Government

Rebecca Kaplan, Incumbent Oakland City Councilmember At-Large Seeks Re-Election

Published

5 years ago

September 10, 2020

Kiki

This is the second in a series of three, profiling the three candidates who are running for the Oakland City Councilmember At-Large position.

Rebecca Kaplan, who has served as the At-Large representative to the Oakland City Council since 2008, is running for re-election to continue to work on three major issues: homelessness, police accountability, and environmental injustice, especially in East and West Oakland.

Kaplan is the first openly LGBT elected official in Oakland where she was elected president of the City Council by a unanimous vote in 2019 and is running for re-election against Derreck Johnson and Nancy Sidebotham.

Born in 1970 in Ontario, Canada, Kaplan did her undergraduate work at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and went on to attend Stanford Law School while living in Oakland while in school. She and her partner, Filmmaker and Advocate Kirthi Nath, currently live in Jack London Square.

She was involved in advocacy for prisoner rights, against mass incarceration, and worked as a tenant’s rights attorney. Kaplan helped put Oakland’s “Just Cause Eviction” on the ballot in 2002 and got it passed. She is currently a civil rights attorney.

Kaplan’s first elected office was as a trustee on the AC Transit Board of Directors. She served in this capacity for seven years during which time she spearheaded the Free Shuttle Bus in downtown Oakland that runs from Grand Avenue down Broadway to Jack London Square.

Kaplan ran for mayor of Oakland in 2010 and 2014.

In regard to strategies about homelessness in Oakland, Kaplan promises to “replicate what works” having already collaborated to establish two “dorms” one at the Henry Robinson Multiservice Center and another dorm in Rockridge on the site of the California College of the Arts. She firmly believes that “Tuff sheds don’t work.”

She states that 80% of the homeless people are from Oakland and the homelessness is caused by financial displacement and foreclosure or have otherwise been “pushed into homelessness.”

She is proud to have worked with the Urban Strategies Council in 2019 to train civilian mental health workers, before the “Defund the Police” movement.

As for police accountability, in addition to the aforementioned training for civilians, which removes this function from the police, she advocates for an independent Police Commission.

On the November 2020 ballot, she is collaborating with Youth Vote to get Measure QQ on the ballot, which would allow 16- and 17-year-olds to vote in local school board matters

Kaplan is endorsed by Pastor J. Alfred Smith Sr. of Allen Temple Baptist Church; the California Nurses Association; SEIU 1021; the Sierra Club; Black Women Organized for Political Action; The Honorable Gus Newport; The Honorable Bevan Dufty; Former State Assemblyman Sandre Swanson; and Aimee Allison, founder of “She the People” and others.

Kaplan on her website says: “I am honored to work with community to support real solutions to our homeless crises, fight for zone-based clean-up and enforcement of illegal dumping, get guns off the streets, provide for public health and local small business support, strengthen housing for all income levels, improve our air quality, transit, pedestrian and bicycle safety, racial and economic justice, and police accountability.”

For more information go to KaplanforOakland.org.

Kiki

Posts by Kiki | Website

Up Next

Parent Advocate Cherisse Gash Seeks to Represent District 3 on School Board

Don't Miss

Eerie Apocalyptic Sky in Bay Area Raises Concerns for Residents

Kiki

Click to comment

Activism

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

2 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.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Activism

Oakland Post: Week of February 18 – 24, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of – February 18 – 24, 2026

Published

2 weeks ago

February 20, 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.

Oakland Post

Posts by Oakland Post

Bay Area

CITY OF SAN LEANDRO STATE OF CALIFORNIA PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT ENGINEERING DIVISION NOTICE TO BIDDERS FOR ANNUAL STREET OVERLAY/REHABILITATION 2019-21 – PHASE III

WORK DESCRIPTION: The work to be done consists of roadway paving, base cement stabilization, concrete curb ramps, driveways, sidewalks, curbs and gutters, traffic detection loops and pavement striping, and doing all appurtenant work in place and ready for use, all as shown on the plans and described in the specifications with the title indicated in Paragraph 1 above, and on file in the office of the City Engineer. Reference to said plans and specifications is hereby made for further particulars.

Published

2 weeks ago

February 20, 2026

Oakland Post

PROJECT NO. 2020.0050

BID NO. 25-26.011

BID OPENING: The bidder shall complete the “Proposal to the City of San Leandro” form contained in the Contract Book. The proposal shall be submitted in its entirety. Incomplete proposals will be considered non-responsive. Sealed bids containing the completed Proposal Section subject to the conditions named herein and in the specifications for ANNUAL STREET OVERLAY/REHABILITATION 2019-21 – PHASE III/PROJECT NO. 2020.0050 addressed to the City of San Leandro will be received at City Hall, 835 East 14^th Street, 2^nd Floor San Leandro at the office of the City Clerk up to 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 19, 2026, at which time they will be publicly opened and read.
WORK DESCRIPTION: The work to be done consists of roadway paving, base cement stabilization, concrete curb ramps, driveways, sidewalks, curbs and gutters, traffic detection loops and pavement striping, and doing all appurtenant work in place and ready for use, all as shown on the plans and described in the specifications with the title indicated in Paragraph 1 above, and on file in the office of the City Engineer. Reference to said plans and specifications is hereby made for further particulars.
OBTAINING THE PROJECT PLANS AND CONTRACT BOOK: The project plans and Contract Book may be obtained free of charge from the City’s website at:https://www.sanleandro.org/Bids.aspx Bidders who download the plans are encouraged to contact the City of San Leandro Public Works Department Engineering division at 510-577-3428 to be placed on the project planholder’s list to receive courtesy notifications of addenda and other project information. Project addenda, if any, will be posted on the website. A bidder who fails to address all project addenda in its proposal may be deemed non-responsive.Bidders may also purchase the Project Plans and Contract Book from East Bay Blueprint & Supply Co., at 1745 14^th Street, Oakland, CA 94606; Phone Number: (510) 261-2990 or email: ebbp@eastbayblueprint.com.
PRE-BID CONFERENCE: A mandatory pre-bid conference will be held on Tuesday, February 24, 2026, at 2:00 PM and on Wednesday, February 25, 2026, at 10:00 AM as follows:
Tuesday, February 24, 2026, at 2:00 PM
Zoom Meeting ID: 883 8752 6074
Passcode: 502955
Zoom Link: https://sanleandro-org.zoom.us/j/88387526074?pwd=hZ5rjB8AWdLAUem3CtByFiZxqKarHj.1
And
Wednesday, February 25, 2026, at 10:00 AM
Zoom Meeting ID: 898 2672 0472
Passcode: 091848
Zoom Link: https://sanleandro-org.zoom.us/j/89826720472?pwd=JgZX2nXMpLSRM5xDPr7EJUxl7QIznr.1The information presented at the conferences will be identical, all bidders must attend one of the pre-bid conference and sign the attendance sheet. A firm that didn’t attend the pre-bid conference isn’t qualified to bid on the project.Questions regarding the plans and specifications may be submitted in writing to the project engineer until 5:00 p.m. five (5) days before, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays, bids must be received by the City. The City will not respond to oral questions outside of the pre-bid conference. The response, if any, will be by written addendum only. Oral responses do not constitute a revision to these plans or specifications.
VALUE OF WORK: The Engineer has estimated that the value of work is between $1,000,000 and $5,000,000.
SAN LEANDRO BUSINESS PREFERENCE AND PARTICIPATION GOALS: The work performed under this contract is subject to Section 1-6-225 of the San Leandro Municipal Code regarding local business preference and participation. A list of companies that hold a San Leandro business license is located on the City webpage under the finance department, here: https://www.sanleandro.org/340/Business-License
SAN LEANDRO COMMUNITY WORKFORCE AGREEMENT: The work performed under this contract is subject to the Community Workforce Agreement adopted by City Council Resolution 2015-104. Contractors attention is directed to Section 10.