Homelessness
The Alameda County Board of Supervisors voted for the first time on Tuesday to declare a state of emergency regarding the homelessness crisis, a move that could unlock additional state and federal resources. Four of the five supervisors approved the declaration, with Lena Tam absent. The declaration directs the Alameda County Health Services Office of Homelessness Care and Coordination to meet with cities and relevant agencies to draft an emergency response plan to the supervisors within 60 days. The…
Over 100 people gathered at Tamarack in downtown Oakland on Saturday for a “Comeback Party and Fundraiser” for Street Spirit, a newspaper that has focused on homelessness in the East Bay since 1995 and lost its funding in May. The loss was a major blow for about 40 vendors, many of them unhoused, who sell the paper in Berkeley and Oakland for $2, keeping 100% of what they collect, including donations beyond the paper’s cost. Editor-in-chief Alastair Boone is working…
The Wood Street homeless encampment closed last week, forcing many who lived there into city-run shelters. But more permanent housing solutions are a long way off, including the development planned for the 3-acre lot where the encampment has sat for years. Thursday marked the end of the month-long sweep of the encampment near 18th Street, one of the city’s largest, where people had been living in tents, trailers and recreational vehicles. The city said about 70 people were living at…
Oakland’s COVID-19 eviction moratorium is set to expire on July 15, the council decided Tuesday, passing an ordinance that also will add permanent tenant protections to address housing instability in the city. The City Council voted 7-1 for the ordinance, which will sunset the moratorium that prohibited landlords from evicting tenants for non-payment of rent. Authored by Council President Nikki Fortunato Bas and Council President Pro Tempore Dan Kalb, the ordinance adds new and permanent protections to keep evictions from…
Every other day, Gary Wade walks a few blocks from his home in West Oakland to City Slickers Farms. He says hello to everyone, and hangs out with the chickens. Then he goes to the “town fridge” to grab some fresh greens. If he’s lucky, he’ll also find a home-cooked meal from the Community Kitchens’ Home Chef Volunteer Program. The meatloaf is his favorite. For Wade, 72, the donated meals are a tastier alternative to the ones he receives from…
The Bay Area Local Initiatives Support Corp., a community development nonprofit based in Oakland, announced on Tuesday that it has received a $500,000 grant from Wells Fargo to help churches develop affordable housing units on their properties. The grant will be used for LISC’s Faith and Housing program, which centers on faith-based organizations serving communities of color. The Faith and Housing program, which trains organization leaders, enrolled its first cohort in 2020 and takes two years to complete. The program…
By summer, Alameda County hopes to have an estimate of the number of residents who are sheltering on streets, in parks and encampments, under highways, and in cars, vans, and recreational vehicles. The counting started on a cold Wednesday last month when volunteers embarked on EveryoneCounts! 2022, a point-in-time tally of homeless residents in the county. The count is followed by a two-week survey, where guides interview homeless residents to get a deeper understanding of the services they need. The…
Oakland City Council unanimously passed an ordinance Tuesday that allows people to park and occupy recreational vehicles, mobile homes, and manufactured homes on private property in residential areas, if the property owner permits. The Construction Innovation And Expanded Housing Options ordinance was crafted to create more housing options for Oakland residents. It also updates zoning and blight restrictions, which previously made it illegal to reside in permanently parked RVs in residentially zoned districts. “As part of the multifaceted effort to…
Volunteers with Artists Building Communities spent 10 days last month building a fire-proof, 4-foot-by-8-foot cobbed tiny home in the Wood Street encampment under Interstate 880. The next morning, neighboring residents watched as California Highway Patrol officers and California Department of Transportation workers bulldozed the home. Residents of the encampment and advocates from Artists Building Communities say the tiny home was demolished on Oct. 11 without the legally required 48-hour notice. Tariq Ahmad Bhat was looking forward to moving into the…