Come to Jack London Aquatic Center's open house Saturday, June 6 and
learn about kayaking, rowing and dragon-boating activities
(photo courtesy of JLAC)
REPORTS
Message From the Councilmember
The Mayor's Budget Proposals - Reality Sinks In
Opportunities for Public Input on the City of Oakland’s Fiscal Year 2009-2011 Budget
Help Send Roosevelt Middle School student Evelio Banejas to Junior National Young Leaders Conference in Washington, D.C. This Summer!
Oakland High Cheerleaders Raise Money for UniformsIntersections on Lakeshore, Lake Park Avenues and MacArthur Blvd Receive ACTIA Grant for Improvements
Path Along the Lake is Open: Update on Measure DD Work Ahead on
Lakeshore
5th Avenue Bikeway Project between E. 10th St and El Embarcadero
EVENTS
All
of May –Take a Walk in the Morcom Rose Garden – First Blooming
of Roses This Month
700 Jean Street, near Ace Garden Center on Grand Avenue.Economy got you down? Time to smell the roses! Seriously, it's peaceful, beautiful, and will raise your spirits. Main entrance from Jean Street off Grand Avenue. The first blooming of roses is taking place this month and continues through June and July.
Thursday,
May 7: Broadway Retail Corridor Specific Plan: First Public Workshop
First Presbyterian Church, 2619 Broadway (approximately 1 mile from 19th St BART station), 6:00 pm to 8:00 pm
The City is beginning the development of a specific plan for the Broadway Retail Corridor (Broadway from West Grand to I-580) to support the need for destination retail in Oakland. This is the first of seven interactive workshops to discuss plans for the Broadway area. The meeting will be facilitated by lead consultant WRT.
Please attend to become familiar with the specific plan process. You can find additional information here.
Thursday,
Friday and Saturday and Sunday, May 7, 8, 9 and 10:Young Actors Workshop
presents Shakespeare's “Love's Labors Lost" – Aesop's
Playhouse, Children's Fairyland
699 Bellevue Ave – 7:00 pm on Thursday, Friday and Saturday; 5:00 pm on Sunday
Tickets available at the door: $13, adults; $9, students & seniorsPresented by Young Actors Workshop (YAW), an after school arts enrichment program of Oakland's Park Day School, featuring students age 11-18 from middle and high schools from around the Bay Area and is co-directed by award-winner Amanda Ditmore, a senior at Maybeck High School in Berkeley.
About the Play:
Set against the backdrop of unsteady Europe in the early 1940s, "Love's Labors Lost" by William Shakespeare features five young noblemen who vow to shut themselves away from the world and its distractions, and devote themselves entirely to their studies. Inevitably, distraction finds them in the form of five young ladies visiting from France. Will the men be able to keep their studious vows? Or will they be overcome by the romantic possibilities? "Love's Labors Lost" features lively characters, non-stop action and is suitable for children ages 10 and older.
About Young Actors Workshop:
Founded in 1989, Young Actors Workshop (YAW) is a professional theatre-training program for teens designed to develop creative expression and improve basic academic skills through the use of acting, dance, voice, music, stage combat and theatre design.
YAW is an after school arts enrichment program of Oakland's Park Day School, in residence at the Community Campus. Its production season is a combination of original material developed through improvisation by actors, as well as new adaptations of contemporary and classic texts.
Saturday,
May 9: Hershey’s Track & Field Games, Oakland Local Meet at
Laney College
900 Fallon St. Event Check-In/Registration: 7:30 am to 8:30 am, Events begin at 10:00 am.
Boys & Girls Are In Different Divisions.
To participate, call for entry form at 510-238-3897 and return it by May 1, 2009. Forms can also be turned in to your Coach or Recreation Leader at any school site or OPR Recreation Center. Register for events here. For more information, contact the OPR City-Wide Sports unit at 510-238-3897.
Participants can enter two track and one field event or two field and one track event, up to and including the State/Provincial Final. Please check the event that you wish to participate in at this meet. The relay counts as a run event. Participants, please ask your Coach or Recreation Leader for help on the events.
Important Note: The top three winners in each event at this meet will participate in the NORCAL Hershey's State Track Meet to be held at Oak Groove High School in San Jose on June 20, 2009.
Register online@ www.oaklandnet.com/parks Activity#20751.404
Saturday, May 9: Garfield Elementary Schoolyard Work Party
1640 22nd Ave – 10:00 am to 2:00 pm
This year’s project, sponsored by East Bay Asian Youth Center, will have volunteers planting trees, landscaping the exterior school grounds, and working in the gardens. You and all your friends are invited to participate. Bring your favorite gardening tools (picks, shovels, hand trowels, etc.— be sure to put your name on each item).
Also, in preparation for Saturday’s work, a small group of volunteers is needed to help break up ground on Friday afternoon, 3:00 pm to 5:00 pm.
Saturday, May 9: Oakland’s Mother of the Year Award honoring Anne
Woodell
The City of Oakland's Office of Parks and Recreation (OPR) will honor Anne Woodell, Oakland's 2009 Mother of the Year, at the 56th Annual Mother of the Year Award ceremony. The public is invited to the ceremony, at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, May 9 at the Morcom Rose Garden, located at 700 Jean Street in Oakland. Mrs.Woodell was selected out of a group of nominees consisting of exemplary citizens, all of whom have made significant contributions to the City of Oakland.
Mrs. Woodell, an Oakland resident for more than 47 years, was nominated by the Friends of Oakland Parks and Recreation, with letters of support from numerous community members. She is known as "an enthusiastic and inspirational leader providing unparalleled contributions to Oakland's recreation community" and we are very pleased to acknowledge her contributions with this award.
Mrs. Woodell has devoted her adult life to public and non-profit volunteer service and is largely responsible for the founding of the Friends of Oakland Parks and Recreation. She served for many years on the boards of Friends, Citizens for Oakland's Open Space, Children's Fairyland, Dunsmuir House and Gardens, Oakland Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission, Oakland City Stables Advisory Council, California Park and Recreation Society to mention a few and nationally as a member on the National Parks and Recreation Board. Additionally, she is actively involved in the Oakland Parks Coalition and has worked on many community initiatives over the years, including Measure K.
Oakland's Mother of the Year Award is a project of the Office of Parks and Recreation and was initiated in 1954 to publicly honor an Oakland citizen whose contributions to the community symbolize the finest traditions of motherhood, although being a parent is not a requirement to be nominated for the Mother of the Year Award. Past honorees have included hard-working, dedicated community servants whose volunteerism has been exemplary. For more information contact Dana Riley (510) 238-2196 or email here.
Saturdays, May 9 and May 16 and Tuesday, May 12: Oakland Fund for Children
& Youth: Community Forums to shape strategic plan
All three events will address the needs of youth throughout Oakland, and community input received will help shape the Oakland Fund for Children & Youth. The two Saturday dates and locations will be facilitated by Gibson & Associates, consultants evaluating the OFCY programs for the City of Oakland. The May 12 meeting is organized by Oakland Asian Students Educational Services (OASES), Lincoln Recreation Center, Oakland Ready to Learn, OUSD Early Childhood Education, and East Bay Asian Youth Center (EBAYC).
Who should attend any one of these meetings: Anyone concerned about Oakland’s youth and the programs OFCY should provide for them
• May 9 – 11:30 am to 3:00 pm – East Oakland Youth Development Center – 8200 International Blvd; or
• May 12 – 6:00 pm – Franklin Elementary School – 915 Foothill Blvd @ 10th Ave – food, childcare, and translation will be provided• May 16 – 11:30 am to 3:00 pm – St. Patrick’s Church – 1630 10th St
For either Saturday meeting, RSVP: call: 510.986.0990, X209 or e-mail here.
For the Tuesday meeting, if you have questions, contact: Lew Chien Saelee at (510) 533-1092 ext. 50
Saturday May 9th: Antonio
Peralta House Grand Opening
Antonio Peralta House Grand Opening Saturday May 9th, 2009
Audible, Visible, Fragrant and Tasty Event!
On Saturday, May 9, from 12:00 noon to 6:00 pm, exhibits will open in the Antonio Peralta House in Fruitvale that have been five years in the making, based on the question, Whose history is remembered? Visitors will step into the beautifully restored 1870 Victorian farmhouse and enter Oakland’s Peralta and Native past.
Oakland arose on the ashes of the Peralta land grant. One whole room is devoted to the
rapacious shenanigans of squatters and lawyers to wrest the East Bay from the Peraltas—and how the Peraltas experienced the process.Visitors will see, hear, smell, touch and taste the exhibit, from the garlic and peppers, mustard and mint that fill the Peralta House kitchen, to the smooth curve of a longhorn’s horns. Food is featured, including the comfort food of the Peraltas: chocolate and beef jerky.
There are 120 audio stations in the exhibit, with the voices of the past and the present telling how Fruitvale, in all its diversity, came into existence, from the perspectives of those who made it happen. Audioscapes fill each room. You can hear Nae Sieuw Saelee laughing with other Mien elders, Numurray Wallace telling about the Job Rush around World War II, and Rubén Vallejo recounting his family’s journey through the Central Valley as braceros. In the room unfolding the land loss of the Native Americans, you can hear Luís Peralta’s interrogation of mission workers dramatized from his authentic military reports, among many other fascinating selections.
The culmination of the exhibits is the Your Story room, where you are invited to do an interview. Lalo Cervantes’ artwork vargueño, or inlaid desk, illuminates the topic of identity and racial mixing, and encourages every visitor to find the way to express his or her own essence, leaving a unique trace on history. The key quote here is by James Baldwin, that history leads you to that most terrifying of all historical creations:
yourself.Luís Peralta — who is, incidentally, the great-great-great-grandfather of Che Guevara — walked from Mexico as a boy of 15 in 1775, hit the bonanza of a 45,000 acre land grant covering the East Bay in 1820, and died at age 90 in 1851 when California was part of the U.S., asking that his body be carried on the same funeral wagon as “his fellow human beings, the Indians.” Toñita Peralta, his granddaughter, blind and deaf, earned her living designing and sewing beautiful Victorian garments by feel. Inez Seabury, Hollywood actress and Antonio Peralta’s granddaughter, ironically played the part of an Indian maid to Jeannette MacDonald in the film “Girl of the Golden West.” María Colós, whose grandfather was a mixed Siberian native brought to hunt otters at the Russian Fort Ross, was the only Native American on the Peralta rancho whose full name is known. She bequeathed the Ohlone language of Oakland area to posterity. These are just a few of the stories of the generations of the Peraltas and Native Americans on Rancho San
Antonio highlighted in the exhibit.Outdoors, lots of participatory activities will be going on from 12 noon to 3 pm, such as Ohlone and rancho games, a continuous dance lesson with a parade of teachers, covering hip-hop, samba, salsa, and Pomo dances, with “Calicanto” teaching the dances of the old
rancho. Local baker Arturo Peña will have an outdoor oven to take you through the steps of making puerquitos, or Little Pigs, a typical Mexican pan dulce, or pastry. And then you get to eat it! All outdoor activities are free and the house tour costs only $1 (suggested donation), in honor of the opening.Tours are filling fast, so reserve yours now: Call 532-9142, or email here. The historic house is located in Peralta Hacienda Historical Park at 2465 34th Ave. Take the Fruitvale
exit off 880 or 580. Take Fruitvale to Foothill and turn south, then east on 34th Ave.[Press release contact/questions: Holly Alonso. 510-525-0712]
Thursday,
May 14: Oakland’s 16th Bike to Work Day
Join Pat in a Pedal Pool and ride your bike Thursday morning to the annual celebration of Bike to Work Day at Frank H. Ogawa Plaza. Folks are biking in from the hills and East Oakland to the Grandlake Theater, then departing for downtown at 7:55am. Pancake breakfast, valet bike parking and more at Frank Ogawa Plaza next to City Hall! Click here for more info.
Thursday, May 14: Highland
Hospital Acute Tower Replacement Project Meeting
Highland Hospital Vallecito Auditorium, 1411 E. 31st St – 6:30 pm.
- Acute Tower Replacement Project Update
- Public Art Master Plan Presentation
Thursday, May 14: Oakland Heritage Alliance’s 2009 Annual Awards
for Partners in Preservation
Chapel of the Chimes (designed by famed architect Julia Morgan), 4499 Piedmont Avenue – 7:30 pm
Each year, the Oakland Heritage Alliance honors individuals, organizations, projects and programs whose work demonstrates a commitment to excellence in historic preservation. In so doing, OHA hopes to inspire others to take action to preserve, protect and promote Oakland’s historic resources. In general, awards will be made to projects located in Oakland and completed within the last five years.ADAPTIVE USE/REHABILITATION: Conversion of a historic structure for a new or compatible use while retaining its architectural integrity
ADVOCACY & LEADERSHIP: An effective local or statewide campaign to save a historic resource; Individual, municipality, private organization, or joint partnership that has championed historic preservation, planning or public policy
EDUCATION: Innovative program, publication or media tool that communicates the value of historic preservation to the general public
LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT: Professional or volunteer who has contributed to the preservation movement over the length of his/her career
NEW CONSTRUCTION: Sensitive new design project built within a historic context
RESTORATION: Removing incompatible alterations and reconstructing missing elements to reflect a building’s historic appearance in a given era
STEWARDSHIP: Thoughtful maintenance and/or continued use of a historic resource by its owner(s)JUDGING CRITERIA: Impact of the project on the community; quality and degree of difficulty of the project; and degree to which the project serves as an example of excellence in historic preservation and influences others.
Friday, May 15: Oakland Indie Awards and Party at The Crucible
Location: The Crucible, 1260 7th St. 5:30 pm to 8:30 pm.
The Indie Awards event recognizes the contributions of Oakland’s local independent businesses and artists, and provides Oaklanders with an opportunity to celebrate their passion for Oakland, while enjoying Oakland food, wine, chocolate and music. Sponsored by One California Foundation. For more information, go here.
Saturday, May 16: Partnering for Better Parks - Forum for Park Lovers
who Want to Keep Their Oakland Park Beautiful
Partnering for Better Parks will be held at the Lakeside Park Garden Center, 666 Bellevue, Saturday, May 16, from 9:30-noon. Bring park friends and spread the word.
Are you concerned about the condition of your neighborhood park, especially in the wake of park maintenance cutbacks? Do you wonder how you can help to keep your park clean and attractive? Have you participated in occasional park clean-ups or have you been volunteering for some time to improve your park?
If you fit in any of these categories Oakland Parks Coalition wants to help you to partner with others and the City of Oakland to make a difference in your park. We invite you to attend Partnering for Better Parks where you will find out about:
- City resources that are at your disposal for cleaning and greening your park.
- OPC’s on-line support group for volunteers and receive a handy OPC Toolkit for Park Stewards.
- how other neighborhood groups galvanize support for your park
- how to connect with groups looking for volunteer hours.
- how to sign up to report your own volunteer hours so your efforts can be officially counted.
This forum will provide you with all the tools you need to make your park a community gem.
Would you please let us know if you plan to attend? Email us here to RSVP or for additional information or see our website.
Saturday, May 16: TransForm’s 12th Annual Summit: Windfall For All:
Saving Our Economy, Pocketbooks, and Planet with World-Class Public Transportation
and Walkable Communities
900 Fallon St – Register online here. Go here for a printable flyer. Questions? Call 510.740.3150, ext. 320.
Saturday, May 16: 60th Anniversary Celebration and Volunteer Recognition
Day for Lakeview Library: A Day of Reception, Readings, Music, Dancing,
Chess, Knitting and Food
• 11:00 am – 12:00 noon Ceremony and Reception
• 12:00 noon – 12:30 pm Lakeview Writers Presents!
• 1:00 pm – 5:00 pm Lakeview Chess Club
• 12:30 pm – 1:30 pm Ed N Sted’s Funky Band Live Music
• 2:00 pm – 3:00 pm Scenes from the Life of Julia Morgan
Tuesday, May 19: AC
Transit Community Workshop
AC Transit General Office, 1600 Franklin St., 6:30 pm to 8:30 pm
Due to the significant cuts in state funding and other economic factors, AC Transit must begin planning for service reductions, likely to take effect later this year. Bus riders and the community are invited to a series of workshops to provide input into the planning process. For more info, go here.
Saturday, May 30: Eastside Arts Alliance's 9th Annual Malcolm X Jazz Arts
Festival at San Antonio Park
11:00 am -7:00 pm, San Antonio Park (18th Ave at Foothill Blvd).
EastSide's 9th annual Malcolm X Jazz Arts Festival is one of the last free festivals in Oakland, so come and enjoy! Our community of local artists and food vendors put on great shows all day.Click here for more info.
Saturday, May 30: Celebrate Asian Pacific American Month with Activities
and Performances at Oakland Asian Cultural Center
Come check out cultural arts, dance, and more at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center, located at 388 Ninth Street, Suite 290, Oakland (2nd floor of the Pacific Renaissance building). Click here for more info.
Saturday, May 30: 4th Annual “Walk to End Poverty”
Registration for the walk begins at 8:00 am at the Lake Merritt Bandstand in Lakeside Park, 644 Bellevue Ave
The community event is sponsored by the City, the Community Action Partnership Agency, Catholic Charities of the East Bay, along with local business sponsors and generous donations from the community. It’s a free event designed to help raise public awareness about the conditions of those who live in poverty and their daily struggle to provide life’s basic necessities for themselves and their families.
First 400 to bring a non-perishable food donation for the Alameda County Community Food Bank who register to walk will receive a free t-shirt. Walk around the lake (9:00 am to 10:00 am), enjoy water and a snack and visit the Community Fair (10:00 am to 2:00 pm) with local agencies offering help and advice to those in need. Stay for the awards ceremony with local elected officials and live entertainment hosted by comedian and actor Mark Curry, Master of Ceremonies.
For more information contact the “Community Action Partnership” (CAP) agency office at the City of Oakland at (510)238-2362. For online registration and information visit here.
… Coming in June
Saturday, June 6: Second Annual Summer Splash Open House at the Jack London
Aquatic Center
115 Embarcadero – 12:00 noon to 4:00 pm.This is a great opportunity to check out kayaking, rowing and dragon-boating activities. For
more information about the open house and JLAC's youth and adult programming this summer, go here, or call the JLAC at 510-208-6060.
REPORTS
Message
From the Councilmember
Fellow Oaklanders,
As I send you this newsletter announcing cultural events and fun things to do in Oakland, I am also well aware that it comes at the same time as the sobering news of devastating cuts to City services. The fact that I am publishing lighter-hearted things does not mean that I have my head in the sand. I am well aware of the financial crisis the City is in and I'm working on it everyday. You can read more about that topic in the next article.
Despite the reality of hard times, I think we all need to take a break once in awhile to enjoy some of the many good things that are still going on in our city. So I'm still sending you my newsletter with the Events listings. If you read my article on the City budget, you will need a lift of spirits more than ever. So go paddle a kayak, walk in the Rose Garden, or have a glass of wine in downtown Oakland. Or, if it would feel good to make a tangible difference in someone's life, consider a small contribution to one the public school students whom I write about below.
-Pat
The Mayor's Budget Proposals - Reality Sinks In
Now that the Mayor's specific budget balancing proposals have been released, you can see that we are in for very rough times ahead. When something as drastic as laying off 140 police officers is on the table, people are finally understanding the magnitude of the financial problem.
The budget balancing measures proposed by the Mayor are drastic, but given the City's shortage of revenue, drastic cuts will be unavoidable. The Council will spend the rest of May and June figuring out what changes we can make to the budget, but at the end, the results will still be painful for everyone.
We are headed for a paradigm shift in local and state government, and that is true across the nation. Over the years, the cost of services has grown, but the real cost of it all was often deferred, or else enabled by the artificially hot economy. The California State government has already hit the wall, and now it's the cities' turn. Here is the unfortunate fact: there is not enough money coming from current taxes to pay the full cost of the services we have all come to rely on. Two things need to happen: government leaders need to do a much better job of being efficient and frugal with the public's money. But just as importantly, the general public needs to realize that the real cost of services--including education and police--are much more than most people are willing to pay for.
I think we got in this mess because politicians cannot get elected if they tell the public the truth. No one wants to hear any bad news. Voters elect politicians who say they can deliver great services and lower taxes at the same time. Noone can deliver on that promise. It's not possible. Schools need teachers and buildings and that costs a lot of money. Police personnel are very expensive. Medical aid to the indigent is also very costly. So what we got from our leaders were all sorts of imprudent ways to keep the system going, such as deferring pension obligations. Now the gravy train is over, and we all need to look hard at the real costs of delivering public service. Now that the Mayor has proposed the previously unthinkable--laying off police officers--even folks who normally don't pay attention to City government are getting engaged in this debate.
All this is not to say that the City of Oakland can't find more efficient ways of doing business. We certainly can improve our management and use of resources. But not to the tune of $83 million, the current projected shortfall in FY '09-'10. There can be no more sacred cows--such as the staff in the Mayor's office--but at the same time, Oaklanders need to realize that this massive budget shortfall is real and will not be solved by "cutting the fat." The City Council will have to order cuts that will have major negative impacts on the quality of life we have come to expect. It is not useful to spend our time blaming anyone--whether it be the Mayor, the Council or the public employee unions. This problem was many decades in the making, and we need to focus now on figuring out the best way to keep the city functioning given the circumstances.
A good place to get an overview of the numbers and what's happening with the budget is the statement written by the Mayor and City Administrator,which is posted on the City's website, www.oaklandnet.com. Here is the direct link (I don't recommend trying to sort through the hugely lengthy detailed budget document, unless you have hours and hours.) The budget documents are also available to the public for viewing at all branches of the Oakland public library.
I don't like being the bearer of all this bad news, but it's reality and we need to deal with it.
-Pat
Opportunities
for Public Input on the City of Oakland’s Fiscal Year 2009-2011
Budget
The Mayor’s FY 2009-11 Budget Proposed Budget was released to the public on Tuesday, May 5. In order to deal with a huge shortfall in revenues, he and the City Administration have proposed severe cuts in City services. A good overview of the Mayor's proposals is Kelly Rayburn's article in the Oakland Tribune.
Now it's the City Council turn to weigh in. The Council will begin its review and debate on possible changes to the Mayor's proposals in upcoming Budget Hearings. The budget is scheduled for final passage on June 30.
The following are opportunities for you to learn more and offer opinions on the difficult budget choices facing the City:
Televised “Budget Town Hall”:There will be a live televised "Budget Town Hall" meeting on May 27 at 6:30 pm, during which KTOP viewers can call in to have their budget questions answered on-air.
Public Meetings on FY 2009-11 Budget:
• Wednesday, May 13
• Thursday, May 28
• Monday, June 1
All meetings will take place from 4:00 pm until 7:00 pm in the City Council Chambers at Oakland City Hall.
Submit Comments Electronically: The public may email comments and suggestions here.
FY 2009-11 Budget Adoption: The City Council is scheduled to adopt the two-year budget during its regular City Council meetings on June 16 and June 30.
Also:
• A blog to help Oaklanders understand and participate in the Two-Year Budget Adoption
• An interactive tool where you can decide how to balance the budget.
For more information, please contact Council Member Jean Quan, Finance & Management Committee Chair at 238-7004 or email and Sabrina Landreth, Finance Committee Legislative Analyst at 238-2984 or email.
Intersections
on Lakeshore, Lake Park Avenues and MacArthur Blvd Receive ACTIA Grant
for Improvements
There is cause for celebration in the Grand Lake neighborhood. Alameda County Transportation Improvement Authority (ACTIA) awarded the City $573,599 to improve the intersections at Lakeshore and Lake Park Avenue and Lakeshore and MacArthur Blvd., making them safer for pedestrians and cyclists. Some combination of improvements at the Lake Park and Lakeshore intersections has been a topic of discussion between the Grand Lake Traffic Calming Committee, a group of neighborhood residents, and the City Transportation Services Division (TSD) since 2000.
You may remember that in November 2008, we ran an article on the proposed changes and collected input about the basic concept for the proposal by email and in-person at the Grand Lake Farmers Market on a Saturday afternoon. Generally, reaction from the community was positive.
TSD had the opportunity to apply for an Alameda County Transportation Improvement Authority (ACTIA) grant last December and decided that the Lakeshore improvements fit the grant criteria and would be competitive in the process. The ACTIA grant would award a total of $4 million from the County-wide Bicycle and Pedestrian Safety Fund, funded through Measure B, the half-cent transportation sales tax.
Project features include:
Lakeshore at Lake Park Intersection
• New pedestrian and transit Plaza
• Relocated bus stop from Lakeshore and MacArthur to the new plaza
• New crosswalk alignment to reduce pedestrian crossing distance
• New curb ramps
• An additional, dedicated left turn lane from Lakeshore to Lake Park
• Closure of right turn onto Rand Avenue from Lakeshore to accommodate the new plazaNorthern Side of Lake Park Avenue
• Sidewalk widened by six feet
• Extended bus stop to accommodate longer busesSouth Eastern Corner of MacArthur Blvd and Lakeshore Avenue Intersection
• New curb bulb-out to reduce pedestrian crossing distances
• Reduction of vehicle turning speeds from north bound Lakeshore Avenue to 580 EastboundClick here for a conceptual drawing. Please note this drawing represents basic concepts envisioned, but there will be more opportunity for input as the engineering design process, required prior to construction, takes place.
ACTIA received 28 grant applications in December 2008, totaling $11.2 million in requests for the available $4 million in funding. The group of projects was reviewed by both ACTIA staff and Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) members and scored. The Lakeshore improvements project scored second highest among all the projects in the grant competition and was approved by the ACTIA Board of Directors in late April. The grant funding coupled with matching funds from a variety of sources brings the project total to just over $1.2 million dollars.
The City will embark on the formal project design process now that grant funding has been obtained. Stay tuned to our e-news for opportunities for more input in the design phase. Contact Jerry Cauthen, Chair of the GLTCC, to be added to his email list for future meeting announcements and news on this and other Grand Lake traffic improvement plans . Thank you to Jerry and all the GLTCC members for your hard work and ongoing efforts to make the Grand Lake a more pedestrian and cyclist-friendly neighborhood.
- Joanne
Path Along the Lake
is Open: Update on Measure DD Work Ahead on Lakeshore
Hallelujah! The path along Lake Merritt opened last week and already joggers and strollers have returned in force to this beloved and much improved path. To access the trail, there are access points at the Pergola and the E.18th Street Pier as well as crossings through the park at Brooklyn and Hanover. You can go here to see photos taken by District 2 resident John Klein on opening day. There’s more work ahead on this Measure DD park renovation project. Following is a description of the work to come.Gallagher and Burke, the City’s contractor, has almost completed demolition and removal of the Lakeshore sidewalk between E.18th and El Embarcadero. After demolishing the sidewalk, the contractor will install a 6-foot high chain link fence at the back of the existing curb in order to build the multi-use path and install landscaping in the planter strip next to the street. There will be no parking allowed on the west side of Lakeshore from E.18th to south of El Embarcadero during this work; parking will be restricted on the west side of Lakeshore for a total of 7 to 8 weeks until mid to late June.
Starting in June, the multi-use trail will begin opening in thirds over a several-week period. The section closest to E.18th Street will open first. As sections of the multi-use trail open, parking will be allowed on the street adjacent to the trail. The full length of the multi-use trail, with the landscaped planter strip along Lakeshore, is scheduled to open by mid to late June.
To help mitigate the parking restrictions, street-sweeping parking restrictions on the east (residential) side of Lakeshore will be suspended. Currently, there is no over-night parking for 3 nights per week on alternating sides of Lakeshore. Normal scheduled street sweeping will continue on both sides of Lakeshore for the duration of construction. If too much trash accumulates on the east side of Lakeshore because street sweeping won't be thorough with parked cars remaining on the street, the contractor may be asked to pick up the trash.
In addition, construction on PG&E’s transmission line project has started up again on Lakeshore near the Lakeview Branch Library. The project will start at Lakeshore and El Embarcadero, continue north on Lakeshore and wrap around MacArthur Boulevard for a distance of about 100 feet. The total segment will be under construction for about 8 weeks. The part of the work which over-laps the Gallagher and Burke work site will last about 5 weeks. The PG&E contractor and Gallagher and Burke have coordinated their operations, and will not be working in the same area at the same time. Lakeshore will be restricted to one lane in each direction between 9:00 am and 4:00 pm each day while PG&E's contractor is working. Lakeshore will have two lanes open in each direction when PG&E's contractor is not working. - from a report by Lyle Oehler, Project Manager
Click here for more pictures of the Measure DD work at the lake.
-Jennie
5th
Avenue Bikeway Project between E. 10th St and El Embarcadero
Another project is proposed in District 2 in the on-going effort to implement the City’s adopted Bicycle Master Plan. The 5th Avenue Bikeway Project will complete a 0.3 mile link in the bikeway network, connecting bike lanes on the San Francisco Bay Trail on the Embarcadero to bike lanes planned on E.10th St that will improve access to Laney College, Estuary Park, Lake Merritt and the East Lake neighborhood. The project is paid for by ACTIA (Alameda County Transportation Improvement Authority) funding dedicated solely to bicycle and pedestrian projects. Your comments are invited but must be received by June 1. Go here for more information and a form to use for your comments.
Help send Evelio Banejas to the Junior National Young Leaders Conference
in Washington, D.C. this summer!
We have an outstanding student in our district who has been selected for a great opportunity. Evelio Banejas is a 6th grader at Roosevelt Middle School, located near San Antonio Park. He was nominated by his math teacher to attend the Junior National Young Leaders Conference in Washington, D.C. this summer. I am very pleased to say that Evelio was selected as a Junior Leader in recognition of his scholastic merit, maturity and strength of character. I am asking your help to make sure he can afford to go.Evelio and his mom, Syliva Cotto-Montiel, have been working very hard to raise $1,500 for the tuition and travel costs. They have been doing everything from selling cookies, doing yard sales and asking Sylvia's co-workers and neighbors for donations. They have raised $700 so far, but still need another $800 so Evelio can attend the conference. I would love for members of our District 2 community to chip in to help send this outstanding Oakland student to the national leadership conference. Every $20 helps!
If you wish to help, please send your check as follows:
Make out check to: Sylvia Cotto-Montiel OR Congressional Youth Leadership Council
Mail it to: Sylvia Cotto-Montiel
1430 18th Avenue
Oakland, CA 94606THANK YOU FOR YOUR GENEROSITY.
- Pat
Oakland
High Cheerleaders Raise Money for Uniforms
Folks: This is another request from me, Pat, to help District 2 public school students. The Oakland High cheerleaders are raising money because many of the students cannot afford the $300 cost of uniforms and camp. They've worked hard at the usual bake sales, etc., but are still a long way from their goal.
I f you can contribute directly, they would be very grateful. Checks can be made out to Oakland High Cheerleaders and mailed to:Oakland High School
Attn: Desiree Turner
1023 MacArthur Blvd.
Oakland, CA 94610.
They have a 501(c)(3) non-profit tax number, 94-6000385.
If you can suggest other ways to help, such as a philanthropic funding source, please email coach Desiree Turner here. Thank you!-Pat