City Government

Report: Schaaf’s Administration Builds Market-Rate Housing, Nothing for Low-Income Residents

Published

8 years ago

May 26, 2017

Almost all the housing that is being built in Oakland is at high-end market rates, and nothing is under construction for those who are moderate-, low-income or extremely low income, according to a report the city annually submits to the state.

The report, called the Housing Element Annual Progress Report, summarizes actual building permits issued by the city.

Under Housing Element, the city’s goal is that 47 percent of the units built should be affordable to very low-, low- and moderate-income, including 28 percent for poorest families that are classified as very low- and low-income.

However, the city issued building permits for 771 units in 2015 and over 2,000 units in 2016, according to the report. Of these, 2,700 were unrestricted market-rate units. Only 168 units were classified as affordable, which is not a rate that most Oakland renters can afford.

No building permits were issued in 2015 or 2016 to build moderate-income housing.

Speaking at this week’s Community and Economic Development (CED) committee, Jeff Levin of East Bay Housing Organizations (EBHO) pointed out these statistics to council members, who did not respond.

The numbers indicate that Oakland is in the midst of a market-rate building boom, said Levin. “This is a record breaking number, far higher than anything we saw in Jerry Brown’s (administration),” when he proposed a “10K” program to bring new affluent residents to Oakland, he said.

Actual production of housing “has us at just 6 percent of total production being affordable and 4.3 percent for very-low and low-income,” he said. “We are exceeding our goal for market rate (housing) and drastically falling behind on everything else.”

Levin said city staff told EBHO that in the first three months 2017, the city has already issued 1,000 building permits. “Not one of them was affordable,” he said.

“It is highly unlikely that this increase in the supply of high end housing will make even a dent in affordability for existing renters or cause existing apartments to become cheaper,” he said.

Pointing out that the council has repeatedly ignored the advice of the community, Brian Geiser told council members that building market-rate housing does not lead to more housing for those who are low income.

“This housing is being built for the wealthy,” he said. “That’s what we knew would happen. Once they have met their needs, it will stop.”

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Oakland Post: Week of May 21 – 27, 2025

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of May 21 – 27, 2025

Published

5 days ago

May 25, 2025

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IN MEMORIAM: Nate Holden, State Senator and Longtime Los Angeles Councilmember, Dies at 95

Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn described Holden as “a lion” in the State Senate and a force to be reckoned with on the Los Angeles City Council.” Hahn added that she learned a lot working with Holden when she was a new councilmember.

Published

1 week ago

May 19, 2025

Oakland Post

Former Los Angeles Councilmember and California State Sen. Nate Holden. File photo.

By Bo Tefu, California Black Media

Former Los Angeles City Councilmember Nathaniel “Nate” Holden, a prominent figure in the city’s politics, passed away at the age of 95, his family confirmed on May 7.

Holden, who represented South Los Angeles for 16 years on the City Council and served one term in the California State Senate, was widely regarded as a forceful advocate for his community.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Janice Hahn described Holden as “a lion” in the State Senate and a force to be reckoned with on the Los Angeles City Council.”

Hahn added that she learned a lot working with Holden when she was a new councilmember.

Holden’s journey to political prominence began in the segregated South, where he was born in Macon, Georgia, in 1929. He often recalled the childhood moment when he first heard the governor of Georgia vowing to continue suppressing Black people.

“Doing the best you can for the people. Law and order. Make sure that people’s communities are safe. I did it all,” said Holden, reflecting on his legacy.

Holden is survived by his sons, including former California Assemblymember Chris Holden, who represented a district in Southern California that includes Pasadena and Altadena in Los Angeles County and cities in San Bernardino County.

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Oakland Hosts Town Hall Addressing Lead Hazards in City Housing

According to the city, there are 22,000 households in need of services for lead issues, most in predominantly low-income or Black and Latino neighborhoods, but only 550 to 600 homes are addressed every year. The city is hoping to use part of the multimillion-dollar settlement to increase the number of households served each year.

Published

2 weeks ago

May 18, 2025

Oakland Post

iStock.

By Magaly Muñoz

The City of Oakland’s Housing and Community Development Department hosted a town hall in the Fruitvale to discuss the efforts being undertaken to remove lead primarily found in housing in East and West Oakland.

In 2021, the city was awarded $14 million out of a $24 million legal settlement from a lawsuit against paint distributors for selling lead-based paint that has affected hundreds of families in Oakland and Alameda County. The funding is intended to be used for lead poisoning reduction and prevention services in paint only, not water or other sources as has been found recently in schools across the city.

The settlement can be used for developing or enhancing programs that abate lead-based paint, providing services to individuals, particularly exposed children, educating the public about hazards caused by lead paint, and covering attorney’s fees incurred in pursuing litigation.

Most of the homes affected were built prior to 1978, and 12,000 of these homes are considered to be at high risk for lead poisoning.

City councilmember Noel Gallo, who represents a few of the lead-affected Census tracts, said the majority of the poisoned kids and families are coming directly from neighborhoods like the Fruitvale.

“When you look at the [kids being admitted] at the children’s hospital, they’re coming from this community,” Gallo said at the town hall.

In order to eventually rid the highest impacted homes of lead poisoning, the city intends to create programs and activities such as lead-based paint inspections and assessments, full abatement designed to permanently eliminate lead-based paint, or partial abatement for repairs, painting, and specialized cleaning meant for temporary reduction of hazards.

In feedback for what the city could implement in their programming, residents in attendance of the event said they want more accessibility to resources, like blood testing, and information from officials about lead poisoning symptoms, hotlines for assistance, and updates on the reduction of lead in their communities.

Attendees also asked how they’d know where they are on the prioritization list and what would be done to address lead in the water found at several school sites in Oakland last year.

City staff said there will be a follow-up event to gather more community input for programming in August, with finalizations happening in the fall and a pilot launch in early 2026.