SamTrans OKs $126M Millbrae Headquarters

MILLBRAE, CA — The SamTrans Board of Directors voted this week to greenlight a new $126 million headquarters in Millbrae while keeping ownership of a San Carlos property that has been home to its base of operations for decades.

The board voted 8-1 to greenlight the acquisition of a 180,000-square-foot building at the Gateway at Millbrae Station, sitting directly adjacent to the transit center. According to SamTrans, the lease-to-purchase deal is the latest transit project on BART-owned land, and the terms of the agreement were below market value.

According to SamTrans, the existing headquarters at 1250 San Carlos Avenue is in an "advanced state of disrepair" and was built under out-of-date seismic standards. The board determined moving would be cheaper and faster than making upgrades that would exceed the building's value.

"The Gateway at Millbrae Station is a transit-oriented development that perfectly marries the agency's mission and space needs with the desires of our employees to be adjacent to transit and amenities," said Josh Powell, the board's chair. "Given the decline in the commercial real estate market, SamTrans has an opportunity to lease with an option to purchase a building that would accommodate both current and projected employee demands at a cost that is estimated to be less than the cost to rebuild at the existing site and at a greatly accelerated pace."

SamTrans expects the Millbrae site will be ready to move in within 12-15 months and plans to work with San Carlos city officials to redevelop the old property for another use.