Development

Oakland’s public works committee spent about a minute Tuesday morning discussing a resolution that would connect a gap in the Bay Trail underneath the High Street Bridge in East Oakland near the city’s border with Alameda, before approving it by consensus. But that doesn’t diminish the step forward towards completing the trail, said Laura Thompson, the trail’s project manager.

Rockridge residents are raising money to fix up the area around a Highway 24 on-ramp and off-ramp on Claremont Avenue.

Checking out tools here is as easy as checking out a library book. With nearly 3,000 tools available for loan, including books and how-to videos, it’s a DIY heaven for crafty and inspired Oaklanders.

Furniture retail giant IKEA is putting solar panels on its store roofs all over the globe, including the one on the Oakland-Emeryville border. If you drive across the highway overpasses nearby, you can see the array coming into shape.

After the Oakland City Council voted its approval last week, the Oakland Zoo expansion that has been in the works since the mid-1990s is nearly ready to break ground, despite opposition from environmental groups. The expansion includes a veterinary hospital, camping area, and an exhibit for native California animals.

Over 170,000 people were at Mountain View Cemetery on Thursday night. But only 40 people actually had a pulse and were there to discuss the potential architectural and landscape changes that could take place over the next two years regarding a pair of historic chapels.

Oakland’s newest sports facility, the East Oakland Sports Center, opened its door to the public on Thursday afternoon. The 25,000-square-foot facility, located at 9161 Edes Avenue, includes an aquatic center, a fitness room and a dance studio.

Three hours ahead of the new fiscal year, Oakland’s city council finally voted in a budget. The council, by a narrow vote, approved the biennial budget resolution during a special council meeting on Thursday evening.

Sam Worth and close friend Brad Cain spent the past six months fixing up what used to be a chocolate store, painting green over pink, and turning it into a skateboarding store which will open on Friday as Hooper Vintage Skate Shop.