Environmental Impact Report

Timeline

• May 2025: BWCC public comments on the city's Notice of Preparation (NOP) asking for "scoping" comments

• February 2026: city posted the Draft EIR on this page.  

• April 2026: BWCC submits public comment: BWCC's public comment on the Draft Environmental Impact Report

• July 2026: BWCC request to governor's office to deny city's CEQA streamlining application

• November 17, 2026: staff will present final EIR to city council for approval and certification, opening up window for submitting lawsuits. We will be organizing information events leading up to the meeting.  Please be on the BWCC email list for updates.  Click button below.

Here's a snapshot of our issues with the DEIR and general plan:

• Will the city use the reduced use of waterfront caused by pier closure and parking lot closures as baseline for calculating impacts? YES.  They bundled recreational infrastructure projects already in pipeline with the ferry plan DEIR to make it sound like the WETA project is delivering more than it is. 

• Will alternative plans for a rec-only pier or in-marina ferry terminal be entertained? NO. They gave short shrift to any other options except for WETA-friendly options.  See Save the Pier for more on reopening Berkeley pier. 

• What evidence is there of "secondary benefits" of this plan? LITTLE. Keyser-Marston consultants gave a lukewarm shot-in-the-dark estimate of 10% increase in leaseholder tax receipts to city and WETA is making no promises. 

• Is there evidence that this is an environmentally friendly transit option? NO!  The new terminal increases Vehicle Miles Traveled and traffic in the waterfront, GHG emissions analysis was airy, and proposal could be detrimental to existing transit financing. 

• Will fish, bird, whales and harbor porpoise be affected by new and ongoing major dredging and 28 high-speed ferry crossings per day?  YES!  See here and Sierra Club DEIR comments. 

• Will the city charge parking to all waterfront users to make space for the estimated ~400 ferry riders needing to park? YES

• Is opposition to the WETA plan only about wanting free parking?  NO. It's about low-cost access to the shoreline, an increasingly valuable and necessary public good.  See another example where city managers didn't get it right for cherished public spaces: https://www.sfgate.com/travel/article/san-diego-parking-21336558.php

• Could this plan be setting the city up to just build a ferry terminal and ferry pier with no recreational extension?  POSSIBLY.  A fiscal risk exists and you get to pay for it. 

Other agency DEIR public comments: CEQAnet