City Government

Oakland City Council Will Vote Tuesday on Renter Protection, Police Commission Ballot Measures

Published

10 years ago

July 14, 2016

The Tuesday, July 19 Oakland City Council meeting is one of the last chances for council members to place progressive measures on the November ballot.

The council is scheduled to decide whether to place measures on the ballot for renter protection to curb Oakland’s displacement crisis and a proposal for an independent police oversight commission for better accountability of police misconduct.
 

Housing activists are asking community members to show up to Tuesday’s meeting to make their opinions known to council members.

“This isn’t about us asking the council to pass renter protection on our behalf,” said James Vann of the Post Salon Community Assembly. “We are simply asking you to put it on the ballot and let the voters decide.”

On Tuesday, the Council will be considering two separate renter protection proposals.

The Protect Oakland Renters Act, drafted by Councilmember Rebecca Kaplan, is a reworked version of the original renter protection initiative that was written by a coalition of several housing organizations and anti-displacement activists.

Kaplan’s proposal, which would go onto the November ballot if it gains five votes, has wide support from community, labor organizations, interfaith leaders and housing advocates.

The proposal would require landlords to petition through the Rent Board if they wish to increase tenants’ rents above the annual consumer price index, whereas tenants are currently responsible for petitioning to oppose rent increases over a legal amount.

The measure would also extend Just Cause protections to buildings built up to 1995. Currently, buildings are only covered if they were built before 1984.

Another major feature is that it limits rent increases to 5 percent per year unless a landlord can prove they are losing money managing their property.

But most importantly for many housing activists, the changes would go into effect by Jan. 1, 2017 if approved by the voters in November.

In order to support small property landlords, owner-occupied duplexes and triplexes would be exempt from the renter protections.

The second ordinance was drafted by Councilmembers Dan Kalb, Abel Guillén and Council President Lynette Gibson McElhaney.

Some of the elements of this proposal would not go into effect until as late as 2018, such as limiting rent increases to 30 percent over a five-year period.

This ordinance would not go on the November ballot but could be passed Tuesday at the council meeting.

“We have a housing crisis right now,” said Councilmember Kaplan in an interview with the Post.

“Everybody has acknowledged that the crisis is now and to say that we will take action in a year or two, I disagree with that,” Kaplan said.

Both proposals will need five votes to pass.

On Thursday, dozens of supporters of Kaplan’s Protect Oakland Renters Act, including Councilmembers Kaplan, Guillén, and Noel Gallo, members of the Protect Oakland Renters Coalition, and labor and interfaith leaders, held a press conference in front of City Council announcing the City Council vote coming up on July 19 at 5 p.m.

Another initiative being decided on is placing a civilian-run police oversight commission on the November ballot.

The measure would create a commission with the power of overseeing and imposing discipline on officers found to be participating in misconduct. The commission would also have a say in best policing practices and who gets hired in the Oakland Police Department.

The issue facing the council Tuesday is not only whether the measure will go on the ballot but also whether the ballot proposal will create a commission that will be sufficiently independent of the influence of the police union and the city administration, which have been accused of undermining police discipline and accountability for many years.

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Oakland Post: Week of February 25 – March 3, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of – February 25 – March 3, 2026

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March 1, 2026

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February 20, 2026

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CITY OF SAN LEANDRO STATE OF CALIFORNIA PUBLIC WORKS DEPARTMENT ENGINEERING DIVISION NOTICE TO BIDDERS FOR ANNUAL STREET OVERLAY/REHABILITATION 2019-21 – PHASE III

WORK DESCRIPTION: The work to be done consists of roadway paving, base cement stabilization, concrete curb ramps, driveways, sidewalks, curbs and gutters, traffic detection loops and pavement striping, and doing all appurtenant work in place and ready for use, all as shown on the plans and described in the specifications with the title indicated in Paragraph 1 above, and on file in the office of the City Engineer. Reference to said plans and specifications is hereby made for further particulars.

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2 weeks ago

February 20, 2026

Oakland Post

PROJECT NO. 2020.0050

BID NO. 25-26.011

BID OPENING: The bidder shall complete the “Proposal to the City of San Leandro” form contained in the Contract Book. The proposal shall be submitted in its entirety. Incomplete proposals will be considered non-responsive. Sealed bids containing the completed Proposal Section subject to the conditions named herein and in the specifications for ANNUAL STREET OVERLAY/REHABILITATION 2019-21 – PHASE III/PROJECT NO. 2020.0050 addressed to the City of San Leandro will be received at City Hall, 835 East 14^th Street, 2^nd Floor San Leandro at the office of the City Clerk up to 3:00 p.m. on Thursday, March 19, 2026, at which time they will be publicly opened and read.
WORK DESCRIPTION: The work to be done consists of roadway paving, base cement stabilization, concrete curb ramps, driveways, sidewalks, curbs and gutters, traffic detection loops and pavement striping, and doing all appurtenant work in place and ready for use, all as shown on the plans and described in the specifications with the title indicated in Paragraph 1 above, and on file in the office of the City Engineer. Reference to said plans and specifications is hereby made for further particulars.
OBTAINING THE PROJECT PLANS AND CONTRACT BOOK: The project plans and Contract Book may be obtained free of charge from the City’s website at:https://www.sanleandro.org/Bids.aspx Bidders who download the plans are encouraged to contact the City of San Leandro Public Works Department Engineering division at 510-577-3428 to be placed on the project planholder’s list to receive courtesy notifications of addenda and other project information. Project addenda, if any, will be posted on the website. A bidder who fails to address all project addenda in its proposal may be deemed non-responsive.Bidders may also purchase the Project Plans and Contract Book from East Bay Blueprint & Supply Co., at 1745 14^th Street, Oakland, CA 94606; Phone Number: (510) 261-2990 or email: ebbp@eastbayblueprint.com.
PRE-BID CONFERENCE: A mandatory pre-bid conference will be held on Tuesday, February 24, 2026, at 2:00 PM and on Wednesday, February 25, 2026, at 10:00 AM as follows:
Tuesday, February 24, 2026, at 2:00 PM
Zoom Meeting ID: 883 8752 6074
Passcode: 502955
Zoom Link: https://sanleandro-org.zoom.us/j/88387526074?pwd=hZ5rjB8AWdLAUem3CtByFiZxqKarHj.1
And
Wednesday, February 25, 2026, at 10:00 AM
Zoom Meeting ID: 898 2672 0472
Passcode: 091848
Zoom Link: https://sanleandro-org.zoom.us/j/89826720472?pwd=JgZX2nXMpLSRM5xDPr7EJUxl7QIznr.1The information presented at the conferences will be identical, all bidders must attend one of the pre-bid conference and sign the attendance sheet. A firm that didn’t attend the pre-bid conference isn’t qualified to bid on the project.Questions regarding the plans and specifications may be submitted in writing to the project engineer until 5:00 p.m. five (5) days before, excluding Saturdays, Sundays and Holidays, bids must be received by the City. The City will not respond to oral questions outside of the pre-bid conference. The response, if any, will be by written addendum only. Oral responses do not constitute a revision to these plans or specifications.
VALUE OF WORK: The Engineer has estimated that the value of work is between $1,000,000 and $5,000,000.
SAN LEANDRO BUSINESS PREFERENCE AND PARTICIPATION GOALS: The work performed under this contract is subject to Section 1-6-225 of the San Leandro Municipal Code regarding local business preference and participation. A list of companies that hold a San Leandro business license is located on the City webpage under the finance department, here: https://www.sanleandro.org/340/Business-License
SAN LEANDRO COMMUNITY WORKFORCE AGREEMENT: The work performed under this contract is subject to the Community Workforce Agreement adopted by City Council Resolution 2015-104. Contractors attention is directed to Section 10.