An invitation
A small group of neighbors
We're Sampi (Ϡ), a small, hopeful group of neighbors. Many of us will soon be living together just across the street at Berkeley Moshav, the 36-unit co-housing community we helped to build on San Pablo Avenue.
For nearly fifty years, this corner was Ohmega Salvage, the much-loved architectural salvage yard where Bay Area builders came to rescue interesting old doors, stained glass, and claw-foot tubs from the landfill. It was a community treasure that brought people together in unusual ways over interesting things. When it closed in 2023, the same friendly owner who sold Berkeley Moshav the land for their co-housing community offered us this property too, and we couldn't pass up the chance to help shape what comes next on our own block.
That hope is built into our name. Ohmega played on omega, the last letter of the Greek alphabet. Sampi is the rare letter that comes after it, our way of asking what comes after that end. We don't actually know the answer to that question, but we want to find out and honor the uniqueness that Ohmega Salvage brought to the San Pablo Corridor.
We've acquired the property, and now we're looking for the right partner to build something that strengthens this neighborhood and deepens the bonds already taking root here.
What we will ask you
A project that belongs to this block
At 2400 San Pablo, we'd like to see a project that:
- Puts community at the center. A project that brings people together, whether that means co-housing, a cooperative, a community gathering space, community infrastructure, or something else entirely.
- If housing, then housing designed for families, working professionals, and deep roots. Projects that serve families with children and allow them to stay for a long time and grow in place. Larger units (which actually do sell, as we discovered at Berkeley Moshav), thoughtful common spaces, real community. Pricing doesn't have to be subsidized, but a focus on families and working professionals is something we'd love to see. If you can price it toward missing-middle housing, we would be delighted.
- If not housing, then social or community infrastructure. See item 1 if you need a guiding light on what this means.
- Complements what already exists here. Berkeley Moshav is a co-housing community of families and individuals directly across the street. We'd love neighbors who are excited about that and want to build something that makes the whole block better.
- Uses the property. We purchased this site because we believe something great can be built here, and we want interesting people and uses on both sides of San Pablo. We are not interested in holding, flipping, or leaving the lot underutilized for years.
We are not looking for traditional luxury apartments, maximum-density profit plays, or projects that treat this site as interchangeable with any other lot in the Bay Area. We're looking for a partner who has been searching for a special site for their unique project.
The opportunity
A corner positioned for what's coming
2400 San Pablo Avenue sits at the corner of San Pablo Avenue and Channing Way in South Berkeley, a neighborhood anchored by Berkeley Moshav to the east and the San Pablo commercial corridor running north and south.
Both Alameda County and the City of Berkeley are redesigning this corridor right now, and the property should benefit from that work.
| Address | 2400 San Pablo Avenue, Berkeley, CA 94702 |
|---|---|
| Lot Size | Approximately 18,900 square feet (0.45 acre) |
| Current Use | Commercial building with adjacent parking area |
| Zoning Context | Within the San Pablo Avenue Specific Plan corridor and the Alameda County CTC San Pablo corridor redesign; listed as a priority development site by the City of Berkeley (granting by-right development under certain conditions); located in an Opportunity Zone. |
| Ownership | Sampi (acquired 2026) |
Due diligence complete
Sampi has already invested significant money into due diligence on the property, including:
- Phase 1 Environmental Site Assessment
- Geotechnical Study
- Building Inspection
- ALTA Survey
- Property Appraisal
Our due diligence didn't surface any red flags, but don't take our word for it! Read the reports and judge for yourself. These reports are available to serious respondents and can save you months of upfront work.
Favorable financing in place
Seller financing is available to the right partner, which lets you advance pre-development work without locking up capital early. We're open to an outright sale or a JV. Reach out and we'll walk through pricing and terms.
Location
San Pablo Avenue & Channing Way
The site is on the San Pablo corridor, with Berkeley Moshav directly across the street. Both the City and the County are reinvesting in the area.
How a partnership could work
We're flexible on structure
Two models are preferred:
Outright Purchase
A like-minded buyer purchases the property from Sampi at a fair price, with community commitments agreed up front. We stay involved as neighbors and help where we can.
JV/LP
Sampi contributes the land and favorable seller financing terms and takes a minority (LP) position. The partner is the GP, brings most of the capital, and leads the project. We have a say in the business plan and help where we can, but otherwise development control is held by the GP.
Either way, we want to move into a minority or passive role. We're not here to self-develop or fee-develop (we just did that across the street!); we want a partner who wants to drive forward their own community vision.
What we're looking for
Five questions for prospective partners
- Can you afford it?
- The ability to fund or finance a ground-up development project from your own capital, established relationships or development funds, or institutional lending partnerships.
- Can you do it?
- Demonstrating through your past projects or team that you can get a project through entitlements and construction.
- Are you like-minded?
- A commitment to building projects that create community whether through co-housing, cooperatives, community land trusts, neighborhood-serving spaces, or other models.
- Can you speed date?
- We are committed to identifying a partner quickly. Our preferred timeline is to select a partner within 90 days of this posting and move into pre-development discussions immediately thereafter.
- Would you be our neighbor?
- We'd love a partner who is excited about Berkeley Moshav across the street, and who sees the potential to create something the whole neighborhood can be proud of. We took the first step when we built our co-housing community here; we want to see others follow and "crowd-in" even more exciting, unique projects.
To express interest
What to send us
If this opportunity resonates with you, we'd love to hear from you. Please send:
- A brief statement of interest: who you are, why this project appeals to you, and what excites you about this site.
- Relevant experience: other projects you've done, or your team.
- A preliminary concept: your initial thoughts on what could be built here. This doesn't need to be a full proposal, just enough to show us how you think about a site like this.
- Proposed partnership structure: which model interests you (JV or purchase), and a high-level sense of how you'd approach the financial structure.
- Your contact information: name, organization, email, and phone.
At this stage we care about alignment, not polish. If there's a fit, we'll move quickly into deeper conversations.
Timeline
Moving quickly
| RFI Published | June 1, 2026 |
|---|---|
| Follow-up Conversations | Ongoing as responses are received |
| Partner Selection Target | Within 90 days of publication |
We will be engaging with respondents on a rolling basis. Early expressions of interest are encouraged. We would like to have a partner selected or identified by August 1st.