Alameda County

Alameda County Supervisors Are One Step Closer to Picking a New District Attorney

The seven candidates were selected from a pool of 15 applicants that the Board narrowed down last Thursday.

Published

1 year ago

January 28, 2025

The Alameda County Supervisors interviewed seven finalist candidates to fill the vacant District Attorney spot at a lengthy special meeting.

By Magaly Muñoz

The Alameda County Supervisors interviewed seven finalist candidates to fill the vacant District Attorney spot at a lengthy special meeting Tuesday afternoon. A new DA will be chosen as early as next week and will be sworn in by February. This vacancy arose following the recall of former DA Pamela Price.

The seven candidates were selected from a pool of 15 applicants that the Board narrowed down last Thursday.

Here is a summary of what each candidate said during their presentations:

Elgin Lowe

Lowe is a Senior Deputy DA for Alameda County with almost 30 years of legal experience, and has worked under three DA’s. He said his vision for the department is “fairness, accountability, and trust.” He wants to make sure all cases are valued and that there is equitable access to services. Lowe said he seeks justice in every case and looks to provide transparency for residents of the ongoing DAO (District Attorney’s Office). He also wants to restore the trust that has eroded within the department over the past few years and is committed to do his best to collaborate with the community. Lowe said wants to “ensure the safety of all Alameda County residents.”

Yiben Shen

Shen has over 20 years of legal experience and is the current City Attorney for Alameda. Shen said he also wants to enhance the work done in housing and consumer justice rights. He’s worked on legislation that has benefited low income renters and has focused on minimum wage rights. Shen has also worked on public programs related to prosecution and public rights, police auditing, and environmental enforcement. His vision for the DA’s office includes collaborations with elected officials, law enforcement, and community; creating public trust; having victim focus and support resources; diversion and restorative justice programs; and reducing barriers to reentry.

Jimmie Wilson

Wilson spoke on his personal background growing up in the Bayview Hunters Point neighborhood of San Francisco and living in a “tough neighborhood” like the Bayview allowed him to get a wider outlook on life and crime. As an attorney in the DAO, he says he’s tried some of the most cases out of anyone in the office. He has expertise charging homicide, child assault, and rape cases. His priorities are to make sure the community feels safe and also work towards making change in public safety efforts. Wilson previously ran for Alameda DA in 2022 but lost against ousted DA Pamela Price.

Ursula Jones Dickson

Dickson is an Alameda Superior Court Judge and former Deputy District Attorney. She’s spent 11 years as a judge presiding primarily over juvenile and criminal cases. Priorities for Dickson include continuing the streamlining process for attorneys to be able to make decisions quicker and precise, making sure the department’s budget is balanced, and addressing the divisions in the office. She wants to make sure the current team of attorneys are trained to be DA’s, as many of them allegedly do not have the experience. She also intends to work more with families and victim advocates, and look into cold cases that have been sitting in the system for a while.

LaTricia D. Louis

Louis is Deputy County Counsel for Alameda and former Assistant DA. She said she’s already spoken to members of the community and has heard the concerns over not feeling safe in their own cities. Louis said she wants to address the backlog of cases, address retail theft and the effect on businesses, and sustaining victim outreach services. She acknowledged that most problems cannot be solved within one department and wants to work towards more collaboration across the county. She also wants to create new public programs and improve on the ones that already exist. Louis wants “a system that holds people accountable.”

Annie K Esposito

Esposito is an Assistant DA for Contra Costa and a former attorney for the Alameda County DAO. The vision is simple, according to Esposito, “restore public trust, restore public safety.”

She wants to ensure services are readily available to the public, victims, and victim advocates. She created a new unit that audited the police and sheriff’s departments untested sexual assault kits that resulted in over 1,900 results entered into CODIS, or the Combined DNA Index System – a database of DNA profiles that law enforcement agencies use to help identify criminals, missing people, and suspects. Esposito said transparency will be a major element of her administration if selected.

Venus D Johnson

Johnson is Chief Deputy Attorney to California Attorney General Rob Bonta and also worked under former AG and Vice President Kamala Harris. She worked in Oakland under the Ceasefire initiative that helps to decrease gun violence and homicides. Johnson detailed her extensive accomplishments in ensuring public safety including addressing hate crimes; taking down crime rings throughout the state; developing immigration policies at the local and county level to combat the Trump administration; and seizing 13 million fentanyl pills, with over 374 arrests related to distribution of fentanyl. She wants to work regionally with San Francisco and other municipalities to solve related crimes and continue working with victims and their families.

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Activism

At the event, 16 entities signed the EIP pledge, vowing to take steps to increase public contracting opportunities in their spheres for small and historically underutilized businesses. The pledge signees included Hub International, the Port of San Francisco, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, California High-Speed Rail Authority, the Port of Oakland, Robert Graham of Webcor Builders, Holder Construction, the Weitz Company, Sky Blue Builders, Hornblower, Swinerton, Luster National, Talson Solutions, Center for Community Wealth Building, and the Construction Contractors Alliance.

Published

7 days ago

June 24, 2026

Oakland Post

Toks Omishakin, secretary of the California State Transportation Agency, was one of the speakers at the event. Photo by Shellee Fisher Photography and Design.

By Calvin Naito, Special to The Post

On June 4, a national nonprofit named the Equity in Infrastructure Project (EIP) – which aims to increase public construction contracting opportunities for small and historically underutilized businesses – held a day-long event in downtown San Francisco to rally supporters and build momentum to its cause.

It was attended by more than 100 individuals from public agencies, private firms, and other organizations committed to increasing contracting opportunities with governmental agencies, thereby creating more competition and lowering public costs.

The EIP event was held the Hyatt Regency San Francisco in conjunction with BuildIT, which aims to increase contracting opportunities for LGBT-owned businesses.

At the event, 16 entities signed the EIP pledge, vowing to take steps to increase public contracting opportunities in their spheres for small and historically underutilized businesses.

The pledge signees included Hub International, the Port of San Francisco, the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission, California High-Speed Rail Authority, the Port of Oakland, Robert Graham of Webcor Builders, Holder Construction, the Weitz Company, Sky Blue Builders, Hornblower, Swinerton, Luster National, Talson Solutions, Center for Community Wealth Building, and the Construction Contractors Alliance.

Following the workshop, BuildIT hosted a VIP evening reception honoring EIP, whose principals – Phil Washington, John Procari, and Rick Jacobs – accepted the award.

The event also set in motion the coalition’s efforts to implement recommendations from EIP’s “Procurement for Prosperity: A Playbook.”

The Playbook is a practical guide for public agency leaders and procurement and contracting practitioners to grow the capacity of small and first-time contractors, strengthen competition, and deliver better value for taxpayers.

Toks Omishakin, Secretary of the California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA), a long-time EIP supporter, also told attendees, “This is about commitment. This has been a life’s work. This is a tailwind moment.”

The event’s presenting sponsor was Hub International, one of the largest insurance brokerages in the nation, which was joined by partners Travelers Insurance and the State Compensation Insurance Fund.

After the pledge-signing ceremony, attendees participated in a workshop in which they examined the policies, practices, and programs needed to meet EIP goals, learned from practitioners, and identified next steps toward utilizing the Playbook.

Ingrid Meriwether, formerly of Merriwether & Williams Insurance Services (MWIS) and current president of Hub International’s Aligned Risk Management, MWIS, described the hard-fought lessons she and her MWIS team have learned over the last three decades administering contractor development programs (CDPs) for the City and County of San Francisco, Alameda County, City of Los Angeles, LA Metro, and other municipalities.

The CDPs help small and local construction firms win public infrastructure contracts with these government agencies. The program provides bonding assistance, contract financing, technical support, training, and other services to underrepresented businesses funded by public agencies who seek greater contracting participation with these firms.

Merriwether said programs like these “break down systemic barriers, create greater fairness, and save taxpayers money by enabling more competition. The contractor development programs have, cumulatively, over two decades, helped contractors access over $1 billion in bonding, supporting over $380 million in awarded contracts, and maintaining a loss ratio 250 times lower than the industry average – while saving participating municipalities more than $27 million in contracting costs as a result of enabling more competition.”

Rick Jacobs, EIP co-founder and co-chair urged attendees make plans to meet again in the near future “to continue building on this work, share progress on organizational commitments, and discuss how we can collectively advance the goals of the EIP pledge.”

For more information on the EIP and to access a copy of the Playbook, go online to https://equityininfrastructure.org/

Calvin Naito is communications manager for Equity in Infrastructure Project.

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Alameda County

Ferry Fares to Increase July 1 as Ridership Hits Record Highs

The Oakland and Alameda routes will increase from $4.90 to $5.10, the South San Francisco route will go up from $7.40 to $7.60, and the Vallejo route will increase from $9.90 to $10.

Published

7 days ago

June 24, 2026

Oakland Post

Courtesy photo.

By Mike Aldax, The Richmond Standard

Starting July 1, the standard adult fare for the San Francisco Bay Ferry route between Richmond and San Francisco will increase to $5.20, up from the current $4.90.

Discounted fares for eligible passengers, including youth, seniors, people with disabilities, and Clipper START users, will rise to $2.60 from the current $2.40. Children under 5 will continue to ride for free.

The Oakland and Alameda routes will increase from $4.90 to $5.10, the South San Francisco route will go up from $7.40 to $7.60, and the Vallejo route will increase from $9.90 to $10.

The adjustments are part of a systemwide fare update approved by the agency’s Board of Directors, which is moving away from a flat 3% annual increase to route-specific pricing for the 2027 and 2028 fiscal years.

This fare update arrives as San Francisco Bay Ferry celebrates a historic May, transporting 301,270 passengers. The record-breaking figure represents an 8% increase over May 2025 and marks the third consecutive month of record-setting ridership.

Furthermore, it is the sixth month in a row that passenger numbers have exceeded pre-pandemic levels. Weekend travel has been a primary driver of this growth, with average weekend ridership seeing a 56% increase compared to pre-pandemic trends.

The agency states that the fare adjustments are necessary to ensure the long-term fiscal sustainability of public ferry services. By shifting to route-specific adjustments, the agency aims to offset rising operating costs while maintaining the high levels of service frequency and reliability.

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Activism

NCBW-OBAC Champions Black Women Entrepreneurs at Business en Blaque Expo

Aspiring entrepreneurs, small business owners, and financial professionals gathered for a day of education, networking, and community engagement. Participants attended workshops and panel discussions covering Business Literacy 101, wealth-building strategies, and entrepreneurship fundamentals.

Published

1 week ago

June 24, 2026

Oakland Post

NCBW OBAC President Shari Wooldridge, moderator Jennifer Hammock, Eva Allen of Full Belly Bakery, Samantha Wise of Tip Top Shape, Ashley Harvey of Phoenix AI, Michelle McQueen, owner of Town Fare and Lucy Blue, at the "Business en Blaque” Entrepreneurship Workshop and Small Business Expo at Oakland's Executive Inn & Suites. Photo by Carla Thomas.

By Carla Thomas

The National Coalition of 100 Black Women, Inc., Oakland Bay Area Chapter (NCBW-OBAC) strengthened its commitment to economic empowerment through its 2026 Sisternomics initiative, offering free financial literacy and entrepreneurship resources aimed at advancing financial independence among Black women.

As part of the initiative, the “Business en Blaque” Entrepreneurship Workshop and Small Business Expo was held Saturday, May 23, at the Executive Inn & Suites in Oakland.

Aligned with the national theme “Resilient. Resourceful. Ready.,” the event highlighted NCBW-OBAC’s ongoing efforts to close economic gaps and expand opportunities for Black women.

One featured session, moderated by Jennifer Hammock, included panelists Eva Allen of Full Belly Bakery, Samantha Wise of Tip Top Shape, Ashley Harvey of Phoenix AI, and Michelle McQueen, owner of Town Fare and Lucy Blue. Panelists shared candid insights on their business journeys, including both successes and challenges.

McQueen and Blue emphasized the importance of maintaining clear financial records. “It’s important to know where you stand financially so you can make adjustments when necessary,” she said.

Ashley Harvey of Phoenix AI encouraged entrepreneurs to leverage AI tools such as ChatGPT and Claude to streamline operations and save time. She also stressed the importance of consistency in marketing. “Just put it out there. We’ve got to get over ourselves,” she said, noting that pre-scheduling social media posts can improve efficiency.

Wise echoed that sentiment, highlighting the value of consistent engagement. “I post two to three times a day because people want to be engaged, and your post doesn’t have to be perfect,” she said. She also shared that her faith continues to guide her work and purpose.

Allen spoke to the role of passion and community in entrepreneurship. “Baking is my passion, and it’s great to build community,” she said.

In addition to educational sessions, the Small Business Expo showcased local Black-owned businesses, creating a platform for visibility and support. The event fostered meaningful connections among attendees, speakers, and vendors.

Anita Russell of Working Solutions provided guidance on accessing capital, encouraging entrepreneurs to be prepared and intentional. “Do your homework, know your ‘why,’ and do not marginalize each other,” she said.