Uncategorized

100 Black Men Calls for Ordinance to Protect Right to Record Police

Published

10 years ago

August 6, 2015

Responding to demands for policy change that would address police misconduct and better protect the lives of Oakland citizens, the City Council’s Public Safety Committee recently approved an ordinance that will affirm the right to record police officers.

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This proposed ordinance is one of eight recommendations presented to the Public Safety Committee in recent weeks by 100 Black Men of the Bay Area. The organization has demanded city action to enforce police reforms in the wake of police killings of Black men across the country.

Outrage over these killings stems back to 2009 when Oscar Grant was shot by BART police officer Johannes Mehserle. More recently, a national wave of anger arose after Walter Scott was shot in April by a North Carolina police officer; Freddie Gray died that same month while in police custody in Baltimore; and Samuel Dubose was shot in July by a University of Cincinatti police officer.

Live video recordings of police-citizen contact have sometimes proved to be effective in holding officers accountable for unlawful shootings, as in the cases of Oscar Grant and Walter Scott.

Body cam footage of the killing of Samuel Dubose also led to the indictment of the officer for murder.

The new city ordinance, if passed by the City Council next month, would protect citizens, and officers, by providing recordings of police-citizen contact, according to Frank Tucker, chairman of 100 Black Men of the Bay Area.

“It’s going to really serve as an additional tool to keep more enforcement across the board,” said Tucker.

“In sports, they have up to 20 cameras that they use for instant replay when determining if a play was valid or not. Having multiple angles gives us a lot of value and gives us a true picture of what happened,” he added.

The action by the Public Safety Committee not only affirmed the right to record officers but also supported a “Do Shoot” awareness campaign that would educate citizens of their rights to photograph, and make audio and video recordings of police.

The ordinance, if the council passes it, would provide support for a state law, SB 411, which would protect citizens recording police activity. The bill has yet to be signed by Governor Jerry Brown.

Tucker says a policy of protecting recordings of police in Oakland would set an example for the entire country, in light of the multiple incidences of police brutality that have targeted Black lives.

“With law enforcement knowing that they are being recorded, it’s going to force them to be fair and avoid the volume of shootings and brutality that have been acted upon African American males,” Tucker said.

Representatives of 100 Black Men has also met with Oakland Police Chief Sean Whent to address their requests, including sending police body and dash camera footage to a data sharing cloud to avoid tampering with evidence.

One Hundred Black Men has introduced a similar ordinance to the San Francisco County Board of Supervisors.

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Uncategorized

Oakland Housing and Community Development Department Awards $80.5 Million to Affordable Housing Developments

Published

6 months ago

June 17, 2025

Oakland Post

Special to The Post

The City of Oakland’s Housing and Community Development Department (Oakland HCD) announced its awardees for the 2024-2025 New Construction of Multifamily Affordable Housing Notice of Funding Availability (New Construction NOFA) today Five permanently affordable housing developments received awards out of 24 applications received by the Department, with award amounts ranging from $7 million to $28 million.

In a statement released on Jan. 16, Oakland’s HCD stated, “Five New Construction Multifamily Affordable Housing Development projects awarded a total of $80.5 million to develop 583 affordable rental homes throughout Oakland. Awardees will leverage the City’s investments to apply for funding from the state and private entities.”

In December, the office of Rebecca Kaplan, interim District 2 City Councilmember, worked with HCD to allocate an additional $10 Million from Measure U to the funding pool. The legislation also readopted various capital improvement projects including street paving and upgrades to public facilities.

The following Oakland affordable housing developments have been awarded in the current round:

Mandela Station Affordable

238 Affordable Units including 60 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $15 million + previously awarded $18 million
Developer: Mandela Station LP (Pacific West Communities, Inc. and Strategic Urban Development Alliance, LLC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 1451 7th St.

Liberation Park Residences

118 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $28 million
Developer: Eden Housing and Black Cultural Zone
City Council District: 6
Address: 7101 Foothill Blvd.

34th & San Pablo

59 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $7 million
Developer: 34SP Development LP (EBALDC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 3419-3431 San Pablo Ave.

The Eliza

96 Affordable Units including 20 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $20 million
Developer: Mercy Housing California
City Council District: 3
Address: 2125 Telegraph Ave.

3135 San Pablo

72 Affordable Units including 36 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $10.5 million
Developer: SAHA and St. Mary’s Center
City Council District: 3
Address: 3515 San Pablo Ave.

The source of this story is the media reltations office of District 2 City Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan.

Oakland Post

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Activism

Oakland Housing and Community Development Department Awards $80.5 Million to Affordable Housing Developments

Published

11 months ago

January 30, 2025

Oakland Post

Rebecca Kaplan, interim District 2 city councilmember. File photo.

Special to The Post

The following Oakland affordable housing developments have been awarded in the current round:

Mandela Station Affordable

238 Affordable Units including 60 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $15 million + previously awarded $18 million
Developer: Mandela Station LP (Pacific West Communities, Inc. and Strategic Urban Development Alliance, LLC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 1451 7th St.

Liberation Park Residences

118 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $28 million
Developer: Eden Housing and Black Cultural Zone
City Council District: 6
Address: 7101 Foothill Blvd.

34th & San Pablo

59 Affordable Units including 30 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $7 million
Developer: 34SP Development LP (EBALDC)
City Council District: 3
Address: 3419-3431 San Pablo Ave.

The Eliza

96 Affordable Units, including 20 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $20 million
Developer: Mercy Housing California
City Council District: 3
Address: 2125 Telegraph Ave.

3135 San Pablo

72 Affordable Units including 36 dedicated for Homeless/Special Needs
Award: $10.5 million
Developer: SAHA and St. Mary’s Center
City Council District: 3
Address: 3515 San Pablo Ave.

The source of this story is media reltations office of District 2 City Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan.

Oakland Post

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Alameda County

Oakland Acquisition Company’s Acquisition of County’s Interest in Coliseum Property on the Verge of Completion

The Board of Supervisors is committed to closing the deal expeditiously, and County staff have worked tirelessly to move the deal forward on mutually agreeable terms. The parties are down to the final details and, with the cooperation of OAC and Coliseum Way Partners, LLC, the Board will take a public vote at an upcoming meeting to seal this transaction.

Published

11 months ago

January 11, 2025

Oakland Post

Alameda County Board of Supervisors Chairman David Haubert. Official photo.

Special to The Post

The County of Alameda announced this week that a deal allowing the Oakland Acquisition Company, LLC, (“OAC”) to acquire the County’s 50% undivided interest in the Oakland- Alameda County Coliseum complex is in the final stages of completion.

Oakland has already finalized a purchase and sale agreement with OAC for its interest in the property. OAC’s acquisition of the County’s property interest will achieve two longstanding goals of the County:

The Oakland-Alameda Coliseum complex will finally be under the control of a sole owner with capacity to make unilateral decisions regarding the property; and
The County will be out of the sports and entertainment business, free to focus and rededicate resources to its core safety net

In an October 2024 press release from the City of Oakland, the former Oakland mayor described the sale of its 50% interest in the property as an “historic achievement” stating that the transaction will “continue to pay dividends for generations to come.”

The Board of Supervisors is pleased to facilitate single-entity ownership of this property uniquely centered in a corridor of East Oakland that has amazing potential.

“The County is committed to bringing its negotiations with OAC to a close,” said Board President David Haubert.