BART seeks to construct massive new mixed-use complex at Lake Merritt station

BART is seeking to build a massive new housing, office and retail complex around its Lake Merritt station in Oakland.

This week, the transit agency’s Board of Directors approved an exclusive negotiating agreement with two developers to construct four new buildings on BART-owned lots above the station.

As proposed, the buildings would include 519 units of housing — 44 percent of them designated as affordable — and 517,000 square feet of office and retail space.

20 percent of the office and retail space would be offered at below-market-rate prices for “community-serving organizations and small businesses,” according to a statement from affordable housing developer East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation (EBALDC).