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Fight for Army Base Jobs Linked to Audit Issues

Published

14 years ago

April 5, 2013

Oakland Post

Courtney Ruby

Phil Tagami

By J. Douglas Allen-Taylor

One of the key issues in Oakland City Auditor Courtney Ruby’s recent Non-Interference in Administrative Affairs Performance Audit involves a contract to demolish a structure known as Building 6 at the Oakland Army Base.
The contract was originally awarded by staff to Turner Construction of Oakland in 2009 following a competitive bid.
But according to The Oakland Post, the Turner contract was thrown out after intervention by Oakland developer Phil Tagami, who was negotiating to become the Master Developer of the Oakland Army Base project.
“(We) must insist that the bid soliciation be rejected and the process significantly revised with our direct involmvement before being re-started,” wrote Tagami in an email dated Oct. 15, 2009 to Walter Cohen, then director of Oakland’s Community and Economic Development Agency.
Following Tagami’s selection as Master Developer for the project, the Building 6 demolition contract was awarded to Top Grade Construction company of Livermore by city staff on a no-bid basis. Top Grade was reportedly Tagami’s choice for the job.
City staff has said that the dropping of the Turner contract and the reopening of the Building 6 demolition contract was required because the “scope” of the demolition changed following the contract award.
But asked by then-Councilmember Jane Brunner at a Council Community and Economic Development Committee meeting in mid-October of 2011 why the revised contract went out on a no-bid basis, Redevelopment Agency staff member Al Auletta admitted that “We were working on that on the spirit of working together with the Master Developer. We’ve been told and we now understand that this was an incorrect way to handle it.”
The no-bid Top Grade Building 6 demolition contract went to Council Rules Committee in the summer of 2011 to be scheduled for discussion at the CED Committee—the first step for possible full Council approval—but after a meeting between Reid and staff members of the city’s Community and Economic Development Agency (CEDA), the Top Grade contract was dropped by staff and never revived.
Instead, at that October 2011 CED meeting, Brooks and Reid introduced an ordinance to reopen the Building 6 contract to open bid, but with new rules that would mandate that only Oakland-based firms with an existing workforce that was 33 percent Oakland residents could bid, with the further stipulation that the winning firm would have to employ 50 percent Oakland residents to work on the actual Building 6 demolition.
That Oakland-firm/Oakland-hire Building 6 demolition contract ordinance was eventually passed by the full City Council in the fall of 2011 by unanimous vote. The contract went out to bid and three Oakland companies qualified—Turner Construction, JH Fitzmaurice, and Downrite Corporation—with staff eventually picking Downrite and the full Council approving.
The Non-Interference audit lists only two instances alleging that Councilmembers Reid and Brooks improperly interfered with city staff in the Building 6 demolition contract negotiations.
The first allegation is listed at an unspecified date or dates in the month of June, 2011, during the time the Council Rules Committee was putting off discussion of the Top Grade contract.
The audit alleges that Reid and Brooks told staff that the Top Grade contract would not clear Rules, and that Brooks said she was “negotiating a portion of the contract with Turner Construction.”

Barbara Tingary holds a copy of the Oakland Post, which featured Ruby’s flawed audit, at Tuesday night’s City Council meeting. Photo by Ken Epstein.

The second allegation is listed as taking place between July and September of 2011, after the Top Grade contract died, when Reid and Brooks are said to have directed city staff to work with Turner Construction “to establish a bid proposal for the project.”
The audit produces no documents to support the allegations, stating only that they occurred “according to” the Redevelopment Agency staff handling the contract.
No improper interference in favor of Turner Construction by Brooks or Reid in the Building 6 contract was alleged in the audit after mid-September, when the two Councilmembers first introduced the proposed new Oakland-firm/Oakland-hire procedures for the Building 6 demolition project.
Instead, when the full Council first considered the proposed new procedures in November of 2011,
Brooks introduced an amendment that would reopen the contract bidding to non-Oakland firms if no more than two Oakland firms qualified in the first round of bidding, thus making it more likely rather than less likely that Turner Construction would have sufficient competition in the bidding.

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PRESS ROOM: Transformative Justice Coalition 2026 Voting Rights Champion Awards Reception ‘Yesterday Is Today: The Battle For Voting Rights

BLACKPRESSUSA NEWSWIRE –

Published

3 days ago

October 13, 2026

Post News Group

Featuring a Special Fireside Chat with 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing Survivor Sarah Collins Rudolph

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Sixty-three years after the bombing of Birmingham’s Sixteenth Street Baptist

Church shocked the conscience of the nation, Sarah Collins Rudolph—known as the “Fifth Little Girl”—will join the Transformative Justice Coalition (TJC) for a special Fireside Chat examining the enduring connection between the civil rights struggle of 1963 and the battle for voting and civil rights in 2026.

The Fireside Chat, hosted in partnership with Attorney A. Scott Bolden of Reed Smith, LLP, will be a featured part of TJC’s 2026 Voting Rights Champion Awards Reception, held in commemoration of the September 15, 1963 bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama.

Collins Rudolph survived the bombing that killed four young girls, including her sister, Addie Mae Collins, and left her seriously injured. During this extraordinary conversation, she will share her firsthand experience of the bombing, its lifelong impact, and her continuing struggle for justice.

Her appearance comes at a consequential moment for voting and civil rights in America and offers a living reminder that the struggle against racial hatred, disenfranchisement, and injustice is not simply a chapter of history. Under the theme “Yesterday Is Today: The Battle for Voting and Civil Rights in 2026,” the evening will connect the sacrifices of the Civil Rights Movement with the continuing responsibility to protect voting rights and advance justice today.

WHAT: Transformative Justice Coalition 2026 Voting Rights Champion Awards Reception

“Yesterday Is Today: The Battle For Voting And Civil Rights In 2026”

Featuring a Special Fireside Chat with 16th Street Baptist Church Bombing Survivor Sarah Collins Rudolph

WHO: Barbara Arnwine, Esquire, Founder/President/Co-Leader, Transformative Justice Coalition

Daryl D. Jones, Esquire, Board Chair/Co-Leader, Transformative Justice Coalition

Sarah Collins Rudolph, Sixteenth Street Baptist Church Bombing Survivor

A. Scott Bolden, Esquire, Reed Smith, LLP; Sponsor of the Fireside Chat and Reception

WHEN: Wednesday, September 16, 2026, from 6:00 p.m. to 8:30 p.m. WHERE: Location will be emailed to registrants 48 hours before the event.

WHY: Attorney Barbara Arnwine, the President & Founder of the Transformative Justice Coalition (TJC), and Attorney Daryl Jones, Co-Leader and Board Chair of TJC, said of Mrs. Collins Rudolph’s appearance that “TJC believes that it is critically important that people hear from the sole survivor of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church bombing.” Arnwine and Jones further stated that “this event will provide people with an opportunity to hear, first-hand, the results of racial hatred through the eyes of Mrs. Collins Rudolph, who was in the church with the four little girls who were killed at the time of the bombing.”

Attorney A. Scott Bolden, the sponsor of the Fireside Chat and Reception to benefit the non-profit Transformative Justice Coalition, said, “I am proud to support the work of the Transformative Justice Coalition. This is an organization that is truly in the trenches fighting for social justice and voting rights in America.” Bolden continued, “I have been an advocate for social justice my entire life. I strongly encourage people to come hear Mrs. Collins Rudolph and support the work of the Transformative Justice Coalition.”

TJC will bestow its 2026 Voting Rights Champion Award upon Collins Rudolph in recognition of her courage, perseverance, and continuing struggle for justice.

Attorney Arnwine and Attorney Jones concluded that, “Mrs. Collins Rudolph’s determination, heart, and perseverance to survive is to be applauded. This is the reason why TJC is bestowing upon her the 2026 ‘Voting Rights Champion Award.’ The character that Ms. Collins Rudolph displayed in her struggle to survive exemplifies the depth of commitment we must have today to protect our voting rights and work toward building a more robust, multicultural, and inclusive society for the future.”

REGISTRATION & SUPPORT: Registration for the Fireside Chat and Reception is available through Eventbrite or TJC’s website. Donations are tax-deductible to the extent permitted by law and are strongly encouraged. Proceeds will support the TJC John Lewis Make Good Trouble Vote Bus, which will travel across America to marginalized communities, register voters, and help take voters to the polls.

Founded in 2015 by Barbara Arnwine, president emeritus of the Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights, where she created the national election protection program. Ms. Arnwine serves as President and Founder of the Transformative Justice Coalition, which seeks to catalyze transformative institutional change that advances justice and equality in the United States and abroad. Learn more at tjcoalition.org.

This story originally appeared on Black Press USA as “PRESS ROOM: Transformative Justice Coalition 2026 Voting Rights Champion Awards Reception ‘Yesterday Is Today: The Battle For Voting Rights”. Auto-delivered via NNPA Newswire.

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Locals Can Get Locally Grown Produce Delivered Through Urban Tilth

The standard price is $50 per week, which Urban Tilth says reflects the true cost of fresh, sustainably sourced, locally grown produce. Urban Tilth offers a subsidized “Food for All” price of $15 per week for individuals and families with extremely limited financial resources. Both options provide the same produce and service.

Published

3 days ago

October 13, 2026

Post News Group

A client receives groceries from a member of Urban Tilth. Courtesy photo.

By Richmond Standard Staff

West County residents can receive locally grown produce through Urban Tilth’s Farm to Table Community Supported Agriculture (CSA) program, with home delivery and pickup options available.

Contra Costa County Supervisor John Gioia highlighted the program in his newsletter, pointing out that his district office in El Cerrito serves as a pickup location.

Weekly or bi-weekly subscriptions include seasonal greens, vegetables, fruits and herbs. Produce comes from Urban Tilth’s North Richmond Farm and farms within 200 miles of Richmond, including small family farms and those owned by BIPOC, women and LGBTQIA+ growers.

Subscriptions also support hands-on job training for local youth and volunteer opportunities.

The standard price is $50 per week, which Urban Tilth says reflects the true cost of fresh, sustainably sourced, locally grown produce. A subsidized “Food for All” price of $15 per week is available for individuals and families with extremely limited financial resources. Both options provide the same produce and service.

Gioia’s office is located at 11780 San Pablo Ave., Suite D, in El Cerrito. To sign up or learn more about pickup and delivery options, visit urbantilth.org/heal/csa.

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Lead Story

New Protections for Ticket Buyers: Gov. Newsom Signs Assemblymember Isaac Bryan’s Bill

OAKLAND POST — Assembly Bill 1349 expands state regulation of original ticket sellers, resellers and online resale marketplaces. The law targets deceptive sales practices, ticket-buying software and speculative listings — tickets advertised for sale by sellers who do not possess them or have authorization to sell them.

Published

2 weeks ago

October 4, 2026

Post News Group

Assemblymember Isaac Bryan (D-Ladera Heights). File photo.

By California Black Media Staff

Gov. Gavin Newsom signed legislation on Sept. 27 authored by Assemblymember Isaac Bryan (D-Ladera Heights) that strengthens consumer protections for Californians purchasing tickets to concerts, sporting events and other live entertainment.

Assembly Bill 1349 expands state regulation of original ticket sellers, resellers and online resale marketplaces. The law targets deceptive sales practices, ticket-buying software and speculative listings — tickets advertised for sale by sellers who do not possess them or have authorization to sell them.

“Buying a ticket shouldn’t come with hidden risks or unfair practices,” Newsom wrote on social media after signing the measure.

Under AB 1349, ticket sellers are prohibited from listing tickets before they have been officially released unless they have authorization or a legally enforceable right to receive them. Online marketplaces must also take reasonable steps to prevent speculative ticket sales on their platforms.

The law prohibits sellers from using bots, multiple accounts, email addresses or internet protocol addresses to circumvent ticket limits, presale restrictions, electronic queues and other controls. It also bans websites and advertisements designed to mislead buyers into believing they are purchasing tickets from an authorized seller, venue or event organizer.

Sellers who violate certain provisions and fail to provide a promised ticket may be held liable for twice the ticket’s contracted price. Buyers may also recover nonrefundable expenses incurred while attempting to attend an event, along with reasonable attorney’s fees and court costs.

Pastor Tecoy Porter Sr., president of the National Action Network’s Sacramento chapter, said the law establishes needed accountability.

“Buying a ticket to a concert or show shouldn’t mean entering a marketplace where the rules are stacked against you. This year, we worked with a coalition of consumers, civil rights advocates, community groups, and businesses to make AB 1349 stronger. Consumers deserve enforceable rules that protect them. We thank Assemblymember Bryan for his leadership, and we will keep working to make ticketing fair for every Californian.”

Jose L. Barrera, national vice president for the Far West Region of the League of United Latin American Citizens, also praised the measure.

“Californian families deserve certain protections when they buy tickets. Assemblymember Bryan listened to communities across California and delivered a bill that puts fans first. We thank him and Governor Newsom for making it law.”