A geotechnical study commissioned for Oxford Elementary found that the former school site lies within the actively moving Keith Avenue Landslide Complex. Berkeley Unified School District’s 2019 summary of the study reported average movement of about one inch a year, varying with rainfall, and estimated that an earthquake could produce between 2 and 20 feet of movement at the campus: Berkeley Unified School District.
In November 2019, the school board voted to move Oxford’s students and staff to West Campus for the 2020-2021 school year, according to the district. The school relocated in 2020. The former campus, at 1130 Oxford St., had served as Oxford Elementary since about 1910, the Daily Californian reports.
The Berkeley Zoning Adjustments Board unanimously approved a permit to demolish the abandoned school buildings, the Daily Californian reported. The vote concerned demolition; a separate housing proposal calls for 32 homes on the 1.26-acre property.
What the housing proposal includes
The Daily Californian reports that the proposal divides the property into eight parcels, each intended for four townhomes, for 32 homes in all. The outlet’s December reporting described a permit application for 32 three-story homes of about 1,515 square feet each, with one-car garages.
The proposal may bypass CEQA if it qualifies under the Starter Home Revitalization Act. The act’s text provides for ministerial consideration of certain qualifying parcel maps without discretionary review or a public hearing: California Legislative Information.
Berkeley Unified sold the property to Panoramic Interests for $3 million in October 2025, according to the Daily Californian. A separate Berkeleyside account described the site as approximately 1.26 acres, compared with the 1.25 acres in the newer Daily Californian report: Berkeleyside.
Safety concerns and next steps
The Daily Californian reports that neighbors have organized to oppose the proposal and raised landslide and fire-safety concerns.
What city hazard guidance says
The City of Berkeley’s Community GIS Portal includes an Environment map layer showing areas such as landslide zones. The city’s May 24, 2024 draft Local Hazard Mitigation Plan discusses hazards. The city says hillside neighborhoods face Berkeley’s highest wildfire and evacuation risk and directs residents to check address-specific evacuation information, according to its fire-weather and evacuation guidance. These area-wide materials do not establish how 1130 Oxford St. is classified on current CAL FIRE maps or provide a site-specific evacuation assessment.
The project is described as including no below-market-rate homes.
As of November 5, the city had received 82 letters opposing the project and four in support, according to the Daily Californian.
