Sasha Lekach

Washio brings on-demand laundry service to Oakland—by phone app

Before the sun is even up, Mehdi Shokouhi, 34, is wide awake, checking the trunk and backseat of his Hyundai Sonata for the black laundry bags he will be bringing to customers, either handing off an early-morning delivery of clean and pressed clothes or picking up a load of dirty laundry. By 6:30 a.m., Shokouhi had already left his Berkeley home, driven into San Francisco’s South of Market neighborhood and returned to the East Bay, part of his job working…

Historic Lady Washington tall ship sails into Oakland’s Jack London Square

The 1700s sailed into port at Oakland’s Jack London Square aboard the brig Lady Washington for a nine-day stay this month. With a crew of 13 at her helm, the 112-foot wooden ship, a replica of its namesake from the American Revolutionary War, has been a tour and education site while docked in Oakland. Capt. Ken Lazarus considers the ship, a 1989 replica of the original Lady Washington Boston trading vessel from the 1780s, the quintessential teaching tool. The captain…

BART system delayed as police investigate gun report

BART commuters experienced a system-wide delay Thursday morning as the BART Police Department investigated a report of a man with a gun possibly boarding a train. BART spokesperson Alicia Trost said a rider called shortly before 8 a.m., reporting possibly having seen a man with a gun outside the Richmond BART station. The rider thought the man might have gotten on a train at the station. Trost said BART police calculated which train he would have boarded, based on the…

Oakland voters plan on early vote by mail

It’s easy. It’s convenient. These two reasons repeatedly cited by voters, county election officials, voter advocacy groups and other organizations may account for the growing number of Oakland residents planning to vote early this year, by mail, instead of going to the polls on Election Day. Jamie Israel, 26, a server who works late shifts at a restaurant in Berkeley, is giving early voting a try for the first time this fall, after eight years living and voting in Oakland….

No new crematoria, say council and demonstrators

Oakland residents showed support at last night’s City Council meeting for an ordinance that limits the construction of new crematoria. Councilmembers also voted on a Jack London Square redevelopment and recognized community volunteers and organizations.