Government
With just days left before Tuesday’s election, Oakland North interviewed the three candidates running for Oakland’s City Council District 5 seat. District 5 extends from the affluent streets of Park Boulevard to the industrial flatlands of International Boulevard. Incumbent Noel Gallo is running, along with candidates Erin Armstrong and Dominic Prado. Each responded to the questions about their top concerns and policy plans. Their answers are presented verbatim, with editing for clarity and brevity. Noel Gallo Gallo has served as…
Oaklanders who frequent the waterfront paths along Lake Merritt are accustomed to seeing encampments and trash heaps. Last spring, though, they came upon a surprising sight. A small hand-built cabin suddenly appeared in a grassy clearing on the lake’s western shore, just a short walk from the swanky Lake Chalet restaurant. The structure looked as if it was made with permanence in mind. Sturdily built of measured wooden planks, with plexiglass windows and a corrugated steel roof, it was big…
Three Oakland council members are giving up their seats, paving the way for new leaders to join the City Council. Council Members Dan Kalb and Treva Reid, and Vice Mayor Rebecca Kaplan are not running for reelection in November. Their exits have created an opportunity for three new members to join the eight-member council, putting the newcomers in a pivotal position for what is shaping up to be a tough budget season. “Three new members, replacing long-standing and experienced council…
A proposal to temporarily increase campaign contribution limits for the November election has stalled, after the City Council failed to meet a quorum for the legislation’s passage. The change, proposed by Councilmembers Janani Ramachandran and Kevin Jenkins, would have increased campaign contribution limits to $800 from individual donors and $1,500 from political committees until 2027. It passed its first reading on Oct. 1 in a 5-2 vote, but at the second reading, which was scheduled for last week, several council…
At a youth town hall meeting Tuesday, Mayor Sheng Thao said she was interested in how the government can better support young people and the importance of transitional housing for 18-year-olds as they become adults. She also said that the FBI raid on her house was an attempt to stop her from creating meaningful change in Oakland. “I know I did nothing wrong, so I’m not even tripping,” Thao said. The mayor faces a recall on Election Day after less…
After several hours of debate, the Oakland City Council voted Tuesday to renew its contract with ShotSpotter, a gunshot detection technology system. The council renewed the $2.5 million contract for one year to start, instead of three, because of concerns about a lack of data and the city’s strained budget. But if the City Council does not make changes to the contract next year, it will automatically renew for the full three years. It was approved by a 7-1 vote,…
The Oakland City Council approved a proposal Tuesday to temporarily increase contribution limits for candidates in the upcoming election. The proposal, introduced by council members Janani Ramachandran and Kevin Jenkins, neither of whom is up for reelection this year, raises the maximum allowed contributions by $200 from individual donors and by $300 from political committees. “We want to let candidates control their own narrative without having to rely on expensive, independent expenditures that have already been … impacting these elections,”…
The Oakland City Council has given Oakland its own official cocktail — shaken, on ice. The Mai Tai. Vice Mayor Rebecca Kaplan, who introduced the resolution at Tuesday’s meeting, said the council’s move honors the city’s history as a center of entertainment, culture, arts, food and drink. “Honoring and supporting our innovators helps expand our economy, jobs, opportunity, revenue, and uplifts the community,” Kaplan said. According to the resolution, the Mai Tai was invented by Victor J. “Trader Vic” Bergeron,…
Oakland has officially sold its stake in the Coliseum, setting aside concerns that the city’s adopted budget relied too heavily on a deal that had not yet gone through. At a news conference on Tuesday, Mayor Sheng Thao, City Administrator Jestin Johnson and Ray Bobbitt, managing partner of African American Sports and Entertainment Group, signed an agreement that would finalize the $105 million sale. The deal, which was announced in May, will likely allow the city to scrap a contingency…