Court rules development can proceed on West Berkeley Shellmound
Vanessa Lim/Staff
A ruling by California Court of Appeal for the First District allows for a housing complex to be built on the parking lot on a sacred Ohlone shellmound and historic village in West Berkeley.
A state appellate court ruled April 20 that a proposed housing and retail complex can be built in the parking lot on a sacred Ohlone shellmound and historic village in West Berkeley.
The West Berkeley Shellmound at 1900 Fourth St. has been a site of contention over the past four years. The development was initially halted by the city of Berkeley in 2018, and its decision was upheld by an Alameda County judge in 2019.
The California Court of Appeals ruled this week that this 260-unit project at 1900 Fourth St. can be built. Credit: TCA Architects
The owners of the old Spenger’s parking lot at 1900 Fourth St. have the right to build a 260-unit complex there despite the opposition of the city of Berkeley and the Confederated Tribes of Lusjon, the California Court of Appeal ruled Tuesday.
While members of the Ohlone community and the city contend the construction would destroy a historic structure, a shellmound that has existed for 4,900 years, the court disagreed. It pointed out that any remnants of the shellmound disappeared long ago and any remaining remnants are now underground. So there is no historic structure that will be destroyed, the court ruled.