Construction is now underway for the 23-story Bancroft-Fulton Student Housing complex at 2200 Bancroft Way in Southside, Berkeley. The project is set to become the tallest building in Berkeley, surpassing a 55-year-old office building, but still shorter than the landmark Sather Tower clock tower. UC Berkeley Capital Strategies is responsible for the development.
2200 Bancroft Way, image by author
Bancroft-Fulton Student Housing view looking west down Bancroft Way, rendering by KieranTimberlake
Once complete, the tower is expected to rise 276 feet tall, with a 118-foot southern podium extension. The 23-story tower will contain around 340,000 square feet, including 1,625 residence hall-style beds and 19,500 square feet of open space. Residential amenities include a 500-seat two-story dining facility, social lounges, laundry rooms, and a fitness center. Each residential floor will have multiple quiet study lounges to encourage academic work and collaboration. Additional podium amenities will include bicycle storage and a central courtyard.
KieranTimberlake is the lead design architect. Illustrations show a grey tower wrapped in glass-fiber-reinforced concrete panels and floor-to-ceiling windows, while the podium will be clad in granite.
Bancroft-Fulton Student Housing, rendering by KieranTimberlake
Bancroft-Fulton Student Housing podium base, rendering by KieranTimberlake
With construction underway, the Brancroft-Fulton student housing will soon redefine the city’s skyline, surpassing the 185-foot rooftop height of the 1971-built offices at 2150 Shattuck Avenue. While three other residential projects are currently vying to exceed 2200 Brancroft’s height, none have broken ground. Recent changes to the hypothetical leaderboard now put a 360-foot 2190 Shattuck Avenue as the tallest proposal, followed by a 317-foot 1998 Shattuck Avenue and a 285-foot 2128 Oxford Street.
The 0.8-acre property is located at the corner of Bancroft Way and Durant Avenue. The now-level property is across from the Edwards Stadium at the southwest edge of the UC Berkeley campus. Demolition has already removed most of the former single-story structure, with machinery on site preparing the lot for excavation.
Bancroft-Fulton Student Housing pedestrian view, rendering by KieranTimberlake
2200 Bancroft Way construction progress, image by author
Clark Construction is the general contractor overseeing active work. Completion is expected as early as summer 2028, with move-ins expected for the 2028-2029 academic year. Once complete, the project is expected to achieve LEED Gold Certification.
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The YIMBY movement’s ability to convince the Left has to be it’s crowning achievement. Republicans were always going to be down with low regulation, fast tracked permits. But convincing Progressives of the inequities of the long-standing housing model in California where the landed gentry of Boomers win, and everyone else loses, was a huge feat.