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Development of Marriott Hotel Tower in Downtown Oakland Forces Closure of Uncle Wille’s BBQ, Owners Say

The family-owned business, Uncle Willie’s Original BBQ and Fish, located at 614 14th St. in downtown Oakland, has served local clientele for decades but has been forced to close by the “arrogant abuse” of the Oakland Marriott Hotel and co-developer Lew Wolff, who have been building an 18-story tower next to the restaurant, say family members.

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The 18-story development by the Marriott and developer Lew Wolff dwarfs Uncle Willie’s BBQ and Fish, as well as the street view of Uncle Willie’s BBQ and Fish on 14th Street in downtown Oakland. Post file photo.
The 18-story development by the Marriott and developer Lew Wolff dwarfs Uncle Willie’s BBQ and Fish, as well as the street view of Uncle Willie’s BBQ and Fish on 14th Street in downtown Oakland. Post file photo.

By Post Staff

The family-owned business, Uncle Willie’s Original BBQ and Fish, located at 614 14th St. in downtown Oakland, has served local clientele for decades but has been forced to close by the “arrogant abuse” of the Oakland Marriott Hotel and co-developer Lew Wolff, who have been building an 18-story tower next to the restaurant, say family members.

The project, which began building several years ago, will provide 276 new guest rooms across from the Elihu M. Harris State Office Building at 1431 Jefferson St.
Family members have now filed a lawsuit against Wolff and the Marriott, saying that during construction of the building, debris, including dangerous objects and dust, have fallen from the building project into the restaurant’s courtyard eating area, forcing Uncle Willie’s to close.

Originally, family members had supported the development. “We were looking forward to (the development), but they didn’t really give us any consideration,” said a family member. “We were assured that during this development, our business and our property wouldn’t be impacted. That just wasn’t the reality.”
Uncle Willie’s was located in the city’s Black Arts Movement Business District, which was created by the city in 2016 to support and encourage small Black businesses in the downtown area, but the city never implemented the resolution.

Uncle Willie, a Parish, Texas, native, moved to Oakland in 1970 after serving in Air Force during the Vietnam War. He passed his seasoning, smoking meats and homemade BBQ sauce-making skills to his son Craig Jones and nephew Nichalas Breland, who make ribs, brisket, chicken, and homemade beef links.
“My dad, when he was transitioning, his last few words to me were, ‘Protect and keep what we have,’ and that’s what I’m trying do,” said Craig Jones in an interview with NBC Bay Area.
In a Youtube video, (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sh8sN1KEELk), family members tell how they lost their ‘legacy.’

According to news reports, Wolff is chairman & CEO of Wolff Urban Development, LLC, a real estate acquisition, investment, development, and management firm. Since 1994, Wolff has served as chairman of Maritz, Wolff & Co., a privately held hotel investment group that owns and manages assets for top-tier luxury hotels, with over $1.0 billion of assets under management.

Since 1968, Wolff has developed over 4,000,000 square feet of urban real estate, including hotels, office space, retail, town homes, and commercial parking properties.
By the Oakland Post’s deadline, the newspaper had not received a reply for a request for a comment from Wolff or Marriott.

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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

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To enlarge your view of this issue, use the slider, magnifying glass icon or full page icon in the lower right corner of the browser window.

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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.

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District Attorney Pamela Price with Carol Jones
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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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.

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American Business Women’s Association Vice President Velma Landers, left, with California State Controller Malia Cohen (center), and ABWA President LaRonda Smith at the Enterprising Women Networking SF Chapter of the ABWA at the Black Wealth Brunch.
American Business Women’s Association Vice President Velma Landers, left, with California State Controller Malia Cohen (center), and ABWA President LaRonda Smith at the Enterprising Women Networking SF Chapter of the ABWA at the Black Wealth Brunch.

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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