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A’s Ballpark Traffic Will Negatively Impact West Oakland Residents

The Oakland Department of Transportation released a report over a year ago estimating that game days would bring an additional 10,000 cars to the area, at least 7,500 of which will be looking for parking. And what are the A‘s offering these drivers? 2,000 parking spots. Those remaining 5,500 cars will park in front of the homes and along the truck routes closest to the ballpark, legal or not.

Published

5 years ago

May 6, 2021

Christy Price

Besides touting the hollow tagline “Rooted in Oakland,” Dave Kaval hasn’t been listening to most Oaklanders. For over a year we’ve been voicing our concerns about traffic issues related to the A’s proposed ballpark; and now, following the release of the Draft Environmental Impact Report (DEIR) and the Term Sheet, it’s evident that John Fisher and the Oakland A’s care more about putting money in their pockets than about the real people who will be negatively impacted by their project.

As a long-time West Oakland resident I remember less than a decade ago when huge semi-trucks used to park overnight and idle during the day on West Oakland neighborhood streets, creating diesel exhaust and continuous loud noise from running generators to keep refrigerated trucks cold.

Our neighbors fought then for the development and approval of the West Oakland Truck Management Plan, a proposal that was only made possible by the designation of Howard Terminal as a 24/7 holding area for these trucks. Now trucks use Howard Terminal to wait between dropping off and picking up containers and avoid peak traffic periods so they can be more efficient without interfering with the daily lives of West Oakland residents.

The DEIR makes it clear that keeping these trucks off of residential streets is not a priority for the A’s. The report acknowledges that Howard Terminal serves this essential function but concludes that these activities will just go elsewhere. “

Assumed to move to other locations” is not a plan. “Likely need to find a location outside the Seaport” is not an analysis of this impact. “Other locations” will inevitably be back in front of our homes, at the cost of our health and our children’s safety. Where is the mitigation measure for that impact?

I am equally concerned about the safety of drivers and pedestrians if a huge entertainment and luxury housing development approved at the port. Dave Kaval has talked for years about making this new ballpark bike and pedestrian friendly, but the DEIR has uncovered the truth: the A’s have committed to very few improvements that actually make access to Howard Terminal safer and easier, to some degree because it’s simply not possible to upgrade a working Port – among the largest on the West Coast – into a commercial entertainment zone that attracts tens of thousands of people to events.

Unlike the Coliseum site, which is one of the most transit-accessible ballparks in the country, access into Howard Terminal is restricted to two streets, the most frequently used of which is residential, and is a mile walk from the nearest BART station.

Currently, 25% of A’s game day visitors to the Coliseum arrive on BART, which drops them off right at the stadium gate. How does Dave Kaval think use of transit to get to games at the port will be close to that – or as he claims, will increase – when the nearest BART station is a mile walk away?

The A’s are asking 10,000 vehicles to line up down residential streets, blocking not only essential truck deliveries to and from the Port, but also local residents’ movement to and from our own homes. As long as fans buy their tickets, the A’s don’t care where they will park.

As a parking alternative, the City of Oakland has designated certain residential areas to have Residential Parking Permits (RPP) installed. These permits will last until 11 p.m., not the customary time limit of 6 p.m. or 7 p.m. The residents of the four impacted areas, West Oakland, Old Oakland, Jack London and Chinatown should not have the financial burden of paying for RPP.

If the A’s have a lease with the Port for 66 years, they should pay for parking permits for all residents in the impacted areas for 66 years.

It is crucial that the Oakland City Council, particularly Council-member Fife, stand with West Oakland residents, parents, long-time community members, and all those who will face the significant and detrimental impacts of the A’s proposed development at Howard Terminal and refuse to certify the EIR for this project.

Christy Price

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#NNPA BlackPress

Poll Shows Support for Policies That Help Families Afford Child Care

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE — New national polling shows persistent voter concern about the affordability and availability of child care for working parents, alongside broad support across key demographic groups for federal child care policies that help families afford care.

Published

2 days ago

March 2, 2026

Oakland Post

By First Five Years Fund

New national polling shows persistent voter concern about the affordability and availability of child care for working parents, alongside broad support across key demographic groups for federal child care policies that help families afford care.

The national survey was conducted by UpOne Insight on behalf of the First Five Years Fund from January 13–18, 2026.

Key findings include:

• Parents need help: 80% of voters say the ability of working parents to find and afford child care is either in a state of crisis or a major problem.

• This is an affordability issue: 82% believe federal child care funding will help lower costs for working families — including 69% of Republicans, 84% of Independents, and 94% of Democrats.

• And there continues to be strong support (62%) for the Child Care and Development Block Grant (CCDBG), a federal program that makes it possible for hundreds of thousands of families to afford safe, quality care for their children while parents work or go to school, including a majority of Republicans, 63% of Independents and 72% of Democrats.

• Support for funding child care programs remains strong: 75% believe child care funding should be increased or kept at current levels — including 75% of Republicans, 85% of Independents, and 97% of Democrats.

• 74% say funding for child care is an important and good use of tax dollars, including a majority of Republicans, three-quarters of Independents, and nine in ten Democrats.

FFYF Executive Director Sarah Rittling said, “Voters across the country are sending a clear message: federal child care and early learning programs work. These investments help parents stay in the workforce, strengthen families, and support healthy child development. They have also long had strong bipartisan support in Congress. At a time when affordability is top of mind for families, continued federal funding is essential to ensure child care remains accessible and within reach.”

First Five Years Fund works to protect, prioritize, and build bipartisan support for quality child care and early learning programs at the federal level. Reliable, affordable, and high-quality early learning and child care can be transformative, not only enhancing a child’s prospects for a brighter future but also bolstering working parents and fostering economic stability nationwide.

We work with Congress and the Administration to identify federal solutions that work for families with young children, as well as states and communities. We work with policymakers to identify ways to increase access to affordable, high-quality child care and early learning programs for children. And we collaborate with advocacy groups to help align best practices with the best possible policies. http://www.ffyf.org

Oakland Post

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Oakland Post: Week of February 25 – March 3, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of – February 25 – March 3, 2026

Published

3 days ago

March 1, 2026

Oakland Post

To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

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Trump’s MAGA Allies are Creating Executive Order Plan to Steal the 2026 Midterms

NNPA NEWSWIRE — The document that could lead to an executive order proposes using the claim that China interfered with the 2020 elections as grounds to “declare a national emergency.” The move would be an unprecedented step that would grant Trump new authority over the voting systems in the U.S.

Published

5 days ago

February 27, 2026

Oakland Post

By Lauren Victoria Burke, NNPA Newswire Correspondent

A group of MAGA pro-Trump activists, who say they are working in coordination with the White House, are circulating a 17-page draft executive order that would claim without evidence that China interfered with the 2020 presidential election. Donald Trump lost the 2020 presidential to President Joe Biden by over 7 million votes. Since Trump lost to Biden in 2020, he has repeatedly claimed that the election was “stolen” without evidence. The report of a group of “Trump allies” preparing an executive order to give Trump power over elections was first reported by The Washington Post.

The lies around the right-wing campaign that pushed falsehoods that the 2020 election was stolen was trafficked through right-wing media, particularly Fox News. Fox News was then sued for defamation for the claims by Dominion Voting Systems. Fox lost the case and had to settle for the largest defamation amount on record of $787.5 million in April 2023.

The document that could lead to an executive order proposes using the claim that China interfered with the 2020 elections as grounds to “declare a national emergency.” The move would be an unprecedented step that would grant Trump new authority over the voting systems in the U.S.

The story in The Washington Post arrives as Trump increasingly signals that he may take actions that would alter the result of the 2026 midterms. The Republicans are widely expected to lose as their approval ratings plummet as a result of a failing economy under Trump. Over 50 members of Congress have announced they will retire this year and not return in 2027.

The Trump Department of Justice, which now has a large image of Trump on the side of it, “sued five new states Thursday [Feb. 26, 2026] demanding access to their unredacted voter rolls — escalating a campaign that has been rejected by multiple federal courts and faces resistance from Republican-led states as well,” according to Democracy Docket, a group that works to protect voting rights.

Trump claimed back in late 2020, the last year of his first term, that he had the authority to issue an executive order related to mail-in voting for the 2020 elections — which he would then lose. But the Constitution states that control of elections lies with the states. As the GOP works to place hurdles in front of voting, Democrats worked to make voting easier.

In March 2021, President Biden signed an executive order calling on federal agencies to expand voting access as part of the Biden Administration’s effort “to promote and defend the right to vote for all Americans who are legally entitled to participate in elections.”

Trump’s focus is clearly on altering the November 2026 midterm elections. Trump’s polling numbers and the elections and special elections that have taken place around the U.S. over the last year clearly indicate that Republicans are about to be hit by a blue wave of Democratic victories.

Lauren Victoria Burke is an independent investigative journalist and the founder of Black Virginia News. She is a political analyst who appears on #RolandMartinUnfiltered and hosts the show LAUREN LIVE on YouTube @LaurenVictoriaBurke. She can be contacted at LBurke007@gmail.com and on twitter at @LVBurke