November 9-15 Oakland Political & Community Events

Monday, November 9th – Town Hall with Mayor Dellums and Police Chief Batts

Come hear Mayor Dellums and Chief Batts share their vision of public safety. Topics include:

• Mayor Dellums — public safety strategy: PIES (Prevention, Intervention, Enforcement, Sustainability)
• Chief Batts — vision for the Oakland Police Department
• Crime statistics: crime is down double digits citywide,but more must be done
• Community policing: how can OPD work with the community to enhance public safety?

The meeting will be held from 6:30-8 pm at Cesar Chavez Educational Center, 2825 International Blvd. An additional meeting is set for  Wednesday, November 18, 6:30-8 pm, Tassafaronga Recreation Center, 975 85th Avenue. For details, call the Oaklanders Assistance Center at 444-CITY (2489) or OAC@oaklandnet.com. You can read a review of last week’s town hall at A Better Oakland.

Monday, November 9th – Citywide Zoning Update Meeting for Historic Preservation Issues

As part of the Citywide Zoning Update Staff will be giving a presentation at the Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board (LPAB) meeting. Staff will present some background on existing issues of zoning and historic preservation and how the Citywide Zoning Update will work towards implementing the Historic Preservation Element of the General Plan. Staff invites you to attend to gain knowledge about historic preservation methods being considered for incorporation in the Citywide Zoning Update.  Your feedback will be incorporated into the overall Citywide Zoning Update process. The meeting takes place at 6pm at Oakland City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza, Hearing Room One. You can also watch it on KTOP. For more information, read the staff report on this item.

Tuesday, November 10th – East Bay Democracy for America Meetup

At their November meeting, Democracy for America will be focusing the marijuana taxation ballot initiative and higher education. The two featured speakers are both East Bay Young Democrats and good friends of mine. Abraham Kniesley from Oaksterdam University will give the status on what the next steps will be to make The Control, Regulate and Tax Cannabis Act of 2010 a reality and what we can do to help out. Edie Irons is the communications director for the Institute for College Access and Success. She’ll be talking about funding for higher education here in California and what impact California’s decisions are having on students. There will be an action item that will give you a chance to walk out after the meeting feeling like you’ve done more than just get some information on education funding, you’ll know that you’ve done something to help frame that debate. The meeting will be held at 7:00 at St. John’s Presbyterian Church, 2727 College Ave, Berkeley. RSVP here.

Thursday, November 12th – State Legislature Joint Select Committee on Government Reform Hearing

This year’s state budget set the record for being the latest, and probably the worst, in California’s history. This disastrous process has demonstrated loudly and clearly that the current system is not working and that major change is needed to make the Legislature more responsive to the needs of Californians. Because of this, Assembly Speaker Karen Bass and Senate President pro Tem Darrell Steinberg recently established a new special legislative committee – the Joint Select Committee on Government Reform – which our State Senator Loni Hancock been appointed to as a member. This fall, the Committee, comprised of 10 Senators and 10 Assemblymembers, is hosting a series of hearings throughout the state and is expected to deliver a legislative reform package by January 15, 2010. The next scheduled Joint Select Committee hearing will focus on the topic of ballot box budgeting and initiative reform. They will be hearing from experts about the problems created by our current initiative process and finding real solutions to these obstacles to create better governance in California, as well as a more educated and informed electorate. The hearing will be held from 2:00pm – 7:00 pm, at the Elihu Harris State Building, 1515 Clay Street, in Oakland.

Thursday, November 12th – Community Workshops (Round 3): Zoning Draft Proposals

Are you an Oakland Resident, Property Owner, Business Owner, or Developer? Learn about and discuss proposed zoning changes for Oakland’s residential neighborhoods and commercial corridors! Planning staff will be hosting its third round of Community Workshops. This workshop will be held from 6:00 – 8:00 p.m. at the Fruitvale-San Antonio Senior Center, 3301 E. 12 St., Suite 2001 (Meeting room is on the 2nd floor). For more info, read John Gatewood’s guest post on the zoning update.

Thursday, November 12th – 2nd Annual Wellstone Club Award Reception Honoring Debra Bowen

The Wellstone Club is excited to present its second “Wellstone Award” to California Secretary of State Debra Bowen, our state leader in the fight to ensure that every citizen gets to vote, and every voter’s ballot is counted. She has set a national standard in the battle against voter suppression and illegal efforts to manipulate our democratic process. Paul and Sheila Wellstone’s oldest son, David Wellstone, will present this year’s award. Event co-hosts include Congresswoman Barbara Lee, Senator Loni Hancock, Assemblymembers Sandre Swanson and Nancy Skinner, Berkeley Mayor Tom Bates and Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson. This reception will take place from 5:30-7:30 PM at the Silver Dragon Restaurant, 835 Webster Street. Tickets are $50. Find more info at the Wellstone Club’s website.

Thursday, November 12th – Mix It Up East Bay

Join us for a monthly happy hour bringing together young activists, organizers and leaders in the East Bay. California voting is an art and a science, but we’re here to help! Come out and hear (brief) presentations on proposed ballot measure initiatives by:

• Abraham Kneisley, Tax Cannabis 2010
• Courage Campaign [invited]
• Repair California [invited]

Mix It Up East Bay is held every 2nd Thursday of the month from 6-9pm at Shashamane at 2507 Broadway. It’s accessible by 19th Street BART station or by AC Transit lines 1/1R, 51, 59.

Friday, November 13th – Estuary Art Attack

First Fridays are not the only day of the month to check out art galleries. Jingle Town and Alameda artists have joined together to start the Estuary Art Attack, a monthly event held on second Fridays to showcase the area’s galleries, restaurants, and bars. The Art Attack will be held from 6-9 pm throughout Jingle Town and Alameda. Check out their website for more details.

Saturday, November 14th – Central Estuary Plan Community Workshop #6

The sixth public workshop will focus on identifying a preferred alternative for the Plan Area.  At this workshop, you will be asked to consider which alternative, or pieces of various alternatives speak to your vision for the Central Estuary Area.  Please familiarize yourself with the draft alternatives and come to the next community workshop to participate in hands-on mapping exercises in the very important task of developing a preferred alternative! Three draft alternatives for the Plan Area were presented at Workshop #5.  Information about these alternatives and all meeting materials can be found on the CEDA website in the Schedule+Meeting section. This workshop will be held from 9:00 am-12:00 pm at Beacon Day School, 2101 Livingston Street, 2nd Floor Auditorium.

Monday, November 9th – Citywide Zoning Update Meeting for Historic Preservation Issues

As part of the Citywide Zoning Update Staff will be giving a presentation at the Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board (LPAB) meeting. Staff will present some background on existing issues of zoning and historic preservation and how the Citywide Zoning Update will work towards implementing the Historic Preservation Element of the General Plan. Staff invites you to attend to gain knowledge about historic preservation methods being considered for incorporation in the Citywide Zoning Update.  Your feedback will be incorporated into the overall Citywide Zoning Update process. The meeting takes place at 6pm at Oakland City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza, Hearing Room One. You can also watch it on KTOP. For more information, read the staff report on this item.

March 16-20 Oakland Political & Community Events

Monday, March 16th – Urban Sustainability & Community Development Forum

The Center for Community Innovation is sponsoring a lecture by UC Berkeley City and Regional Planning Professor Malo Hutson with discussant  Romel Pascual, LA Deputy Mayor for the Environment. The “green movement” has provided a window of opportunity for cities to develop in a more sustainable way. What role can the government, nonprofit and private sectors play in ensuring that our urban communities are more sustainable and equitable? This talk will explore the opportunities and challenges that exist in our current political and economic climate to enhance the quality of life within economically disadvantaged urban communities by focusing on four areas—economy, environment, equity and health. This forum will be held at 6pm in 106 Wurster Hall, located on UC Berkeley’s campus, just off Bancroft and College. No RSVPs necessary.  Admission is free and refreshments will be served.

Tuesday, March 17th – Oakland City Council Meeting

This week’s City Council meeting looks like it’s going to be another contentious and long one. They’ll be voting on measures that are set to be put on a special election ballot, including the hotel tax and the repeal of Measure OO. At the last Council meeting, they could not agree on the details of a Measure OO repeal so it should be interesting to see where the votes end up at this meeting. The Council will also vote on a resolution in support of Assembly Bill 312, which would require BART to create an office of citizen complaints for the BART police department.  See the full meeting agenda and check out my post about how to watch and understand City Council meetings if you need some guidance on how or where to view the meeting. The non-ceremonial parts of the meeting start at 7pm, and if you’d like to see the meeting in person, head to the Council Chambers in City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza.

Thursday, March 19th – Oakland Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee Meeting

Oakland’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) meets monthly to discusses bicycle and pedestrian issues. The BPAC is extremely inclusive – any Oakland resident who attends three consecutive meetings becomes a voting member of the committee – so if you’re interested in bike and ped issues, you should consider attending. The agenda for this month’s meeting is not yet online, but I know that they’ll be voting on new officers. The BPAC will be meeting from 5:30-7:00pm in Hearing Room 4 of City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza.

Thursday, March 19th – 2nd Annual We Love Old Oakland

On Thursday, join Old Oakland Neighbors in a community celebration. There will be entertainment, delicious food, music, stimulating conversation, and more in support of Old Oakland! Old Oakland Neighbors is a grassroots community group that welcomes residents, business owners and other concerned individuals in our neighborhood. Tickets for this event are $10 and include appetizers and door prizes. All ages are welcome. This event will be held from 6-10pm at the Washington Inn, 495 10th Street at Washington. For more info, email oldoakland@sbcglobal.net.

Friday, March 20th – Open House with Oakland’s State Legislators

Join Senator Loni Hancock, Assemblymember Nancy Skinner, and Assemblymember Sandre Swanson for a joint open house this Friday. Meet your state representatives and their staff, learn about State programs and services and celebrate the arrival of a new season. The open house will be held from 5:30-7:30pm at Elihu M. Harris State Building Atrium, 1515 Clay Street, Oakland (between 14th and 16th Streets). To RSVP, please email melissa.male@sen.ca.gov or call (510) 286-1333.

Obama endorsed Wilma Chan?

Well, that’s what I thought when I first glanced at this mailer that I received last week:

I opened up my mailbox and there was Obama’s face, which I thought was incredibly weird. Once I realized it was a Chan mailer I thought, ok, this is strange, why would a presidential candidate endorse a state senator? But then I flipped it over…

As you can see, there’s a quote in very big writing, and then in small writing you see that it’s from Maya Setoro-Ng, Obama’s half sister. Look, it’s great and all that his sister endorsed Chan, but it still seems pretty disingenuous to slap a photo of our next president on the front of your mailer because of it.

It gets better though (well, worse actually). In the text of the mailer, Chan touts that she endorsed Obama early and was active on his campaign while Hancock took the “safe route” and endorsed Clinton. I’m a huge Obama supporter and I’ve grown to support Clinton less and less, but I’m not going to judge my state Senate candidate by who she endorsed for president. And I’m not going to assume that Hancock just took the safe route – I’m sure she had plenty of substantive reasons to support Clinton. Besides, I think this mailer would really piss of Clinton supporters – it’s pretty disrespectful. Is Chan just writing off those votes?

So all last week I was really annoyed about this mailer and ranted at everyone who would listen about it, and then two days ago, this came in the mail:

AAAAAAAHHHHHH! (I think I really did scream when I saw it.) If the other mailer didn’t make you think that Obama had endorsed Chan, this one certainly would. With at least 10 election mail pieces hitting a voter’s mailbox per day, who has time to actually open one up and read the fine print?

Look, I understand that Chan feels like she had to do something to counter the Hancock billboards and mailers with pictures of Rep. Barbara Lee, who actually did endorse Hancock. And I understand that few politicians are more popular in the district than Lee is, but this kind of campaigning is disingenuous. What’s more frustrating is that Chan IS endorsed by dozens and dozens of prominent leaders in the district and in the state.

I’m still undecided in this race, but these mail pieces have actually tipped me a bit towards Hancock. Has anyone felt this way about other election mailers you’ve received?