Moraga Canyon Housing: Piedmont’s 132-Home Development Plan
Piedmont is moving forward with one of the most significant housing proposals in the city’s history: a new mixed-income residential development on City-owned land in Moraga Canyon. The adopted Moraga Canyon Specific Plan calls for a minimum of 132 new homes while also addressing affordable housing, wildfire safety, traffic and pedestrian improvements, recreation facilities, and existing City operations.
As of August 16, 2026, Piedmont has adopted the Specific Plan and completed the submission period for its Request for Qualifications for prospective development teams. Developer qualifications were due August 10, 2026, placing the project in the developer evaluation and selection stage. No final developer, architectural design or final housing proposal has yet been approved.
This page will track the Moraga Canyon project as the City selects a development team, negotiates the development agreement, refines the housing proposal and moves through the subsequent approval process. Buyers who are also evaluating the broader local market can explore current Piedmont homes and luxury real estate.
Project status: Adopted Specific Plan; developer selection process underway
Minimum housing: 132 homes
Affordable housing: At least 60 homes or 40% of the total project, whichever is greater
Location: City-owned property along Moraga Avenue in northeast Piedmont
Specific Plan adopted: October 6, 2025
Developer RFQ deadline: August 10, 2026
Where Is the Moraga Canyon Development?
The Moraga Canyon Specific Plan covers approximately 22.8 acres of City-owned property along Moraga Avenue near Piedmont’s northeastern boundary with Oakland. The area includes existing public facilities and recreational uses such as Coaches Field, Kennelly Skatepark, the Piedmont Corporation Yard and Maintenance Office, and Blair Park Open Space.
Moraga Avenue travels through the canyon between the Piedmont hills and Oakland’s Montclair area. Buyers comparing housing on the Oakland side of the canyon can also explore current Montclair homes for sale.
The Specific Plan allows only a portion of the overall City-owned area to be used for housing. The rest of the canyon includes public facilities, open space, roadway infrastructure and recreational uses that must be considered as part of the final development proposal.
How Many Homes Could Be Built in Moraga Canyon?
The adopted framework requires a development containing at least 132 housing units. Environmental analysis has examined the possibility of a larger number of homes, but the current City framework centers on the minimum 132-unit requirement.
That distinction is important. Piedmont has approved a Specific Plan and development framework. It has not approved a final architectural project consisting of exactly 132 homes.
The eventual development team will propose the detailed housing configuration within the City’s requirements. Potential housing could include attached townhomes, stacked condominiums or other multifamily forms consistent with the Specific Plan and subsequent agreements.
How Much Affordable Housing Is Required?
Affordable housing is a central component of the Moraga Canyon plan.
The development must provide at least 60 affordable homes or 40% of the total number of homes, whichever is greater. Those homes would be subject to income restrictions established through the City’s housing requirements and development agreements.
The affordable and market-rate portions of the project are therefore not incidental pieces of the proposal. The project is being planned from the outset as a mixed-income housing development.
North Side or South Side of Moraga Avenue?
One of the most important decisions still ahead is exactly where the principal residential development will be located within Moraga Canyon.
The Specific Plan provides a framework for housing on land associated with the north or south side of Moraga Avenue. The ultimate site configuration will affect how existing City facilities, recreation areas, open space, roadway improvements and the Corporation Yard are handled.
The planning diagram is especially useful because it shows that Moraga Canyon is not simply an empty parcel awaiting construction. Housing must be integrated with existing City operations, recreation, open space, transportation infrastructure and the surrounding hillside environment.
What Happens to Piedmont’s Recreation Facilities?
The Moraga Canyon project is not simply a housing plan. Piedmont has also required the planning process to address the recreational and public facilities already located in the canyon.
The planning framework considers continued or improved recreational amenities including athletic fields, skate facilities, open space, parking and other public uses. The exact configuration will depend partly on the eventual location and design of the residential development.
The selected developer will also need to coordinate with the City regarding required infrastructure and any relocation or reconfiguration of municipal facilities.
This means the eventual project could change how Moraga Canyon is used even beyond the addition of new housing.
Traffic, Pedestrian and Bicycle Improvements
Traffic and roadway safety have been important issues throughout the Moraga Canyon planning process.
The adopted framework calls for transportation and infrastructure improvements associated with development, including pedestrian, bicycle and roadway improvements. Future development plans must also address safe access to and from Moraga Avenue.
These issues are especially relevant because Moraga Avenue connects Piedmont with adjoining Oakland neighborhoods and carries traffic through a relatively constrained canyon corridor.
For buyers comparing the two sides of the Piedmont-Oakland hills, the relationship between Moraga Canyon and Montclair is worth understanding. The communities are geographically close even though the housing stock, municipal services and real estate markets differ.
Wildfire and Evacuation Safety
Wildfire safety is particularly important in Moraga Canyon because of its hillside setting, vegetation and connection to the broader Oakland and East Bay hills.
The Specific Plan includes wildfire-safety objectives, development standards and vegetation-management considerations. Future development will also remain subject to detailed building, fire and infrastructure review as actual plans are prepared.
Adoption of the Specific Plan does not mean every fire or evacuation question for a final project has already been answered. The final developer proposal still needs to demonstrate compliance with applicable safety requirements.
Where Does the Developer Selection Process Stand?
Piedmont issued a formal Request for Qualifications in 2026 seeking developers or development teams with the experience and financial capacity to implement the Moraga Canyon plan.
Responses were due to the City on August 10, 2026.
As of August 16, 2026, the City has not announced a final development team. The project should therefore be described as being in the developer evaluation and selection stage, rather than as having an approved developer.
The RFQ itself does not approve a housing project. It is a process through which Piedmont identifies a team with which it may enter more detailed negotiations.
The City's implementation process anticipates subsequent negotiations that could include an Exclusive Negotiation Agreement and, if those negotiations succeed, more detailed agreements governing the property, affordable housing, infrastructure, financing, construction responsibilities and project schedule.
Moraga Canyon Development Timeline
- 2023: Piedmont begins the Moraga Canyon Specific Plan process as part of implementation of its 2023–2031 Housing Element.
- 2023–2025: City staff, consultants, commissions and residents evaluate housing locations, recreation, traffic, environmental impacts, wildfire safety and development standards.
- October 6, 2025: Piedmont City Council adopts the Moraga Canyon Specific Plan.
- January 2026: The City takes additional steps involving City-owned land and the process for soliciting a development partner.
- Spring 2026: Piedmont prepares and issues its Request for Qualifications for prospective development teams.
- August 10, 2026: Developer qualification submissions are due.
- August 2026: The developer evaluation and selection stage follows the RFQ deadline.
- Future: Developer negotiations, detailed project design, subsequent approvals and any additional required environmental or entitlement review will follow.
What Has Not Been Decided Yet?
Despite adoption of the Specific Plan, several questions that matter to nearby homeowners and future buyers remain unresolved.
- The final development team has not been publicly announced.
- The final number and exact mix of homes have not been established beyond the Specific Plan requirements.
- The final mix of market-rate housing types has not been selected.
- The exact development configuration within Moraga Canyon has not been finalized through a development agreement.
- Final architecture, building designs and unit layouts have not been approved.
- The final configuration of recreation facilities and City operations has not been determined.
- A construction start date has not been established.
Those distinctions matter when evaluating headlines saying that the Moraga Canyon housing project has been “approved.” Piedmont has approved the planning framework. The detailed development proposal still must emerge from developer selection, negotiations and subsequent approvals.
Homes Near Moraga Canyon
Moraga Canyon sits immediately below established residential streets in the Piedmont hills. Homes in this part of Piedmont can have very different relationships to the canyon depending on elevation, orientation, vegetation and the individual lot.
A useful real-world example is 104 Alta Avenue, a Piedmont hillside property I previously featured that overlooks Moraga Canyon. Properties like this demonstrate why buyers evaluating the area need to consider the individual site and view orientation rather than relying only on a neighborhood name or map boundary.
Other streets near the canyon include portions of Maxwelton Road, Abbott Way, Alta Avenue, Moraga Avenue and nearby hillside streets. The impact of future development will not be identical for every property.
What Could Moraga Canyon Mean for Piedmont Real Estate?
Moraga Canyon is unusual because Piedmont has historically had very little land available for significant new residential development. The city remains overwhelmingly composed of established residential neighborhoods, making a project of this scale noteworthy for both current homeowners and future buyers.
The eventual real estate effect will depend on what is actually built. Buyers may evaluate new housing options, traffic changes, recreational improvements, construction activity, views and access to Moraga Avenue differently depending on their priorities.
The project should also be viewed within the broader context of Piedmont's unusually limited housing inventory. My guide to what $2 million buys in Piedmont provides a current look at the choices buyers encounter in the established housing market.
For buyers comparing Piedmont with other high-end East Bay communities, I have also written about what makes Piedmont homes different from other East Bay luxury markets. Moraga Canyon adds an unusual new-construction and multifamily dimension to a community whose housing supply has traditionally been dominated by existing homes.
A Local Real Estate Perspective on Moraga Canyon
I have worked with Oakland and Piedmont buyers and sellers for more than 20 years and have followed homes throughout the hills surrounding Moraga Canyon. As the project advances, the questions that matter to a buyer or homeowner will become increasingly property-specific: What can be seen from the house? How close is the property to the development area? How could roadway changes affect access? What does the final plan actually show rather than what an early headline suggested?
This page will be updated as Piedmont announces the selected development team, releases more detailed plans and reaches subsequent project milestones.
For current housing opportunities, browse Piedmont homes for sale. Buyers interested specifically in the estate-oriented portion of the market can also explore Piedmont Estates homes for sale.
Frequently Asked Questions About the Moraga Canyon Development
How many homes are planned for Moraga Canyon?
The adopted Moraga Canyon Specific Plan establishes a minimum of 132 homes. The final number will depend on the detailed development proposal and subsequent agreements reached between Piedmont and the selected development team.
How many Moraga Canyon homes will be affordable?
The project must include at least 60 affordable homes or 40% of the total number of homes, whichever is greater. The detailed affordability mix will be governed by the City’s requirements and the eventual development agreements.
Has Piedmont approved the final Moraga Canyon housing project?
No. Piedmont has adopted the Moraga Canyon Specific Plan, which establishes the framework for development, but the City has not yet approved a final architectural housing project. Developer selection and subsequent negotiations are still part of the process.
Where will the Moraga Canyon housing be built?
The housing will be located on City-owned land within the Moraga Canyon Specific Plan area along Moraga Avenue. The final site configuration and relationship between housing, recreation, open space and City facilities will depend on the development plan negotiated with the selected team.
What will happen to the recreation facilities in Moraga Canyon?
The Specific Plan is intended to accommodate housing while maintaining or improving important public and recreational uses. The final locations and designs of facilities will depend on the selected development proposal and subsequent City approvals.
When could Moraga Canyon construction begin?
No construction start date has been established. Piedmont must first complete developer selection, negotiate a detailed project, complete design and entitlement work, and conduct any additional review required before construction can begin.
Official Moraga Canyon Sources
This tracker is based primarily on official City of Piedmont planning and developer-selection materials. Readers who want to review the underlying documents can visit the City of Piedmont Moraga Canyon Specific Plan and the City's Moraga Canyon developer qualifications page.
Last updated: August 16, 2026. This page will be updated as Piedmont announces developer-selection results, proposed designs and subsequent project approvals.