

[ragnarkar]

Open up Berkeley on Google Maps and look for College Ave. and Telegraph Ave.

Your target area is between these 2 streets north of around 51st street.

East of College Ave, most places will probably be outside of your budget.

West of Telegraph Ave gets sketchy esp once you enter Oakland. Try to stay north of 51st unless you're east of Broadway.

The Rockridge BART should be within walking distance or a short bus ride (51) from anywhere in this region. Try to avoid the temptation to take the Ashby BART at night unless you have some street smarts (I've been to that area after dark a few times and would never want to return.)

Note that there are plenty of bars on College Ave. and the 51 bus runs along College Ave. and Broadway.

Another neighborhood you might look into is between Broadway and Piedmont Ave. in Oakland.. there are some bars on Piedmont Ave and it's a fairly decent area.

[Obamadon1]

Originally Posted by ragnarkar

Open up Berkeley on Google Maps and look for College Ave. and Telegraph Ave.

Your target area is between these 2 streets north of around 51st street.

That's Oakland, not Berkeley