City Government

Community Members Question Coliseum City

Published

11 years ago

February 9, 2015

A number of community members spoke at a public hearing last week at the Planning Commission, raising concerns about how East Oakland neighborhoods and businesses will be impacted by a city proposal to clear the way for the massive development, called Coliseum City.

This development seems like a “formularic corporate development…this is like an alien space city” dropped into East Oakland, said Nehanda Imara, a community organizer for Communities for a Better Environment (CBE) who lives about a mile from the proposed development.

“It’s a beautiful project, but it doesn’t seem like it includes the people who live on the outside,” she said. “We’d like some of the benefits surrounding the project,” including jobs, better air quality and affordable housing.

The development project has the potential to go in different directions, Imara said. “It could be connected to the community, or it could be disconnected from the community.”

The city’s proposal, contained in the Coliseum Area Specific Plan and several volumes of documents in an Environmental Impact Report, is designed to establish new land use and zoning regulations that will guide development in the area around the Oakland Coliseum and the Oakland International Airport for the next 25 years.

The draft plan was released on Aug. 28 and the final plan was released on Jan. 30, developed by city staff and consulting firms over the past few years.

The timeline calls for the specific plan to be discussed at a couple more community meetings and then approved by the Planning Commission and forwarded to the City Council for approval in March or April.

The plan has been kept purposely “flexible”, or indeterminate, because the content of the project ultimately will depend to a large extent on who the developers will be and what they will want to build on the 800 plus acres that include the Coliseum and its parking lots, the Oakland Airport Business Park across the freeway from the Coliseum and the waterfront area along the Bay.

A number of community members complained that public input has been inadequate.

“I attended one of the library meeting to which this document refers. There was no planning done by the community. Staff simply made presentations and answered a few questions,” said Fred Ellis, who represented OaklandWorks Alliance.

“This is unlike the lengthy process which took place in West Oakland,” Ellis continued. “Few East Oakland residents are even aware of these zoning changes or their implications.”

Robert Schwartz, who owns a company at the business park, said he had submitted a letter with his objections to the proposal in October, but city staff never responded.

He said the proposed zoning changes that would allow residential development where the business park is located would cause the market values of the properties to skyrocket, effectively ending the business park.

Local industries and the jobs they produce can only exist if the city is committed to protecting the industrial zoning designation of the area, Schwartz said.

“This is not a good idea. This is the only business park we have (in Oakland),” he said.

Schwartz asked why the city was in such a hurry to pass the plan and is seemingly reluctant to involve community and business people in the planning process. “You’re talking about a 25-year (development) plan, and all of sudden it has to be passed in 25 days,” he said.

Senior citizen Carolyn Holloway said the people she knows are concerned they will be forced to move away.

“They feel they will be displaced. They feel they will have to move to Stockton or Sacramento,” she said.

“We don’t really see many benefits for residents,” she said. “What about sidewalks? Or trees?”

Theola Polk said that she and other senior citizens are feeling that Coliseum City offers nothing to people who live in East Oakland.

“We’d like to know if you’ve forgotten us,” she said. “Have we been overlooked? When will our area get a facelift?”

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Activism

Post Newspaper Invites NNPA to Join Nationwide Probate Reform Initiative

The Post’s Probate Reform Group meets the first Thursday of every month via Zoom and invites the public to attend. The Post is making the initiative national and will submit information from its monthly meeting to the NNPA to educate, advocate, and inform its readers.

Published

9 hours ago

February 10, 2026

Oakland Post

iStock.

By Tanya Dennis

The National Newspaper Publishers Association (NNPA) represents the Black press with over 200 newspapers nationwide.

Last night the Post announced that it is actively recruiting the Black press to inform the public that there is a probate “five-alarm fire” occurring in Black communities and invited every Black newspaper starting from the Birmingham Times in Alabama to the Milwaukee Times Weekly in Wisconsin, to join the Post in our “Year of Action” for probate reform.

Reporter Tanya Dennis says, “The adage that ‘When America catches a cold, Black folks catch the flu” is too true in practice; that’s why we’re engaging the Black Press to not only warn, but educate the Black community regarding the criminal actions we see in probate court: Thousands are losing generational wealth to strangers. It’s a travesty that happens daily.”

Venus Gist, a co-host of the reform group, states, “ Unfortunately, people are their own worst enemy when it comes to speaking with loved ones regarding their demise. It’s an uncomfortable subject that most avoid, but they do so at their peril. The courts rely on dissention between family members, so I encourage not only a will and trust [be created] but also videotape the reading of your documents so you can show you’re of sound mind.”

In better times, drafting a will was enough; then a trust was an added requirement to ‘iron-clad’ documents and to assure easy transference of wealth.

No longer.

As the courts became underfunded in the last 20 years, predatory behavior emerged to the extent that criminality is now occurring at alarming rates with no oversight, with courts isolating the conserved, and, I’ve heard, many times killing conservatees for profit. Plundering the assets of estates until beneficiaries are penniless is also common.”

Post Newspaper Publisher Paul Cobb says, “The simple solution is to avoid probate at all costs. If beneficiaries can’t agree, hire a private mediator and attorney to work things out. The moment you walk into court, you are vulnerable to the whims of the court. Your will and trust mean nothing.”

Zakiya Jendayi, a co-host of the Probate Reform Group and a victim herself, says, “In my case, the will and trust were clear that I am the beneficiary of the estate, but the opposing attorney said I used undue influence to make myself beneficiary. He said that without proof, and the judge upheld the attorney’s baseless assertion. In court, the will and trust is easily discounted.”

The Black press reaches out to 47 million Black Americans with one voice. The power of the press has never been so important as it is now in this national movement to save Black generational wealth from predatory attorneys, guardians and judges.

The next probate reform meeting is on March 5, from 7 – 9 p.m. PST. Zoom Details:
Meeting ID: 825 0367 1750
Passcode: 475480

All are welcome.

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Activism

Community Celebrates Turner Group Construction Company as Collins Drive Becomes Turner Group Drive

The event drew family, friends, and longtime supporters of Turner Group Construction, along with a host of dignitaries. The mood was joyful and warm, filled with hugs, handshakes and belated New Year’s greetings. Guests enjoyed hors d’oeuvres and a festive display of gourmet cupcakes as they conversed about the street sign reveal.

Published

9 hours ago

February 10, 2026

Oakland Post

The Turner Construction group members.

By Carla Thomas

It was a family affair on Friday, Jan. 23, at the corner of Hegenberger Road and Collins Drive in East Oakland as community members, local leaders, and elected officials gathered to celebrate the renaming of Collins Drive to Turner Group Drive. The renaming saluted the Turner Group’s 45-plus years of economic development and community investment.

Special guests included former Alameda County Supervisor Keith Carson, veteran broadcaster Valerie Coleman-Morris, Chevron Senior Public Affairs Representative Andrea Bailey, community leaders Cephus “Uncle Bobby” Johnson and Beatrice “Aunt Bea” Johnson of the Oscar Grant Foundation, and Oakland City Councilmembers Ken Houston, Carroll Fife, and Kevin Jenkins. Members of WEBCORE, the Nor Cal Carpenters Union, the National Association of Minority Contractors (NAMC), Swinerton and Alten construction companies, activists Elaine Brown and David Newton, and many others joined the celebration.

Inside the event tent, an emotional Oakland City Councilmember Ken Houston spoke of his deep connection to the Turner family.

“I grew up on the same street with the Turners,” he said. “When my father passed away, their parents and siblings embraced me like family. This is our city, and it’s an honor to name this street Turner Group Drive because of the love and effort this company and family have given. Many dreams came out of this building. I wouldn’t be where I am today without the Turners.”

Councilmember Kevin Jenkins, whose father once taught the Turner brothers, added, “Len Turner is an amazing person. He’ll help anyone.”

Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee praised the company’s legacy, noting its creation of the Construction Resource Center, which trains and mentors the next generation of builders and developers through partnerships across the region. “This is a great day for Oakland and a profound acknowledgment of the Turner Group’s contribution to our community,” she said.

Fife echoed that sentiment: “This is a day for celebrating Black excellence. The Turner Group has poured into people and the community, showing us what’s possible.”

Among the many family members in attendance was the Turners’ 92-year-old patriarch, whose presence underscored the strength of the family’s legacy.

A touching highlight of the event came when Coleman-Morris was honored for her lasting mentorship of LaTanya Hawkins, now program manager of the Construction Resource Center. In 1979, Hawkins, then a fourth-grader, wrote Coleman-Morris a letter seeking advice. Coleman responded with words of encouragement that inspired Hawkins to pursue her dreams. The two stayed in touch for decades. On stage, they embraced as Coleman reflected on “the power of small acts of kindness to change a life.”

Coleman-Morris also shared reflections on leadership and community spirit, saying, “If we change the way we look at things, the things we see will change.” She then recited the Serenity Prayer, reminding the crowd, “We are a powerful community, we just need to believe it.”

Company leaders Len and Lance Turner closed the ceremony with words of gratitude and humor. Len thanked his mother, wife, family, legal team, and longtime supporters including Carson, Geoffrey Pete, and the late Dorothy King of Everett & Jones Barbecue. He also acknowledged the challenges the company had overcome, saying, “Without all of this support, I wouldn’t be here today.”

Through Turner Group Construction and the Construction Resource Center, the Turners have created new opportunities for underrepresented groups in the construction industry and continue to inspire the next generation of builders.