City Government

Affordable Housing Proposal Moves Ahead at Oak Knoll Development

Published

6 years ago

November 17, 2017

During the debate about the development of housing at Oak Knoll, in the hills of East Oakland, many in the community expressed the importance of including affordable housing in this area as well. Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan has been a long-time advocate for affordable housing and agreed with the expressed concerns, saying it is important to include affordable housing throughout our communities, both to expand the total supply of vitally-needed affordable housing, and to ensure that it is not segregated only into one area, but included throughout Oakland.

During the debate about Oak Knoll, Councilmember Kaplan asked for, and successfully received, an amendment to make it possible to include affordable housing in that area. Councilmembers agreed to Kaplan’s amendment removing a zoning provision that had been included by the administration, which would have prevented the development of affordable housing in the area by zoning all of it exclusively for single-family detached homes, which are hard to provide on an affordable basis.

This week, Councilmembers Kaplan and Larry Reid successfully took the next step to provide affordable housing in the Oak Knoll area, introducing a request at the council’s Rules Committee, which would direct the administration to issue a Request for Proposals for the development of affordable housing on the 5.4-acre parcel of property owned by the City of Oakland, known as the “Barcelona” parcel, at Oak Knoll.

This item was scheduled for the Dec. 5 Community Economic Development (CED) Committee.

“It is vital that we expand development of affordable housing, to reduce displacement and maintain the vibrancy and diversity of our community,” said Kaplan. “Because we need thousands more affordable housing units than we have, we must expand our horizons to make more publicly-owned parcels throughout our community available for affordable housing development.”

She added, “By making the city-owned Barcelona parcel available for affordable housing, we can ensure that Oak Knoll is inclusive of all of our community, and expand affordable housing development throughout Oakland.”

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Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024

Published

3 days ago

April 26, 2024

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Alameda County

DA Pamela Price Stands by Mom Who Lost Son to Gun Violence in Oakland

Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018.

Published

6 days ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones

Publisher’s note: Last week, The Post published a photo showing Alameda County District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones, whose son, Patrick DeMarco Scott, was gunned down by an unknown assailant in 2018. The photo was too small for readers to see where the women were and what they were doing. Here we show Price and Jones as they complete a walk in memory of Scott. For more information and to contribute, please contact Carol Jones at 510-978-5517 at morefoundation.help@gmail.com. Courtesy photo.

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City Government

Vallejo Welcomes Interim City Manager Beverli Marshall

At Tuesday night’s Council meeting, the Vallejo City Council appointed Beverli Marshall as the interim city manager. Her tenure in the City Manager’s Office began today, Wednesday, April 10. Mayor Robert McConnell praised Marshall’s extensive background, noting her “wide breadth of experience in many areas that will assist the City and its citizens in understanding the complexity of the many issues that must be solved” in Vallejo.

Published

7 days ago

April 22, 2024

Oakland Post

Beverli Marshall began her first day with the City on April 10. ICMA image.

Special to The Post

At Tuesday night’s Council meeting, the Vallejo City Council appointed Beverli Marshall as the interim city manager. Her tenure in the City Manager’s Office began today, Wednesday, April 10.

Mayor Robert McConnell praised Marshall’s extensive background, noting her “wide breadth of experience in many areas that will assist the City and its citizens in understanding the complexity of the many issues that must be solved” in Vallejo.

Current City Manager Michael Malone, whose official departure is slated for April 18, expressed his well wishes. “I wish the City of Vallejo and Interim City Manager Marshall all the best in moving forward on the progress we’ve made to improve service to residents.” Malone expressed his hope that the staff and Council will work closely with ICM Marshall to “ensure success and prosperity for the City.”

According to the Vallejo Sun, Malone stepped into the role of interim city manager in 2021 and became permanent in 2022. Previously, Malone served as the city’s water director and decided to retire from city service e at the end of his contract which is April 18.

“I hope the excellent work of City staff will continue for years to come in Vallejo,” he said. “However, recent developments have led me to this decision to announce my retirement.”

When Malone was appointed, Vallejo was awash in scandals involving the housing division and the police department. A third of the city’s jobs went unfilled during most of his tenure, making for a rocky road for getting things done, the Vallejo Sun reported.

At last night’s council meeting, McConnell explained the selection process, highlighting the council’s confidence in achieving positive outcomes through a collaborative effort, and said this afternoon, “The Council is confident that by working closely together, positive results will be obtained.”

While the search for a permanent city manager is ongoing, an announcement is expected in the coming months.

On behalf of the City Council, Mayor McConnell extended gratitude to the staff, citizen groups, and recruitment firm.

“The Council wishes to thank the staff, the citizens’ group, and the recruitment firm for their diligent work and careful consideration for the selection of what is possibly the most important decision a Council can make on behalf of the betterment of our City,” McConnell said.

The Vallejo Sun contributed to this report.