El Cerrito is facing one of the most consequential projects in its history: the redevelopment of the El Cerrito Plaza BART station. The plan calls for six new buildings, nearly 750 homes (many of them affordable), retail space, and a public plaza that could eventually include a library. It will reshape traffic, parking, and community life for decades.
For a project this significant, residents deserve a fair, transparent process. Yet fairness is in doubt, because Councilmember Rebecca Saltzman continues to participate in—and vote on—the very project she helped launch as a member of the BART Board.
A History Too Close to Ignore
Saltzman served on the BART Board for more than a decade, including two terms as Board President. In November 2020, during her tenure, BART selected the development team for El Cerrito Plaza TOD. She remained on the BART Board until 2024, drawing compensation from the very agency advancing this project.
She didn’t run for BART BOD, citing outside commitments to family and work.
Only months later, Saltzman was sworn in as an El Cerrito City Councilmember.
And in May 2025, she cast her first vote in support of the Plaza TOD—publicly celebrating her role in moving the project forward. That moment underscores the conflict: Saltzman is no longer simply weighing a project before the City as a neutral Councilmember. She is continuing work she began as a BART Director, effectively sitting on both sides of the table.
When an elected official helps launch a project in one role and then votes on its implementation in another, the line between impartial judgment and personal legacy becomes blurred. This is exactly the type of situation recusal rules are meant to prevent, because even if no law is technically broken, the appearance of bias erodes public trust.
This isn’t just a coincidence of timing. It is a direct continuation of her past work at BART, now carried into her new seat on City Council.
Council’s Role in TOD
Supporters sometimes argue that the City has little say under state law and BART’s control. But that’s not true. Even after AB 2923 streamlined zoning, the City still makes critical decisions:
Parking and Traffic: The project will reduce hundreds of surface parking spaces, replacing them with a paid garage and new on-street parking management run by the City.
Affordable Housing: In March 2023, the Council approved the first 70-unit affordable building. More decisions will shape how affordability is prioritized in later phases. Infrastructure and Amenities: The City is weighing its role in funding improvements, including whether a new library is integrated into the TOD site. Public Process: Planning Commission and Design Review Board meetings throughout 2023–24 examined building height, circulation, and design—issues that feed directly into Council oversight. Saltzman’s votes and voice influence all of these matters.
The Ethical Problem
California’s Political Reform Act says officials must recuse themselves if they’ve received more than $500 in income from an involved party in the last 12 months. Saltzman’s BART compensation in 2024 fits squarely within that rule.
But this is bigger than compliance. It’s about what’s right. Saltzman is trying to finish something she started on another board. That’s not impartial decision-making—it’s carrying BART’s agenda into El Cerrito’s council chambers.
Even if every decision she makes were technically legal, the appearance of bias is unavoidable. And once residents believe the process is rigged, public trust is gone.
What the Community Should Do
Residents should insist on integrity. Here are practical steps to take:
Email the Council — Tell them Saltzman must recuse herself from all Plaza TOD items and that the rest of the Council should uphold that standard.
Mayor Carolyn Wysinger — cwysinger@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us
Mayor Pro Tem Gabe Quinto — gquinto@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us Councilmember
Lisa Motoyama — lmotoyama@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us Councilmember
William Ktsanes — wktsanes@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us Councilmember
Rebecca Saltzman — rsaltzman@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us
City Clerk (for the official record) — cityclerk@ci.el-cerrito.ca.us Subject line suggestion: “Please ensure recusal on El Cerrito Plaza BART TOD items.”
Key points to include: Saltzman launched the Plaza TOD at BART and is now voting on it as a Councilmember. Recusal protects public trust—she should leave the dais and abstain from all TOD discussions and votes. The Council must affirm on the record that TOD decisions will proceed without conflicted participation. Request a written acknowledgment of recusal — Ask the City Clerk to document Saltzman’s recusal in meeting agendas and minutes when Plaza TOD items appear.
Submit public comments — Whether in person or by email, let the Council know before TOD items are discussed. Written comments sent to the Clerk are included in the public record.
The El Cerrito Plaza TOD will help define our city’s future – good or bad. But it should be decided by leaders who come to the table without recent entanglements, not by someone finishing a project she began at BART.
For the sake of transparency, accountability, and public trust, Councilmember Rebecca Saltzman must recuse herself from all TOD-related discussions and decisions.
And the community must make its voice heard—directly to City Hall—so the integrity of this process is protected.
El Cerrito Committee for Responsible Government (ECCRG) 
Hey the cows are already out of the barn on the TOD The City has committed and the Developer is breaking ground soon on the north lot apartments The City has donated land, made loans (that is really EQUITY since it is decade before any payment) The “Downtown” dream is alive and well If Saltzman recused herself now it would probably make her look GOOD since the City has already made its commitment The City has been “captured” by the Developer The only thing left to do is prevent the City from using the LIBRARY BUILDING as a pawn calling it the “anchor tenant” for C West The Developer desperately needs the City to pass the Citizens Ballot Parcel Tax proposal to construct and own the first floor since it has no value as loan collateral to the Developer as does the 69 apartment units above the library space Greg Lyman is making many false and misleading public statements Stop the Steal
On Sat, Sep 13, 2025 at 1:49 PM El Cerrito Committee for Responsib
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