Business
At Children’s Fairyland on Saturday, a three-tiered yellow and pink birthday cake stood towering several feet in height, papered with handwritten messages like, “Thank you for our son,” “Thanks for helping our daughter live a healthy life, ” and “1969 – Thank You. My Heart is Yours 4Ever. Saving My Life.”
The Healthy Neighborhood Stores Alliance (HNSA) is a West Oakland effort to incorporate produce into corner stores that typically stock only liquor, canned goods, frozen and packaged foods, and a few household appliances.
Ever since the Blockbuster on Oakland’s Piedmont Avenue went out of business in April, the building that housed the video rental store has remained empty. Recently, though, a prospective new tenant appeared: a sign on the door notified passersby that the liquor franchise Beverages and More (BevMo!) has applied for a permit to move into the former movie rental store.
BART officials, transit riders, and bicycle advocates have given a provisional thumbs up to a pilot program that ran on Fridays this August, allowing cyclists and their bikes to board trains during rush hour. Bikes are not usually allowed on Transbay trains during peak commute periods, which cover weekday mornings from roughly 6:30 to 9 am and during the afternoons from about 4:30 to 7 pm. According to BART Communications Department Manager Alicia Trost, bicycles are restricted from trains during…
Just outside the Rockridge BART station, the only obstacle barring commuters from enjoying a beautifully manicured plaza is a chain-link fence. Nearly six months ago, ground was broken on the Rockridge BART Plaza, giving life to a project ten years in the making. The completion date is now set for early October, so commuters will have a wait a bit longer to enjoy the renovations.
Four hopefuls vying for Oakland’s City Council’s at-large seat this November agreed on one thing at a candidate’s forum Wednesday night—violence on the streets needs to stop.
On Wednesday, members of the Alliance of Californians for Community Empowerment (ACCE) and some Oakland residents gathered at 14th Street and Broadway to protest a rumored ban against strollers on AC Transit buses. About 20 protestors marched down nearby Franklin Street chanting, “One struggle, one fight, we need our buses, it’s our right!”
On a Tuesday afternoon, in a Piedmont Avenue studio between a yogurt shop and a purveyor of vintage European goods, Yania Escobar has her kinder warriors—a half dozen 3 to 5 year olds — gathered around one of the many perfect circles outlined on the gym floor in colored tape. Escobar crouches over. She steps from one foot to the other, swaying side to side, while moving her arms about in front of her.
The amphitheater outside of City Hall was the site of a spirited pep rally for Oakland’s sports teams Monday morning, as Mayor Jean Quan led the crowd of about 100 fans in a “Let’s Go Oakland!” chant, urging them to get louder and draw people out of their downtown offices.