Might have to wait a little longer for that 12th Street Bridge
February 21, 2010 by V Smoothe · 106 Comments
If you lived in Oakland in 2002 and happened to make it to the polls that November, odds are that you, like 80% of Oaklanders, voted yes on Measure DD.
Measure DD was a nearly $200 million bond measure meant to finance improvements to Oakland’s creeks and waterways, public recreation facilities, waterfront parks, and of course, Lake Merritt. It’s Measure DD we have to thank for Lake Chalet at the Boathouse and the reconfiguration of El Embarcadero.
League of Women Voters: What is Records Management – and Why Should You Care About it?
December 10, 2009 by League of Women Voters · 11 Comments
Records management is the practice of maintaining the records of an organization — in this case, the City of Oakland — from the time they are created up to their eventual disposal. This may include the classification, storage, securing, and destruction of records.1 Capability for timely record retrieval is also a key part of a modern records management system.
Condo conversions return to Council
November 10, 2009 by V Smoothe · 72 Comments
Condo conversions were a big controversy a few years ago, but since then, have pretty much faded off the radar of everyone but professional affordable housing activists and developers. Now the issue is back, sort of.
Oakland does cabaret reform: why make life easier for small businesses when you can take more money from them instead?
October 23, 2009 by V Smoothe · 52 Comments
Below is a photograph of a charming new downtown bar called the Layover.
DTO parks get some love
September 10, 2009 by V Smoothe · 2 Comments
Remember how Nancy Nadel advertised in her re-election campaign literature last year that she had “transformed Jefferson Park into a skate park for youth“? Well, that hadn’t actually happened then, and it isn’t happening now, but I am pleased to report that Jefferson Park will soon be getting a much needed facelift.
In case you haven’t visited lately, right now it looks like this:
John Klein: Boat House Re-Dedication and the origins of Measure DD
August 18, 2009 by John Klein · 102 Comments
The Boat House Rededication went off without a hitch earlier this month. The Mayor and several council members (including former council member) were present as was the media and numerous individuals and groups involved with Lake Merritt, the Boat House, and the Lake Chalet restaurant. Read more
More budget cuts coming on Tuesday
July 25, 2009 by V Smoothe · 159 Comments
This Tuesday, less than a month after we passed our 2009-11 budget, the Oakland City Council will be back in Chambers (except for Nancy Nadel, who will be teleconferencing in from Jamaica) doing it all over again , looking to make nearly $19 million in new cuts. Fun!
City Council passes zoning update, with modifications
July 8, 2009 by V Smoothe · 9 Comments
Last night, the Oakland City Council voted 5-2-1 to adopt a new zoning code for Oakland’s Central Business District.
Hopefully the final update on the CBD Zoning Update
July 7, 2009 by V Smoothe · 40 Comments
Oakland’s new Central Business District (that’s downtown) zoning will come before the City Council for approval tonight. This process started over a year ago and I’ve written like a zillion posts about it.
Budget decision coming on Tuesday
June 28, 2009 by V Smoothe · 25 Comments
After like two months of discussion, the Oakland City Council will finally pass a budget on Tuesday. Last week, Councilmembers Brunner, De La Fuente, Kernighan, and Quan submitted a revised version of their proposed changes to the Mayor’s budget (PDF), which you can read in its entirety here (PDF). Here are the highlights, and I’ve noted the places where this proposal differs from what was discussed on the 16th:
Writing about the budget in 140 characters or less
June 17, 2009 by V Smoothe · 29 Comments
So the main news about last night’s budget discussion is that nothing happened. Really. Desley Brooks, Nancy Nadel, and Larry Reid all complained about the alternative budget proposal submitted by four of their colleagues, but amazingly, considering how strongly they appeared to feel about how unfair it was that their own ideas weren’t included, none of them submitted any specific adjustments of their own.
What are the core functions of a city?
June 11, 2009 by V Smoothe · 50 Comments
Sitting around fighting about whether the police are paid too much (they are) and if they care about Oakland and its residents (they do) is not productive. Let’s try to move the conversation on this blog in a more useful direction.
