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Desley Brooks: After 8 Months in Limbo, Oakland Council Sticks with Status Quo on Job Training

Published

8 years ago

June 8, 2018

By Desley Brooks | District 6 City Councilmember

Oakland is part of two metropolitan areas—San Francisco-Oakland-Hayward and San Jose-Sunnyvale-Santa Clara—that currently rank as places with the best economies in the country.

In our North Bay metro region, average household income is now about $96,677 each year—nearly double the national median household income of $57,617, according to the US Census Bureau.

Oakland is at the center of the larger region’s prosperity with about a three percent unemployment rate; experts say this economic prosperity will only continue to grow.

Intentionally left out of this prosperity has been Black and Latino youth, women of color and persons formerly incarcerated, all of whom face an unemployment of 3 to 10 times of this three percent rate.

Those who find low paying temporary jobs are forced to make a choice between dedicating a majority of their salary to higher and higher housing costs, food for their families, moving far away, or to living on the streets.

The politics of this economic opportunity paired with growing inequity and city’s status quo administration came to fruition this past Tuesday June 5.

Despite repeated demands to pass policy, invest resources and hold our job training and placement programs accountable, the Council failed to take any action or even to discuss the issue.

The Council, Mayor and Administration have once again failed to deliver for our residents who are being left out of this boom economy.

First, I want to recognize my colleagues, Councilmembers Kaplan and Gallo for understanding the urgency to achieve a goal of guaranteeing 1,000 Oaklanders career jobs per year and a vision of 5,000 careers for our residents locked out of the booming economy.

It was disappointing that Councilmembers Campbell-Washington, Guillen and Gibson-McElhaney aligned with the status quo of Mayor Libby Schaaf’s administration-an Administration that has been unwilling to work with Oakland’s most underserved communities to find real solutions to finally address Black and Brown unemployment, underemployment and displacement.

Late last year, we began a process of drafting legislation that started a conversation about how we achieve $6 million a year to fund community-based, job training programs as part of a plan linked to capital improvement and development projects in our city.

A healthy amount of debate and discussion was had over the last six months but lacked leadership from the Mayor or City Attorney to come up with a program and funding formula that would work.

This past Tuesday, we were able to finally hear from the Oakland City Attorney’s office. Rather than find legal solutions requested 6 months ago, they put forward an “opinion” stating that any monies spent by the City had to be approved by the Workforce Investment Board and that the City could only have one comprehensive job plan.

In my role as Councilmember, I repeatedly asked the City Attorney’s office to provide the legal authority to support their position. However, in each instance they would cite various sections of law but never responded directly to the question.

When asked again if there was a statute which supported their opinion, Deputy City Administrator Doryanna Moreno said “there was no specific provision.” When asked if there was any case law to support the city attorney’s position she said, “no, there was no case law.” When asked if it was just their opinion she answered “it was their analysis.”
See Part II next week

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

Published

7 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

Posts by Oakland Post

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

12 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.