PARK(ing) Week in Oakland

If you’re interested in parking or PARK(ing), there’s plenty for you to do in Oakland this week. You might have heard that this Friday, September 16th is PARK(ing) Day, “an annual, one-day, global event where artists, activists, and citizens independently but simultaneously temporarily transform metered parking spots into “PARK(ing)” spaces: temporary public parks.” Oaklanders have participated in PARK(ing) day for the past several years, and I’ve heard about some awesome plans for this year.

PARK(ing) Day is all about re-appropriating on-street parking, but off-street parking is also important to our city. On Thursday night the City is holding a workshop on off-street parking. From the email:

Take part in Bike to Work Day this Thursday

Tomorrow, May 12th is Oakland’s annual Bike to Work Day, and even though I don’t bike to work (actually, I don’t bike at all in Oakland), I’m very excited about it. But I have a terrible confession to make – I’ve never taken part in any Bike to Work Day festivities. One year I was working, another year there was an Oakland Airport Connector hearing, and one year there was a conflicting event at night.

This year I’m ending that streak though and will be volunteering in the morning for the raffle at Frank Ogawa Plaza at 14th and Broadway. You should stop by and visit me, as we’ll be raffling off some awesome prizes! Here’s some of what will be going on in the Plaza:

Join us for Jane’s Crawl this Saturday to celebrate the ideas of Jane Jacobs

Every year, in cities throughout the world, organizations host Jane’s Walks to honor the ideas of writer Jane Jacobs. The City of Oakland will be hosting a Jane’s Walk, as it usually does, but there’s also something a bit different going on this year. Walk Oakland Bike Oakland (WOBO) is hosting a Jane’s Crawl.

At the A Better Broadway event last month, Ruth Miller, Karen Smulevitz and I were all chatting. I had just been talking to Ron Bishop about a bicycle ride he was hosting and lamented to them that there were so many awesome events planned for bicyclists, but not so many for walking enthusiasts. I said we should have a walking pub crawl some time. And that sparked an excellent idea from Ruth Miller of WOBO – why not host a pub crawl to coincide with Jane’s Walk?

So this Saturday, we’re hosting the first Jane’s Crawl, where we’ll be walking from downtown to North Oakland, visiting some of the best bars along Telegraph to enjoy drinks, food, and discussions about Jane’s ideas.

Blogs worth reading from Oakland organizations

I was so excited last week to find out that TransForm had started a blog, and it got me thinking about the other great Oakland based organizations that have blogs. I link to some of them in my blogroll but felt it was worth a post to spread the word about these great blogs:

TransForm – TransForming the Bay Area: The blog is new so it’s hard to know the scope, but judging by its name and TransForm’s mission, it is likely to cover transportation and land use issues in the Bay Area.

Ella Baker Center – Ella’s Voice: Ella’s Voice covers a wide range of issues that the Ella Baker Center works on – the environment, criminal justice, civil rights, and much more. I’ve been following the blog for a while and have enjoyed the mix of story telling, action alerts, and policy updates.

Come play in the streets at Oaklavia this Sunday

I mentioned Oaklavia in my events listing yesterday, but I thought it deserved a post of its own, since it’s shaping up to be a pretty incredible event.

You might have guessed by now that I love it when streets are closed down to cars for pretty much any reason. I love walking down the middle of Telegraph, Broadway, or any main thoroughfare during street fairs and other events. But during those events, there’s usually a lot of stuff in the street – music stages, vendors, tables, and more. And because they’re typically concentrated on a couple of blocks, they’re crowded, so it’s not easy to walk through quickly and it’s even harder to bike.

Oaklavia – a project of Walk Oakland Bike Oakland – will finally provide an opportunity for Oaklanders to just enjoy the street and the surroundings in Uptown, Downtown, and Old Oakland. You can stroll through slowly, chatting with people along the way and snapping photos of the gorgeous architecture along the route, or you can speed by on your bike, all the time not worrying about cars.

Even though Oaklavia is centered around enjoying and appreciating the bicyclist and pedestrian experience, there will be plenty of activities along the way as well. There will be dance and martial arts classes, music performances, art viewing, plenty of food, and of course bike safety and bike repair classes. You can find the full listing of activities and a detailed route map in this large PDF or in the pull out ad in the East Bay Express tomorrow.

So whatever your plans are this Sunday, take at least an hour between 10am-2pm to play in the streets at Oaklavia.

May 24-30 Oakland Political & Community Events

Tuesday, May 25th – High Hopes for Cannabis Reform

Join the Control & Tax Cannabis 2010 campaign on the lovely back patio of A Cote, and meet Richard Lee, founder of Oaksterdam University and the force behind the campaign. Delicious hors d’oeuvre, wine, and cocktails will be served, and there will be fun door prizes and a raffle. Tickets are $99, with all proceeds benefiting the Tax Cannabis 2010 campaign. The event goes from 6-8pm at A Cote, 5478 College Avenue. Buy tickets online or RSVP on Facebook.

Wednesday, May 26th – AC Transit Public Hearings on Further Service Reductions

AC Transit will sadly be making further service reductions, and Wednesday is the day to tell the Board what lines you can’t live without or to share with them that magical solution you’ve thought of to save the system. The hearings will be held at 2pm and 6pm in the 2nd Floor Board Room, 1600 Franklin Street. You can see the proposed service reductions on AC Transit’s website.

Wednesday, May 26th – Phonebank for Victoria Kolakowski for Judge

Vicky’s campaign for Superior Court Judge continues to gain momentum. Last week she was endorsed by the San Francisco Bay Guardian and was featured in an East Bay Express article. We need to build on the momentum and attention that this race is receiving during the final push to the election on June 8. On Wednesday, May 26 please help Vicky make history by volunteering for her phone bank at 1904 Franklin St., Ste. 609 Oakland, CA 94612, from 6pm to 9pm. RSVP on Facebook or call Andre Charles for further information at (310) 775-0549.

Thursday, May 27th – Walk Oakland Bike Oakland Meeting

The next WOBO Meeting is Thursday, May 27th. WOBO will be slapping address labels on a couple thousand postcards to announce Oakland’s sweetest Car-free Street Party – Oaklavía, June 27th. WOBO could use your help with the mailing, and in exchange for your assistance you’ll get undying gratitude and free snacks! The meeting starts at 6:30pm and will be held at WOBO HQ (436 14th Street) – 2nd floor conference room. For more info, visit WOBO’s website.

Friday, May 28th – 8th Annual Small Business Symposium

The Small Business Symposium is an annual event composed of workshops and panels to inform small business owners and those considering starting a business.  Workshop subjects are focused on what you need to develop a small business, get funds, have a business plan, advertise, use computers, get government contracts, file taxes, do your accounting, and so on. Attend the Restaurant Bootcamp or a Video Production workshop. Learn about Urban Farming or the Green Certification programs. Take a course in Marketing, Finance, or QuickBooks. The symposium takes place from 8am-5pm at the Oakland Marriott City Center located at 1001 Broadway in downtown Oakland. The symposium is free but advance registration is required for all workshops. Each year the symposium is booked to maximum capacity. This is event is presented by the Office of Councilmember Larry Reid and the City of Oakland’s Community and Economic Development Agency.

Saturday, May 29th – Connecting Maya Culture and Astronomy at Chabot

The other day I was talking to V Smoothe about how we both have really want to see Tales of the Maya Skies at Chabot Space and Science Center, but much with other shows that run seemingly forever, we keep putting it off. If you’ve been delaying, Saturday is the time to see it and experience a full day of excitement highlighting the cultural relationship of the Maya with astronomy. Come experience the flavor of the Maya with hands-on activities, performances from Los Angeles-based group Casa de la Cultura Maya, food, music and much more. Tales of the Maya Skies will run all day in English, Spanish, and Mayan. If I wasn’t going out of town this weekend on a much-needed vacation, this is definitely how I’d be spending my Saturday. The festivities run from 10am-6pm, with the last showing of Tales of the Maya Skies at 9:15pm at Chabot Space and Science Center, 10000 Skyline Blvd. See the full day’s schedule and purchase advance tickets on Chabot’s website.

May 17-23 Oakland Political & Community Events

Monday, May 17th – Citywide Zoning Update Community Workshop (Central Oakland)

Three large community workshops are scheduled to give you a chance to learn about and comment on the proposed commercial and residential zoning text and maps.  In order to present the information in a manageable way, the city has been divided into three geographic areas. This workshop will focus on proposed Zoning changes to Central Oakland. The workshop will be held at the Fruitvale/San Antonio Senior Center, 3301 E. 12th Street, 2nd floor from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. For more info, visit the zoning update website.

Tuesday, May 18th – Oakland City Council Meeting

At this week’s meeting, the Council will be discussing a loan to Merritt Bakery, billboards, the City’s pension liabilities, and more. 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 6:30pm in the Council Chambers in City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza.

Thursday, May 20th – 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 BPAC will be meeting from 5:30-7:30pm in Hearing Room 4 of City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza.

Thursday, May 20th – Oakland Food Policy Council Meeting

The mission of the Oakland Food Policy Council (OFPC) is to establish an equitable and sustainable food system in Oakland, California. OFPC will be going over the first round of ideas on concrete, attainable first steps toward achieving each of OFPC’s policy priorities for this year. The invited speaker this month is Tuere Anderson of Youth Radio. Should be a great conversation! The meeting will be held from 5:00 – 7:30 pm at Bay Localize conference room, 436 14th Street, 2nd floor. Find out more about OFPC at their website.

Friday, May 21st – People’s Grocery Community Open House

People’s Grocery is a community-based organization in West Oakland that develops creative solutions to the health problems in our community that stem from a lack of access to and knowledge about healthy, fresh foods. Join People’s Grocery for a late afternoon and early evening of fun, food, community, music, and more. People’s Grocery is celebrating our new office, welcoming neighbors and friends, and sharing information about our programs.  We’d love to see you.  Stop by for a while or stay for the whole party! There will be delicious food from their programs, drinks from Honest Tea, music from the Western Whistleblowers, and a great opportunity for the community to meet the staff and each other. The open house runs from 4:00 PM – 7:00 PM at 909 7th Street. Find more info at the People’s Grocery website.

Saturday, May 22nd – Westlake Community Paint Day

Please come to the first City Canvas Community Paint Day at Westlake! Join City Canvas, a new East Bay arts organization, for painting, food, and drinks in the parking lot between Westlake Middle School and First Congregational Church on Harrison. We’ll be painting murals designed by Oakland artist David Stern-Gottfried in collaboration with eighth-grade students at Westlake Middle School. In June, these murals will be on display for First Friday (location TBD, so stay tuned!) and then installed on traffic signal boxes throughout the Westlake/Uptown area. Thanks to Westlake Middle School, Open Circle, the City of Oakland Public Art Program, Benjamin Moore Paints, and Whole Foods Oakland for their support of this project. This event takes place from 10 am to 1 pm at First Congregational/Westlake Parking Lot (entrance at light on Harrison across from Whole Foods). Find more info on the City Canvas website.

Saturday, May 22nd – WOBO Bike to the Movies Night

That’s right. It’s about time WOBO put one of these things together. And have we got a good lineup for you pedal pushers to peep! We’ll be screening Quicksilver, starring Kevin Bacon & Laurence Fishburne, and that’s not all. We’ll also be showing The Scraper Bike King, starring Oakland’s own Baby Champ. Yeah, we thought you’d like that. Oh, and did we mention this was all going down at Linden Street Brewery? Be there – and tell yo’ friends! The movies run from 7-11pm at Linden Street Brewery (95 Linden St, Suite 7/8). Free admission.

April 5-11 Oakland Political & Community Events

Monday, April 5 – Social Networking Made Easy

Do you realize you need to know about Social Networking, but get overwhelmed when you try to figure it out?  Help is on the horizon!  Dave Casuto, Director of Senior Surf, is an expert at explanations that are easy to understand!  In addition he brings a great handout so you can go over the material again later!  Dave will cover Facebook, MySpace, Twitter, Linked In and more; plus he will show you how to create your own blog!  Come and bring lots of friends!This event takes place from 6:00-7:30pm at Buttercup Grill, 229 Broadway at 3rd Street. The event is sponsored by the National Women’s Political Caucus (NWPC).

Monday & Tuesday, April 5th & 6th – BART Community Meetings

BART is holding community meetings throughout the Bay Area this month. From BART’s website: “These series of community meetings will target minority and low-income communities along with those who have limited English skills.  The purpose is to ask these typically underrepresented communities the most effective ways BART should reach out to them so agency officials have a better understanding of their needs before making major transportation decisions.” You can probably imagine that I’m skeptical about this exercise since no major changes have been made at BART and this appears to be a way for them to meet Title VI obligations without making these changes. But who knows, maybe these meetings will make a difference, and at the least, it’s important to show up to express concerns about this process and BART in general.

Monday from 6:30pm-8:00pm at Mandela Gateway, 1350 7th Street, across from West Oakland BART.
Tuesday from 5:30 pm – 7:00 pm at the San Antonio Neighborhood Community Center, 2325 East 12th Street, near Fruitvale BART.

Find more info on BART’s website.

Wednesday, April 7th – Public Ethics Commission Meeting

This week’s Public Ethics Commission meeting should be interesting and contentious. Among other items, they’ll be discussing Ignacio De La Fuente’s proposal to raise contribution limits for city elections, a report on City Council pay, and a new complaint by Marleen Sacks. The meeting will be held at 6:30pm in the Council Chambers, City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza. You can read the meeting agenda here.

Thursday, April 8th – Mix It Up East Bay

Join us for a monthly happy hour bringing together young activists, organizers and leaders in the East Bay. Esperanza Tervalon-Daumont, the Executive Director of Oakland Rising will be the featured speaker of the night. Oakland Rising is a formation of four community-based organizations that have come together to build a progressive city-wide electoral base that forwards an agenda which addresses the needs and issues of low-income communities of color in Oakland. Free Snacks! Drink specials ’til 7 pm! Speaking program begins at 7 pm. 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. For more info and to RSVP, visit the event’s Facebook page.

Thursday, April 8th – Rockridge NCPC Town Hall Meeting with Chief Batts

The Rockridge Community Planning Council, the Rockridge NCPC, and the Oakland Yellowjackets will jointly meet to offer a special guest speaker, Chief Anthony Batts of the Oakland Police Department.  Chief Batts will be speaking and taking questions from the audience for the first hour of the meeting. We encourage you to come to the meeting to share your questions and concerns regarding crime and public safety in Rockridge with the Chief. This event will take place from 7-9pm at Rockridge Branch Library, 5366 College Avenue at Manila, Community Room (upstairs).

Thursday-Sunday, April 8th-11th – Bookmark Bookstore’s Spring Sale

The Bookmark Bookstore, operated by the Friends of the Oakland Public Library, will have its 30% off spring sale April this week. All proceeds benefit the Oakland Public Library. Sale pricing is offered to the public from Thursday, April 8 through Sunday, April 11, 10:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. daily.  The Bookmark is located at 721 Washington St in Old Oakland. When you shop the Bookmark, you are supporting the Oakland Public Library! Call 510-444-0473 for more information, or visit the Friends online.

Friday, April 9th – Farley’s Non-Profit of the Month Happy Hour Benefiting WOBO

Farley’s monthly “Non-Profit of the Month” Happy Hour celebrates/benefits WOBO this month! Join us at Farley’s East to eat, drink and be merry. Superstars Chris & Amy at Farley’s are not only donating proceeds from the Happy Hour to WOBO, but they’re going to put their culinary magic to work for *you* and provide free appetizers. If there’s one thing that people can agree on, it’s free, tasty food, and since it will be there, so should you! No dress code, no cover, just bring a good attitude and an appetite/thirst. For conversation if not for food and drink. The happy hour takes place from 5-9pm at Farley’s East, 33 Grand Avenue. Please RSVP on Facebook so WOBO can get a head count to prepare for food for the evening.

Friday, April 10th – 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.

March 22-28 Oakland Political & Community Events

Monday, March 22nd – League of Women Voters Forum: 50/50 by 2020: Pipe Dream or Reality?

Women comprise 50% of the U.S. population but only 17% of the U.S. Congress. Can women become half of the Congress by the time the 19th Amendment turns 100? New networks are taking on the task of recruiting, training, and helping elect women candidates across the country. Leading off the discussion on how they do it will be campaign and community organizer Barbara Ellis of AJE Partners.This forum will be held from 6:30 – 8:00 PM at Redwood Heights Community Center, 3883 Aliso Avenue (Off Redwood Road below Highway 13).

Tuesday, March 23rd – AC Transit Service Change Information Table

As you may already know, on Sunday, March 28, AC Transit will be implementing major service changes that affect almost every bus line in its service area. To give you an opportunity to pick up helpful materials about the changes and to ask questions, AC Transit has set up a series of Community Information Tables at public locations from Richmond to Fremont. This Tuesday, there will be an information table set up from 4-7pm at the Cesar Chavez Branch Library, 3301 E. 12th St. It’s accessible by lines 1, 1R, 14, 19, 47, 50, 53, 54, 62, and 63.

Wednesday-Saturday, March 24th-27th – Skyline High Performing Arts Presents Joseph and the Technicolor Dreamcoat

From Jean Quan’s newsletter: “This blockbuster musical by the team of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice is a humorous and splashy retelling of the rags-to-riches tale of Joseph and his coat of many colors. The eight performances will feature a large, talented cast which includes student vocalists from Bret Harte and Montera middle schools. At 7:30 pm on March 24-27 & April 1-3, with a Saturday matinee at 2 pm on March 27. Tickets: $10 general, $8 for children under 12 & seniors over 65. Farnsworth Theater at Skyline High School, 12250 Skyline Blvd., Oakland. Contact skylineseats@yahoo.com for more information.”

Thursday, March 25th – LAMMPS Community Based Transportation Plan Meeting

“This Thursday, there will be a community meeting for LAMMPS – Laurel access to Mills, Maxwell Park & Seminary Ave. As MacArthur Blvd. curves between Seminary and High Street, there are challenges to walking, riding, crossing or otherwise attempting to use the sidewalks, paths and crosswalks. The City of Oakland is launching a planning effort to make travel along this corridor easier, safer and inviting among the nearby neighborhoods. Come learn about this important community planning project and share your concerns and visions!” This meeting will be held from 7-9pm at The Gathering Hall, Mills College School of Business, 5000 MacArthur Blvd. For more info, visit the LAMMPS website.

Thursday, March 25th – Walk Oakland Bike Oakland Meeting

“To inject a little more fun into this month’s WOBO meeting, we’ve decided to hold it at Pacific Coast Brewery. Join us to socialize and sign up for one of our Bike to Work Day volunteer opportunities. We’ll supply the finger food! WOBO will be organizing three energizer stations and participating in the Pancake Breakfast at City Hall for Bike to Work Day on May 13, 2010 – help us make it a huge success! Volunteer needs include: stuffing BTWD bags, putting up posters, participating in pedal pools with City Council members, and recruiting new WOBO members at our energizer stations. See you Thursday!” The meeting will be held at Pacific Coast Brewery, 906 Washington Street, Oakland from 6:30-8pm.
For more info, visit WOBO’s website.

Thursday, March 25th – OaklandSeen Launch Party

Join OaklandSeen as it unveils its new website, OaklandSeen.com. There will be music by DJ fflood, no cover, and a cash bar. The party will be held from 6-9pm at Somar, 1727 Telegraph Avenue. For more info and to RSVP, see the Facebook event.

Friday-Saturday, March 26th-27th – Destiny Arts Youth Performance Company production of Asylum

The internationally regarded model of youth arts and violence prevention organizations, Destiny Arts Center in Oakland, marks the beginning of its third decade as a creative community epicenter with the world premiere of Asylum, a movement/theater work created by the young artists of the Destiny Arts Youth Performance Company. Created in collaboration with Artistic Directors Sarah Crowell and Rashidi Omari and acclaimed Bay Area performing arts professionals, the full-length work features hip-hop dance and music, theater, spoken word, modern dance, aerial dance, video backdrop art, rap and a cast of over 40 talented youth ages 7 to 18. Asylum frames the current state of world affairs as a circus turned inside out, where heroes are questionable and villains run free. It is a powerful glimpse into how young Americans see  the state of the world and what can be done about it. Shows start at 7:30pm on Friday and Saturday, with an additional 2pm show on Saturday at Laney College Theater, 900 Fallon St, Oakland. For more info and to buy tickets, visit the Destiny Arts website.

Saturday-Sunday, March 27th-28th: Oakland Running Festival

Experience all the sights and sounds that Oakland has to offer at the new Oakland Running Festival featuring Oakland’s first marathon in 25 years! Runners will begin on Broadway, race along Piedmont and College Avenues, pass by beautiful Lake Temescal and then tackle the hills of Montclair. After a breathtaking view of the Cities by the Bay, runners will journey through the vibrant neighborhoods of Dimond, Fruitvale, Chinatown and historic Jack London Square. Then it’s a final lap around sparkling Lake Merritt and a sprint to the finish at City Hall. If you’re not a serious runner, there will still be plenty for you to enjoy at the festival, including live music and a kid’s fun run. Find much more information at the festival’s website.

March 1-7 Oakland Political & Community Events

Monday, March 1st – Public Ethics Commission Meeting

Tonight, the PEC will be hearing complaints about mayoral candidates Don Perata and Jean Quan. The complaint about Perata stems from an Oakland Police Officers Association endorsement made for him at a city-funded event, while the complaint against Quan centers around her use of her email list and city website for transmitting campaign information. The Perata complaint was held over last month, and the Quan complaint was heard but brought back for further discussion. The meeting will be held at 6:30pm in Hearing Room 1, City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza. You can read the meeting agenda here. I tweeted the last PEC meeting and should be tweeting tonight’s meeting as well.

Tuesday, March 2nd – Oakland City Council Meeting

At this week’s meeting, the Council will continue its budget discussions and hopefully make some more progress. They’ll also be discussing instant runoff voting implementation, the 12th Street construction project (see V Smoothe’s blog post for background on why this is controversial), amending the times of Council meetings to run from 5:30pm-midnight, applying for a broadband grant, and misuse of disabled parking placards. 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 in the Council Chambers in City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza.

Wednesday, March 3rd – Alameda County Democratic Central Committee Meeting

Every month, the Central Committee meets to discuss party business and to make plans for the future of the Democratic Party in Alameda County. This month, we’ll be discussing the June endorsement process and the California Democratic Party convention. If you’re interested in getting involved with the Democratic Party, this is a great way to do so. The meeting will be held from 7-9pm in the San Leandro Main Library, Dave Karp Room, 300 Estudillo Ave., San Leandro, CA 94577.

Thursday, March 4th – Special Public Ethics Commission Meeting

There are not one, but two PEC meetings this week, and the second one should be just as contentious as the first. The PEC will be discussing a proposal to raise the candidate contribution limit from $700 and raising expenditure limits, which vary by office. The City Attorney has recommended doubling contribution and expenditure limits because there is now only one long election, instead of two shorter elections (in the past, a person could donate the maximum for both the June and November elections). There are a range of opinions on this proposal from City Councilmembers, so it should be interesting to see what the PEC decides. The meeting will be held at 6:30pm in Hearing Room 1, City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza. You can read the meeting agenda here.

Thursday, March 4th – Residential Rezoning in the Grand Lake – A Town Hall Meeting Hosted by Grand Lake Neighbors Community Group

The Grand Lake Neighbors (GLN) community group will host a town hall meeting at Barnett Hall behind Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church, 3534 Lakeshore Ave, starting at 7:00 pm on Thursday, March 4, 2010. The topic will be residential zoning concepts for the Grand Lake neighborhood that are being proposed as part of the city-wide zoning update. Planners from the City’s Planning and Zoning Department will be available to answer questions. This meeting will focus primarily on residential zoning update proposals. A well-attended meeting was held by GLN in December which focused on commercial zoning proposals and there may be a brief time for follow-up questions regarding commercial zoning, but it will not be the focus of this meeting. All property owners and residents are invited and encouraged to participate.

Friday, March 5th – Art Murmur

Check out the monthly evening of art gallery shows and entertainment in Uptown. Read my review of the art murmur here. The Art Murmur runs from 6-10pm but individual art gallery times vary. The galleries are mostly located in Uptown, between Broadway and Telegraph, and Grand and 29th. Visit the Murmur’s website for more info.

Saturday, March 6th – Oakland Kidical Mass

An opportunity to get to know families who get around Oakland by pedal power. Bring the kids on the trail-a-bike, the trailer, the Xtracycle, on their own bikes or however you happen to make it work. No kids? No problem! Come out and share the joy of a casual social ride. We’ll hopefully spend a few minutes talking about the future of Oakland Kidical Mass, so please be ready to share ideas for future rides. Rides normally meet up at 10 am and begin at 11 am. Destination is Union Point Park. Questions contact Mark@walkoaklandbikeoakland.org.

Saturday, March 6th – Greening Oakland Homes Fair

This educational fair will feature exhibitors with solutions to help you save energy, water, and natural resources. It will include presentations on the benefits provided by various types of retrofits and also offer information on financial aid and programs that will save you money. This fair takes place from 11 am-3 pm, at Montclair Women’s Cultural Arts Club, 1650 Mountain Blvd. Learn more at Greening Oakland Homes.

Sunday, March 7th – Women of WOBO: International Women of Mystery Ride

The next Women of WOBO (WOW) ride is in honor of International Women’s Day. Join us to tour around San Leandro Bay, mostly following bicycle paths that are part of the Bay Trail. And the “International Mystery” part means you should bring your favorite international snack to share! Depending on the weather, we’ll stop and share on the edge of the Bay, or somewhere more protected. Any and all female-identified people are invited to participate. Please RSVP to shannon@walkoaklandbikeoakland.org by Wednesday, March 3rd with your name, email, and phone number in case there are any last-minute updates. All participants must sign a waiver and wear a helmet – no exceptions! The ride will take place from 10am-1pm, and starts and ends at Fruitvale BART station (by the bike racks). Approximately 10 miles and pretty darn flat. See the route map (subject to change).

Sunday, March 7th – NWPC-AN Susan B. Anthony Celebration

The National Women’s Political Caucus, Alameda North will be hosting their Susan B. Anthony Celebration, honoring Susan Muranishi, Alameda County Administrator; Nancy O’Malley, Alameda County District Attorney; and Nancy Nadel, Oakland City Councilmember. Drink wine, eat hors d’oeuvres, and participate in a silent auction. This event will be held from 3-5pm at the Montclair Women’s Cultural Arts Center, 1630 Mountain Blvd, in Oakland.  Tickets are $50 and benefit the NWPC-AN PAC.