Bay Area
City Council Considers Parking Meters at Lake Merritt for ‘Safety,’ Black Residents Cry Foul
Lake Merritt has long been a site of contention between nearby residents and lake visitors. The lake is a public park, but nearby residents have often sought to curtail activity at the lake that they have found disruptive. During the pandemic, increasing numbers of people came to the lake to socialize. Street vendors also set up shop in larger numbers along Lakeshore Avenue, and parties and events, along with a perceived increase in crime and littering, caused nearby residents to complain about the impact on their quality of life, according to Oaklandside.
By Brandon Patterson
Oakland City Council will consider a proposal this month to install parking meters along several streets near Lake Merritt, a proposal spurred by years of complaints from Lake residents about crowds, noise and littering near the Lake, according to Oaklandside, but that some Black Oaklanders have called out as intended to keep Black people away.
The City Council will consider the proposal later this month after twice postponing a vote, which was originally slated for April. The proposal would install parking meters on most streets on the direct edge of the lake, setting violators up for enforcement via ticketing and towing. Currently, parking is free for up to 3 hours at a time around the lake. The city’s Department of Transportation recommended the changes, identifying the meters as a way to reduce traffic around the lake and to increase funding for maintenance of the city’s parks. According to the city, the meters would generate about $1.5 million in revenue in the first year and about $1.7 million annually thereafter.
But some Black residents see the proposal as a tactic to keep Black people away from the lake. “You are working hard to make sure Black people do not go to that lake,” Oakland resident Assata Olugbala said at a Public Works Committee hearing in March. Black Oakland residents disproportionately live in West and East Oakland—much further from the lake than many of the city’s white residents—and so are more likely to have to drive to get to the lake and would be disproportionately impacted by the parking changes. Another resident said she worried about the impact the meters would have on Black vendors.
Lake Merritt has long been a site of contention between nearby residents and lake visitors. The lake is a public park, but nearby residents have often sought to curtail activity at the lake that they have found disruptive. During the pandemic, increasing numbers of people came to the lake to socialize. Street vendors also set up shop in larger numbers along Lakeshore Avenue, and parties and events, along with a perceived increase in crime and littering, caused nearby residents to complain about the impact on their quality of life, according to Oaklandside.
But in May, the Oakland Department of Transportation released a survey of about 2,500 Lake Merritt visitors that showed nearly 80% did not support the proposal. Also in May, the city’s Parks and Recreation Advisory Committee recommended amendments to the proposal to address residents’ concerns, including making the proposal a one-year pilot program and collecting data on whether the meters actually reduce congestion and lower crime, and what impact they have on Black and Brown attendance at the lake.
City Councilmember Carroll Fife, who represents the west side of Lake Merritt, told Oaklandside she was uncomfortable with the proposal last month. “I would never be comfortable if 70% of a population is moving in opposition to something that the council is proposing,” she told the news outlet.
Activism
Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 2024
The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of April 24 – 30, 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.
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.
Bay Area
State Controller Malia Cohen Keynote Speaker at S.F. Wealth Conference
California State Controller Malia Cohen delivered the keynote speech to over 50 business women at the Black Wealth Brunch held on March 28 at the War Memorial and Performing Arts Center at 301 Van Ness Ave. in San Francisco. The Enterprising Women Networking SF Chapter of the American Business Women’s Association (ABWA) hosted the Green Room event to launch its platform designed to close the racial wealth gap in Black and Brown communities.
By Carla Thomas
California State Controller Malia Cohen delivered the keynote speech to over 50 business women at the Black Wealth Brunch held on March 28 at the War Memorial and Performing Arts Center at 301 Van Ness Ave. in San Francisco.
The Enterprising Women Networking SF Chapter of the American Business Women’s Association (ABWA) hosted the Green Room event to launch its platform designed to close the racial wealth gap in Black and Brown communities.
“Our goal is to educate Black and Brown families in the masses about financial wellness, wealth building, and how to protect and preserve wealth,” said ABWA San Francisco Chapter President LaRonda Smith.
ABWA’s mission is to bring together businesswomen of diverse occupations and provide opportunities for them to help themselves and others grow personally and professionally through leadership, education, networking support, and national recognition.
“This day is about recognizing influential women, hearing from an accomplished woman as our keynote speaker and allowing women to come together as powerful people,” said ABWA SF Chapter Vice President Velma Landers.
More than 60 attendees dined on the culinary delights of Chef Sharon Lee of The Spot catering, which included a full soul food brunch of skewered shrimp, chicken, blackened salmon, and mac and cheese.
Cohen discussed the many economic disparities women and people of color face. From pay equity to financial literacy, Cohen shared not only statistics, but was excited about a new solution in motion which entailed partnering with Californians for Financial Education.
“I want everyone to reach their full potential,” she said. “Just a few weeks ago in Sacramento, I partnered with an organization, Californians for Financial Education.
“We gathered 990 signatures and submitted it to the [California] Secretary of State to get an initiative on the ballot that guarantees personal finance courses for every public school kid in the state of California.
“Every California student deserves an equal opportunity to learn about filing taxes, interest rates, budgets, and understanding the impact of credit scores. The way we begin to do that is to teach it,” Cohen said.
By equipping students with information, Cohen hopes to close the financial wealth gap, and give everyone an opportunity to reach their full financial potential. “They have to first be equipped with the information and education is the key. Then all we need are opportunities to step into spaces and places of power.”
Cohen went on to share that in her own upbringing, she was not guided on financial principles that could jump start her finances. “Communities of color don’t have the same information and I don’t know about you, but I did not grow up listening to my parents discussing their assets, their investments, and diversifying their portfolio. This is the kind of nomenclature and language we are trying to introduce to our future generations so we can pivot from a life of poverty so we can pivot away and never return to poverty.”
Cohen urged audience members to pass the initiative on the November 2024 ballot.
“When we come together as women, uplift women, and support women, we all win. By networking and learning together, we can continue to build generational wealth,” said Landers. “Passing a powerful initiative will ensure the next generation of California students will be empowered to make more informed financial decisions, decisions that will last them a lifetime.”
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