Useful Links

As a buyer or seller of real estate in Berkeley, Oakland, or any of the surrounding cities, when you are about to close on a property, you will need to call various utility companies so they can update their records on file to reflect the transfer of ownership. Close of escrow is the day the County records the deed in the name of the new owner. Below are telephone numbers for all the various utilities in the different cities.

Gas & Electric Service
PG&E: 800.743.5000
for the city of Alameda only is Alameda Municipal Power 510.748.3900
Water
EBMUD: 866.40-EBMUD (866.403.2683)
Refuse Collection
Alameda: 510.483.1400
Albany: 510.613.8710
Berkeley: 510.981.7270 then press 0
El Cerrito: 510.237.4321
Emeryville: 510.613.8710
Kensington: 510.237.4614
Oakland: 510.613.8710
Piedmont: 510.262.1633
Phone Service
Analog
AT&T: 800.310.2355
Comcast Digital Phone: 800.945.2288
High-Speed Internet Access
Cable: Comcast 800.945.2288
DSL: SBC (Pac. Bell) 800.310.2355
TV: Cable & Satellite
Cable: Comcast 800.945.2288
Satellite: Dish Network 800.333.3474
Satellite: Direct TV 800.730.4742
City of Berkeley Maps
https://cityofberkeley.info/maproom
Includes creek areas, hazard zones, transportation maps (as well as permit parking zones), landmarks and more… Berkeley Zoning Map (PDF)
For those buyers who have particular constraints about not wanting to be in various hazard zones, you can do some research yourself to find out whether some of the houses that interest you are in any of these zones. Below are links to the various sites where you can research information on earthquakes, landslides, and other natural hazards. You can also explore the city of Berkeley link to find all sorts of relevant environmental information, including zoning maps, creeks maps, environmental constraints maps, transportation maps, wireless telecommunications facilities maps, etc.

Alan Kropp
(Landslides of the Berkeley Hills)

Here you will find links to the Berkeley Parents Network, to Craigslist, and to theatres and other community organizations. There are also many more links under the specific cities. I will be adding more links as they become available. For those of you who are thinking of moving to Oakland or Albany, to Berkeley, Kensington or any of the neighboring cities or have just moved here, this may help you explore some of the community resources that interest you.

Berkeley Parents Network
Berkeley Repertory Theatre
North Shattuck Association

Here you will find links to the various local east bay newspapers, as well as the San Francisco Chronicle, and the New York Times.

Newspapers
Local
San Francisco Chronicle
Tel: 415.777.7000
https://www.sfchronicle.com
East Bay Times – Berkeley
East Bay Times – Oakland
Berkeley Daily Planet
East Bay Express
National

New York Times

Tel: 800.698.4637
https://www.nytimes.com

This is the link to the Department of Motor Vehicles, which you will need to get an automobile license or to renew your existing one.

800.777.0133

Here are the links to the 3 airports, car rental companies, trains, buses, and BART.

Airports
SF International
Oakland International
San Jose
408-501-7600
http://www.sjc.org
Car Rental Companies
Dollar rent-a-car
Budget
Trains & Buses
Amtrak
BART

We have endeavored to provide a comprehensive list of all the school districts, colleges, and private schools under this heading.

Adult Education
UC Berkeley
UC Berkeley Extension
SF State
Merritt
Berkeley City College
DVC
925-685-1230
https://www.dvc.edu

You will find links to and information on the East Bay Regional Park District and maps of all the regional parks, trails and other relevant information, including activities for children.

East Bay Regional Park District

East Bay museums and links to them are listed here.

Chabot Space & Science Center
Lawrence Hall of Science
Oakland Museum of California
UC Berkeley Art Museum & Pacific Film Archive
Magnes Collection of Jewish Art & Life