Council rejects one development proposal, while another remains undecided.

By Ken Epstein

The fight to save Geoffrey’s Inner Circle, a longtime entertainment venue and cultural institution at 410 14^th St. and an anchor of the Black Arts Movement and Business District in downtown Oakland, has finally reached the Oakland City Council after working its way through the city’s planning process for several years.

The Planning Commission had approved two alternative development proposals submitted for the same site by San Francisco-based developer Tidewater Corporation, one for an apartment tower and another for a residential tower.

At the Council meeting Tuesday, following hours of debate and many speakers — most of whom were strongly in favor of Geoffrey’s and its owner Geoffrey Pete and opposed Tidewater’s proposals — council members voted unanimously to uphold Geoffrey’s first challenge, rejecting the proposal to allow the developer to build an office tower at the site of a parking lot next to Geoffrey’s historic club.

Ultimately, the vote to deny Tidewater’s application won 6-0, with two council members absent. Voting against the company’s proposal were Dan Kalb, Nikki Bas, Rebecca Kaplan, Carroll Fife, Noel Gallo, and Kevin Jenkins. Janani Ramachandran and Treva Reid were excused.

However, the second vote, whether to approve the proposal to build a residential tower, was a more contentious decision for council members. It was argued that state law requires them to pass nearly all residential construction or face severe penalties that include loss of funding for affordable housing.

A motion proposed by Councilmember Fife to approve the Tidewater development, along with many amendments designed to safeguard Geoffrey’s building and business, failed to pass. Voting in favor were Kalb, Kaplan, Bas and Fife. Voting against was Councilmember Gallo, while Councilmember Jenkins abstained.

The city attorney’s office ruled that there was in effect a tie vote, four who voted in favor and four opposed, which included the “no” vote, the abstention, plus the two absences. Therefore, according to the attorney, Mayor Sheng Thao was eligible but not required to break the tie at the next council meeting.

Tina Muriel, speaking on behalf of Geoffrey’s, presented a series of flaws in Tidewater’s proposal for the development. She explained that Geoffrey’s is identified as a national historic resource, with a designation similar to Coit Tower and the Painted Ladies in San Francisco. The city is supposed to protect and preserve such historic resources, which Oakland has not done.  She also demonstrated that part of Tidewater’s proposal would require making alterations to Geoffrey’s building, which he has not agreed to do.

Speaking to the council, Nina Moore, a third-generation owner of Everett and Jones Barbecue, emphasized that Geoffrey’s Inner Circle, with 30 years in Oakland, and Everett & Jones, with 50 years, are part of the historic legacy of African American institutions that are still holding on in the city.

“When Geoffrey got that area (in downtown Oakland), nobody wanted to be over there. And now it’s up and its popping, the gentrification wants to come. They always want to be there and take from us, rather than supporting us.”

Based on her experiences as a businesswoman, she said she can foresee problems with the affluent neighbors who would move next to Geoffrey’s, and their complaints would not be limited to noise issues.

Neighbors would be “discriminating (against) the way patrons look, writing letters to the City Council,” she said. “It is so hard for Black people to build up something.”

Kenneth Session of Session Real Estate, in business for 29 years and past president of the California Association of Real Estate Brokers, said that based on his decades of real estate experience, “I oppose this building. I know that is not good for our community.”

Prominent Oakland businessman Ray Bobbitt said, “In 2020, (people) talked a lot about economic equality and social justice, (but) that narrative is gone; now we’re back to business as usual.”

He said that Geoffrey has been an economic mainstay in the community. He has provided countless college scholarships and opened his doors to hold wedding receptions, so low-income African American families, as well as Latinos and other people of color, can host their celebrations free of charge.

“(However), gentrification is about more than economics. This is about preservation of culture and heritage,” Bobbitt added, pointing out that Geoffrey has always given back to the community.

“Oakland’s new generation of African American businessmen were all mentored by Geoffrey Pete, every single one of us,” Bobbitt said.

Kitty Kelly Epstein, professor of education and urban studies, called for dramatic reforms in the city’s planning department and Planning Commission. “They have treated Geoffrey and his business in a deplorable fashion.”

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