Politics

Oakland moves forward in bid to host World Cup games

Oakland is one step closer to being chosen as the site for a future World Cup Series soccer match, that is, if the Federation Internationale de Football Association picks the US as a host country for either the 2018 or 2022 tournament. City officials have been vying for the title of US host city since June, and earlier this month they passed a resolution to continue bidding. Although Oakland has already survived a few stages of the bidding process, it…

Study charges some streets are “dangerous by design”

On 64 year-old Karen Smulevitz’s stretch of 73d Avenue, just trying to cross the street is “an adventure,” she says. A new national report says that although Alameda County scores comparatively well in California pedestrian safety, streets like this are a danger to too many people and American cities.

Film on former Panther Richard Aoki debuts

Five years in the making, the documentary “Aoki,” about the Asian-American activist who was one of the original Black Panther leaders, premieres Thursday night at Oakland’s Grand Lake Theater.

Condo conversion attempt fails, sparks argument

A proposal to speed the conversion of apartments to market-rate condos hit resistance at Oakland City Council committee meetings Tuesday, with housing advocates calling for a comprehensive reform of the city’s affordable housing rules.

Oakland wants to join U.S. bid for World Cup

Imagine a series of summer afternoons at the Oakland Coliseum a few years in the future. The sun-dappled parking lot has become a Tower of Babel—English, Spanish and a smattering of Scandinavian tongues—but all are mutually intelligible in their passion for one sport: soccer. It might just happen, since Oakland is bidding to host the 2018 or 2022 World Cup.