City Government

Proposal Would “Undermine” Oakland Cannabis Industry Reform

Published

8 years ago

July 8, 2016

The Oakland City Council is considering a proposal from an organization that calls itself the Oakland Diversity and Equity Cannabis Coalition that would reduce the benefits of a recently passed ordinance that gives preference to Oakland drug-war victims for city cannabis selling permits.

Under the city’s cannabis Equity Permit Program, which was sponsored by Councilmember Desley Brooks, half of the city’s cannabis industry permits will go to people who have spent jail time for possessing marijuana in the past 10 years, or who have lived in six particular Oakland Police Department beats in the last two years.

In a letter to the city council’s Rules and Legislation Committee Thursday, Brooks said the cannabis coalition’s proposed amendments would “water down the equity programs by reducing the ownership requirement from 50 percent to 25 percent.”

In addition, the proposals would change the eligibility requirement that says someone has to have committed a drug offense in Oakland, expanding the requirement to anywhere in California; and “arbitrarily adding so many beats as to effectively render them meaningless,” said Brooks.

“For whom are the proposed ‘improvements’ seeking equity?” asked Brooks. “Rather, the proposed amendments are nothing more than a veiled attempt to minimize and/or lock out ownership opportunities for people of color,” she said.

“The council has one opportunity to get this right; and not continue the systemic racism in this burgeoning industry that has allowed some to be advantaged while others are left out,” said Brooks.

The organization that is making the proposed amendments has a 90 percent white membership, according to Brooks.

Speaking at Thursday’s Rules Committee meeting, President of 100 Black Men Frank Tucker said, “I don’t know who they are, and I am a long term resident of Oakland.”

He continued, “This group has an amendment to the medical cannabis equity proposal that hasn’t yet been vetted by the council, and they’re already trying to water it down. Watering down the equity component originally tied to the amendment could very well be a continuation of the systemic racism that we have experienced here in Oakland.”

Attorney James Anthony, representing the Oakland Diversity and Equity Cannabis Coalition, was previously a zoning prosecutor for the City of Oakland. He told the council, “We all have dirt on our hands. You were the ones that sent me out to take (homes) of people of color for minor marijuana violations. I agree, let’s get it right the first time. Equity is simple, give everyone a permit who wants one.”

Said Gay Plair Cobb, CEO of the Private Industry Council, “This is an opportunity for the formerly incarcerated to be entrepreneurial. Thanks to Desley Brooks’ initiative, Oakland’s impacted neighborhoods can receive a measure of restorative economic justice.”

The council is scheduled to discuss the Cannabis Equity Program in September.

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Oakland Post: Week of December 25 – 31, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of December 25 – 31, 2024

Published

1 day ago

December 26, 2024

Oakland Post

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Bay Area

Glydways Breaking Ground on 14-Acre Demonstration Facility at Hilltop Mall

Glydways has been testing its technology at CCTA’s GoMentum Station in Concord for several years. The company plans to install an ambitious 28-mile Autonomous Transit Network in East Contra Costa County. The new Richmond facility will be strategically positioned near that project, according to Glydways.

Published

3 days ago

December 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Image of planned Richmond facility courtesy of Glydways.

The Richmond Standard

Glydways, developer of microtransit systems using autonomous, small-scale vehicles, is breaking ground on a 14-acre Development and Demonstration Facility at the former Hilltop Mall property in Richmond, the Contra Costa Transportation Authority (CCTA) reported on social media.

Glydways, which released a statement announcing the project Monday, is using the site while the mall property undergoes a larger redevelopment.

“In the interim, Glydways will use a portion of the property to showcase its technology and conduct safety and reliability testing,” the company said.

The new Richmond development hub will include “over a mile of dedicated test track, enabling Glydways to refine its solutions in a controlled environment while simulating real-world conditions,” the company said.

Visitors to the facility will be able to experience on-demand travel, explore the control center and visit a showroom featuring virtual reality demonstrations of Glydways projects worldwide.

The hub will also house a 13,000-square-foot maintenance and storage facility to service the growing fleet of Glydcars.

“With this new facility [at the former Hilltop Mall property], we’re giving the public a glimpse of the future, where people can experience ultra-quiet, on-demand transit—just like hailing a rideshare, but with the reliability and affordability of public transit,” said Tim Haile, executive director of CCTA.

Janet Galvez, vice president and investment officer at Prologis, owner of the Hilltop Mall property, said her company is “thrilled” to provide space for Glydways and is continuing to work with the city on future redevelopment plans for the broader mall property.

Richmond City Manager Shasa Curl added that Glydways’ presence “will not only help test new transit solutions but also activate the former Mall site while preparation and finalization of the Hilltop Horizon Specific Plan is underway.

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Alameda County

Last City Council Meeting of the Year Ends on Sour Note with Big Budget Cuts

In a five to one vote, with Councilmembers Carroll Fife and Janani Ramachandran excused, the council passed a plan aimed at balancing the $130 million deficit the city is facing. Noel Gallo voted against the plan, previously citing concerns over public safety cuts, while Nikki Fortunato-Bas, Treva Reid, Rebecca Kaplan, Kevin Jenkins, and Dan Kalb voted in agreement with the plan.

Published

3 days ago

December 24, 2024

Oakland Post

Oakland City Council voted on a plan to balance the $130 million deficit at their last regular meeting of 2024. The plan reduces police spending by $25 million, temporarily closes two fire stations, and guts the cultural arts programs. iStock photo.

By Magaly Muñoz

In the last lengthy Tuesday meeting of the Oakland City Council for 2024, residents expressed strong opposition to the much needed budget cuts before a change in leadership was finalized with the certification of election results.

Oakland police and fire departments, the ambassador program, and city arts and culture will all see significant cuts over the course of two phases.

Phase 1 will eliminate two police academies, brown out two fire stations, eliminate the ambassador program, and reduce police overtime by nearly $25 million. These, with several other cuts across departments, aim to save the city $60 million. In addition, the council simultaneously approved to transfer restricted funds into its general purpose fund, amounting to over $40 million.

Phase 2 includes additional fire station brownouts and the elimination of 91 jobs, aiming to recover almost $16 million in order to balance the rest of the budget.

Several organizations and residents spoke out at the meeting in hopes of swaying the council to not make cuts to their programs.

East Oakland Senior Center volunteers and members, and homeless advocates, filled the plaza just outside of City Hall with rallies to show their disapproval of the new budget plan. Senior residents told the council to “remember that you’ll get old too” and that disturbing their resources will only bring problems for an already struggling community.

While city staff announced that there would not be complete cuts to senior center facilities, there would be significant reductions to staff and possibly inter-program services down the line.

Exiting council member and interim mayor Bas told the public that she is still hopeful that the one-time $125 million Coliseum sale deal will proceed in the near future so that the city would not have to continue with drastic cuts. The deal was intended to save the city for fiscal year 2024-25, but a hold up at the county level has paused any progress and therefore millions of dollars in funds Oakland desperately needs.

The Coliseum sale has been a contentious one. Residents and city leaders were originally against using the deal as a way to balance the budget, citing doubts about the sellers, the African American Sports and Entertainment Group’s (AASEG), ability to complete the deal. Council members Reid, Ramachandran, and Gallo have called several emergency meetings to understand where the first installments of the sale are, with little to no answers.

Bas added that as the new Alameda County Supervisor for D5, a position she starts in a few weeks, she will do everything in her power to push the Coliseum sale along.

The city is also considering a sales tax measure to put on the special election ballot on April 15, 2025, which will also serve as an election to fill the now vacant D2 and mayor positions. The tax increase would raise approximately $29 million annually for Oakland, allowing the city to gain much-needed revenue for the next two-year budget.

The council will discuss the possible sales tax measure on January 9.