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Boston Ballet Dance Soloist John Lam Visits “Performing Stars,” Where He Got His Start

Published

13 years ago

April 19, 2013

Oakland Post

By Godfrey Lee

John Lam. Photograph by Gene Schiavone.

Cheryl Jennings, Anchor at ABC7 News, interviewing John Lam. Photo by Godfrey Lee.

John Lam, a dance soloist with the Boston Ballet, returned home to San Rafael to dance in the Marin Ballet 50th Anniversary Reunion Performance Saturday, April 13.
Lam trained at the Marin Ballet for more than 10 years before going on to complete his training at the Canada’s National Ballet School.
Lam was also honored by his early mentor and teacher Felecia Gaston, director of Performing Stars of Marin, at a celebration on Friday, April 12 at the Al Boro Community Center in San Rafael.
Other performers included the Marin Chinese Cultural Lion Dancing group doing a lion dance. ChauntiAna Thomas, a 12 year old with a video on YouTube, sang “Hero.”
Pashia Lord, and Performing Stars alumni sang “I Know Where I’ve Been, ” and Performing Stars/Branson High School Leap Dancers also performed.
Joyce Williams and Louella J. Reed helped at the raffle table. Deborah Santana donated a diamond ring as a grand prize for the raffle.
Julian Thu Soung, Mrs. Vietnam USA, congratulated Lam, who is her cousin. Cheryl Jennings, news anchor at ABC7, was mistress of ceremonies.
“My parents are refugees from Vietnam,” said Lam. His family lived in the low-income Canal District of San Rafael. While his parents worked full time to support three children, he was in a community daycare program, and there learned about the Marin Ballet Scholarships.
Marin Ballet co-founder Phyllis Thelan brought up the idea of scholarships more than 20 years ago, after seeing a dance program in New York that worked with inner-city kids. While Thelan had the scholarships, she also learned that it took someone, like Felecia Gaston, to find those children and take the scholarship offers to them.
Gaston went to the child-care center, and asked ‘Who wants to take ballet?’ Lam was the only boy that said, “I do, I do.”
“The only reason why I was able to go to Marin Ballet was because of Performing Stars of Marin. They were a very huge influence in making sure I had my ballet shoes, my uniform, making sure I had transportation, ” Lam said.
Marin Ballet took over Lam’s training and helped him go to the National Ballet of Canada, where Lam completed his training and high school education. Lam went on to dance professionally with the Boston Ballet.
Even as Lam has become a professional dancer, the Marin Ballet is still “like family to me,” he said. “This is what happens with a child that comes from the Canal District.”

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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

10 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.