City Government

Re-elect Desley Brooks

Published

11 years ago

October 17, 2014

We recommend the re-election Desley Brooks for the City Council District 6 seat.

She has lived in District 6 for more than 20 years and cares deeply about the quality of life for all the residents.

We encourage residents of that district to vote for her because, on balance, she is the strongest and most productive candidate.

Councilmember Brooks has provided leadership on public safety issues. She successfully got the Oakland Police Department’s Shot Spotter program reactivated and then secured funding for the program’s expansion throughout the flatlands of Oakland.

She won widespread support from residents after she initiated a partnership of OPD and the Oakland Housing Authority Police Department on Shot Spotter — the first such partnership in the country.

She led the council to approve the LED Lighting program, which has improved the quality of 30,000 streetlights across the city.

When the stand-alone police radio system was failing, she made sure OPD moved to the Regional EBRCSA system.

Brooks bumps up against City Hall, usually out of frustration with the bone-chilling red tape and bureaucratic delays, and she often wins and delivers for her constituents.

She is the only council member to successfully apply for and bring 6 Kaboom grants to her District building play structures, skateboard parks, football fields and a pocket park.

When she learned that children were going hungry in her district, she started a monthly food distribution program and hosts concerts and events to build her community.

We believe her fighting spirit is a good thing and has served her district well.

As a hands-on advocate, she has fought for adequate recreational and play spaces for the youth and supported the local businesses.

Her policy initiatives have benefitted the entire city.

She has championed the establishment of the Oakland Community Land Trust that provides permanently affordable housing; she helped to establish the Oakland Individual Development Account (IDA) program, which is a matching savings program for housing, educational and transportation goals of low-income residents.

She also authored the Vacant Property Ordinance and the Non-owner Registry Ordinance.

She wrote the city’s Prompt Payment Ordinance and secured funding for the city’s one-stop contracting software. She advocated for the establishment of the city’s Debarment Program, designed to exclude businesses from consideration for city contracts for a range of offenses and conduct.

When it comes to making sure that the city’s economic development programs benefit minorities and women-owned businesses, her advocacy for Hire Oakland policies has been imitated by her colleagues.

She authored the groundbreaking Oakland Army Base $10 Million Remediation program, which specifically provides Oakland contractors the ability to serve as the Prime Contractor on those remediation contracts.

She should also be reelected because of her work with:

The Seminary Point Development project which will bring a Walgreens and more retail to the city in 2015;

The $4-million Foothill Boulevard streetscape project to bring new sidewalks, streetlights, a plaza, new parking, trees and street furniture to the Foothill corridor;

The $25-million utilities undergrounding project on Macarthur Boulevard; and

The $5-million upgrades to Rainbow Recreation Center on International Boulevard.

Her record of accomplishments proves that she is the hardest working and most energetic councilmember, especially when she led most of the city’s efforts in responding to the foreclosure crisis.

She wrote the legislation that held banks accountable and helped to reduce blight, and generated more than $3 million in fees. She authored the plan that set up the fund for counseling and legal assistance for families threatened with foreclosure.

Councilmember Brooks sponsored the bulky dumpster amnesty program, which allowed participants to dispose of their bulky items for free with no questions asked.

She is endorsed by Senator Loni Hancock, Assemblyman Rob Bonta, A.C. Transit Director Elsa Ortiz, County Supervisor Keith Carson, former Council Members Jane Brunner and Ignacio de la Fuente, Rev. Dr. Harold R. Mayberry of First AME Church and more than 30 other clergy leaders.

She is the only candidate endorsed by city employee unions SEIU 1021, Professional and Technical Engineers Local 21 and International Association of Fire Fighters Local 55.