City Government

Mayor’s Brooklyn Basin Project Shortchanges Black Workers, Taxpayers and Minority Contractors

Published

10 years ago

March 4, 2016

Brooklyn Basin, a $1.5 billion waterfront condominium project now being built near downtown Oakland, may be a great deal for developers but not so good for local construction workers, taxpayers or local companies that want to do business with the city.

Historically, a major issue facing Oakland’s flatland communities has been whether private developer projects built on city-owned land will yield jobs for local residents.

Especially questionable is whether African American residents will acquire any of the well-paying construction jobs that are generally funneled to non-Oakland residents.

Most recently, Oaklanders waged a hard-fought battle to obtain a promise from the city for 50 percent local hire at the Oakland Army Base development.

But the city council set the Brooklyn Basin project’s local jobs requirement low at 6 percent of the project hours, and only for entry-level apprentices who live in Oakland.

The project has no requirement to hire locally for higher-paying journeyman jobs, including truck drivers or heavy equipment operators.

According to a city report, local entry-level apprentices as of Feb. 24 worked a total of 1,031 hours (or 4.95 percent) of the 20,762 hours worked on the project.

Most telling are the wages that Oakland residents have received – $22,817.17 (or 1.84 percent) of the total $1,239,617.64 that was paid to the project’s workers.

Oaklanders have also been raising concerns about whether city staff and the council are transparent in their dealings with big developers in real estate deals that involve public property.

At present, the city has picked the developer for the 465 units of proposed affordable housing at the Brooklyn Basin – MidPen Housing Corporation – with no concern about whether local-, minority- or women-owned businesses had an opportunity to bid on the project.

A number of people are complaining that the city is currently violating a promise that was implied when the city’s Department of Race & Equity was unanimously voted into existence by the City Council.

According to the City Administrator, the Brooklyn Basin’s development agreement with Michael Ghielmetti and his Signature Housing Group provides that the developer is responsible for proposing the affordable housing developer.

The city reviewed the developer’s affordable housing proposal for MidPen and decided to go with it, according to Karen Boyd, spokesperson for the City Administrator.

The city had no answers to the Post’s questions about the racial composition of MidPen’s workforce, making it questionable whether racial equity was relevant to its decision on awarding a contract.

“The city does not have access to the personnel records of MidPen Housing’s staffing information,” said Boyd in response to the Post’s question.

“While the city’s real estate laws generally require a competitive process in order to dispose of city real estate property, the City Council can waive that requirement if it’s in the best interests of the city,” said Boyd.

“The fact that the development agreement requiresa process that places the responsibility to select the affordable housing developer on the Brooklyn Basin developer would be sufficient to waive the competitive process when the project goes to council for approval,” she said.

Last week, the Post reported on the lack of an affordable housing pledge from the Brooklyn Basin developer, making another issue for taxpayers whether the city is generating all the potential income from the project that could have been used for expanded city services and affordable housing.

The developer paid the city $18 million for 64 acres and agreed to perform the toxic clean up of the site. The city then bought back 4.5 acres of the parcel adjacent to the freeway and opposite the waterfront for affordable housing and paid $22.5 million –following a 2014 appraisal.

If the entire 64 acres were appraised at the same amount as the 4.5 acres the city bought, the selling price for the entire property would have been worth at least $320 million – about $302 million more than the developer originally paid for the property.

Based on the city council’s 2006 deal with Signature Housing Group, the city is hoping to come up with $225 million to build 465 units of the only affordable housing that would be in the 3,100-unit development.

The Oakland Post mistakenly reported last week that Mayor Libby Schaaf was on the city council in 2006 when the project was originally approved. Yet, she has been involved in the deal since she was a city councilmember in 2010 and as mayor in 2014.

Before serving on the council, Schaaf worked as chief of staff for City Council President Ignacio de la Fuente and as a top aide for Mayor Jerry Brown.

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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

29 minutes 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

45 minutes 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.