Oakland City Council’s Finance Committee on Tuesday discussed how to structure a proposed property tax increase that would help balance out a $265 million shortfall projected by the end of the fiscal year in June. The discussion comes three months after the City Council passed a $4.36 billion two-year budget that cut vacant positions and tightened spending to address the deficit. With voter trust on the line and services at risk, the city faces a high-stakes balancing act: raise new…
Alameda County officials announced Monday the release of $17 million in emergency grants to more than 370 licensed child care providers across the county. Childcare centers in Oakland, Hayward and Pleasanton started receiving checks Monday, officials said. Quinetta Lewis, director of St. Mary’s Center Preschool in Oakland said the $50,000 her school is receiving will help provide kids with better care. “With these funds we can now focus on better facilities for our children, better wages for teachers, recreation centers…