Albertsons, Trader Joe's, Measure DD, Eva Paul's Retirement, Chinese New Year, Tet Festival, and more!

Albertsons Store on Lakeshore Avenue Closes--
I’m Working Hard to Bring in a High Quality Tenant.

The closing of the Albertsons store on Lakeshore Avenue presents a rare opportunity to bring in a new tenant that meets the needs and desires of the neighborhood.. This unexpected chance to attract a new tenant has generated a huge amount of interest from the community. Many, many residents have emailed me to advocate for a Trader Joe’s or other high quality grocer, and I couldn’t agree more. I have spent countless hours in the last three weeks working toward that end.

The moment I got the news of Albertsons impending departure I contacted the parties who own the property rights to the space and consulted with the City Attorney and Director of Oakland’s Economic Development Agency to determine all of our community’s options. These City officials and I are committed to doing everything in the City’s power to attract a quality tenant that will enhance the Lakeshore Avenue shopping district.

Despite my great enthusiasm for this project, we do face a number of hurdles. Key parties to the outcome are the land owner and the company which bought Albertsons’ lease. Naturally, they will make choices based on their economic interest. The terms of the existing lease are making it difficult to get the kind of tenant we want. City economic development staff and I are in on-going conversations with the private parties to work out a solution that would bring in a tenant desirable to the neighborhood and also make economic sense for the owners of the land and the lease. The good news is that many potential tenants see this as an attractive site.

In the meantime, to ensure security and safety near the closed store, I am working with the owners to make sure the parking lot remains lit, clean and safe.

Please be assured that I will miss no opportunity to move the parties toward an outcome that is in keeping with the desires of the community. I urge all of you to support my efforts by filling out my on-line survey and petition for a Trader Joe’s or other quality grocer and sharing any comments you may have.

My staff is in the process of setting up the survey/petition on my website www.patkernighan.com. We plan to have it up by Monday night, 1/9. Also feel free to contact me at 238-7002 or pkernighan@oaklandnet.com.

Have you seen the two new sign boards for the 12th Street Reconstruction Project along 12th Street at the south end of Lake Merritt? They show illustrative plans and artist renderings of the new boulevard and three-acre waterfront park that will replace the 12-lane, two block long freeway and muddy banks. In place of the existing mini-freeway, the new tree-lined boulevard will have pedestrian-friendly crosswalks, allowing people on foot to get to the Main Library, County Courthouse, Oakland Museum of California and Kaiser Convention Center from the lake. You can’t do that safely and conveniently today. In many ways, reconstructing 12th Street will have the same kind of dramatic impact in Oakland as taking down the Embarcadero Freeway has had in San Francisco. These are some of the benefits of the park projects planned in accordance with the Lake Merritt Master Plan (completed in 2002) and funded by Measure DD.

I believe it is very important for the public to have all the information, both positive and negative, about the proposed Lake Merritt park projects, so each of you can weigh the benefits and costs of what is proposed. Recently, all the news has been about the removal of trees, which is certainly a serious concern. But it is also important to know what would be gained under the plans.

Within the next few weeks there will be similar signs for the Lakeshore Avenue and El Embarcadero projects and the Lakeside Drive projects around the Municipal Boat House. Look for them when you next walk around the lake or you can let your fingers do the walking by going to following website for more detail and updates: www.oaklandpw.com/MeasureDD/lake_merritt_park_projects.htm .

I have asked the City to hold another community meeting to present detailed information on the Lake Merritt park improvement plans. It is likely to be in mid to late February and will be widely advertised.

In my on-going effort to ensure that full and accurate information is available to anyone interested in the proposed removal of trees to make way for implementation of the Lake Merritt Master Plan, I’ve asked the City Arborist to conduct guided tours for the public. If you have missed the first four tours, don’t despair. Please mark your calendar for the last one on Saturday, Jan 21st at 9am at the Municipal Boathouse on Lakeside Drive. Anyone interested in learning more about the rationale for each tree proposed for removal will find these tours very informative. I certainly have. Also, for more information on the plans in general, including the number of trees to be added, please check the new Measure DD website, which is adding more information weekly:

www.oaklandpw.com/MeasureDD/lake_merritt_park_projects.htm

In addition, the formal process for tree removal permits is underway. The public comment period has been extended to Monday, January 23rd. Public input will be accepted until then. To provide input, call the City’s Tree Services Section at 510.615.5850 between the hours of 8:00 am and 3:00 pm or send correspondence to the Tree Services Section of the Public Works Agency, 7101 Edgewater Drive, Building #4, Oakland, CA 94621.

(Left) Example of recent storm damage to a red-tagged tree at Lake Merritt

Shortly after the close of the comment period, the City Arborist will make a decision on the three tree permits (one for each of the three Lake Merritt Park Improvement Projects – 12th Street Reconstruction project, El Embarcadero and Lakeshore Avenue Project, and Lakeside Drive Project). Anyone who has commented will be notified of the decision by telephone. Anyone can appeal the Arborist’s decision on one of the following three grounds: 1/ Abuse of discretion by the Arborist, 2/ Evidence in the written record that doesn’t support the decision, and/or 3/ Error in the decision-making. Appeals must be filed with the Tree Services Section. Call 510.615.5850 to obtain a copy of the appeal form. An appeal must be filed within five working days of the date of the permit decision. There is a $50 filing fee to appeal to any one of the three tree permits. T\he Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission (PRAC) would then consider any appeal(s). In my opinion, these tree permits are certain to be appealed all the way to the City Council, so the public can be assured of a hearing before the City Council in a few months.

I Need Your Input:
Parking Shortage at Splashpad parking lot during Holidays
-Competing Parking Needs of Grand/Lakeshore Avenue merchants, Brent’s Xmas Trees, and Farmers Market

Folks, I want to get a sense of community opinion on a difficult situation. I am going to make a recommendation to the City Administrator on the use of the under-freeway parking lot and park area of the Splashpad during the months of November and December of each year. Parking is always tight in the Grandlake area, but in November/December, when Brent’s Xmas Trees sets up, the shortage of parking in the lot under the freeway is extreme. This year I received quite a few complaints from merchants and the Grandlake Theater about the loss of about 50 parking spots to the Christmas tree lot just when the neighborhood merchants need them most. I also received complaints from residents about Brent’s Trees taking up parking on three Saturdays prior to the actual arrival of the trees.

We have a dilemma. We have a wildly popular Farmers market on Saturdays, a long-standing tradition of the Christmas tree lot in November/December, and the desire and obligation to supply a reasonable amount of parking for our permanent local merchants during the holiday shopping season. The available space is too small to accommodate all these needs. A choice needs to be made.

Brent’s Trees, which is owned by Oakland residents Brent Hennefer and his son, real estate broker Frank Hennefer, has sold Christmas trees next to Lakepark Avenue since 1978. Brent’s also has operated Xmas tree lots at other locations in the East Bay. When the City first started renting the space to them, there was no parking lot, just an unpaved field. Brent’s has been a neighborhood tradition for a very long time, but much has changed in the last thirty years. Vacant lots are a thing of the past, and competition for space in the Grandlake is fierce. Also at this holiday time, our permanent merchants on Grand and Lakeshore Avenues are in dire need of parking for holiday shoppers. The Grandlake Theater especially relies on the under freeway parking lot to attract customers for the holiday movies, especially from Christmas Day to New Year’s.

In earlier years, Brent’s set up in the area which is now Splashpad Park. In an effort to avoid damage to the new park and to accommodate the popular Farmers Market, the City chose to locate Brent’s tree lot in the parking lot for the past two years. Usually, the City has permitted Brent’s to set up their enclosure in early November. Then the Hennefers go to Oregon to cut their trees, and bring them back to the lot the weekend after Thanksgiving. This year their contract allowed them to stay until Dec. 29.

It is clear to me that renting spaces in the parking lot for any commercial enterprise is no longer workable for the rest of the neighborhood. The loss of precious parking spots is hurting our permanent merchants, who have fixed costs 12 months a year and who rely on holiday sales for much of their annual income. In particular, I don’t want to undercut the Grandlake Theater, which is the anchor for the Grand Avenue shopping area, and which struggles to stay in business as they complete with cineplexes with ample parking.

Please let me know your opinions at a Community Meeting to be held on January 30, 7:00pm at Barnett Hall, located behind Lakeshore Avenue Baptist Church at 3534 Lakeshore Avenue (Lakeshore Avenue at Mandana). You may also email me your thoughts on these options at pkernighan@oaklandnet.com

Next Steps on Developing a Retail Plan for Oakland

The great community response to my November town hall meeting on the subject
of Retail got the ball rolling here at the City Council. The idea that the time is ripe for Oakland to develop a retail strategy resonated with other City Council members. On January 29, the Council will hold a special meeting to discuss land use policies for retail and industrial uses. The Council will be considering whether certain areas of the city should be zoned exclusively for industrial use or retail use. A specific topic under consideration will be whether to create a new auto mall on land at the former Oakland Army Base and/or the Coliseum/880 corridor. (This is because car dealers on Broadway Auto Row are not able to renew their
leases due to high land prices.) Currently, more information is available on the
industrial use than on retail. It is likely that the Council will identify some potential areas for retail and then ask a consultant to come back with further analysis and recommendations. At the meeting I will share with the rest of the
Council a summary of the comments I heard from the participants a the
Town Hall meeting and urge them to take action to develop a vision and
strategy for retail development in Oakland.

If you would like to weigh in on these topics, you can attend the meeting or
send emails to me and other Councilmembers. Two key people to address would be Chair of the Economic Development Committee Jan Brunner jbrunner@oaklandnet.com and Ignacio De La Fuente, President of the Council, idelafuente@oaklandnet.com.

The time of the Council meeting has not yet been finalized, but it is likely to be in the afternoon. I will send a separate announcement when the time is finalized.

Many District 2 residents have taken time to become familiar with Signature Properties’ proposal for the Oak to Ninth Avenue site and weigh in with their ideas for the Draft Environmental Impact Report. Shortly, the final EIR will be published, setting off a series of public hearings of the Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board, Design Review Committee of the Planning Commission, Planning Commission, Parks and Recreation Advisory Commission, City Council’s Community and Economic Development Agency Committee and finally the City Council. You can go to this webpage for a listing of the meetings. When the dates of the meetings that aren’t scheduled yet are set – some await the publication of the EIR, they will be added to this site so check back frequently.

23rd Avenue Streetscape Community Meeting #2

23rd Avenue is getting a facelift! On Thursday, January 12, from 6:30-8:30pm at Garfield Elementary School (1640 22nd Avenue) the City of Oakland and numerous community based organizations will host a second townhall meeting to discuss the design of proposed sidewalk bulbouts, crosswalks, street trees, and a transit station. Refreshments will be provided. For more information, please contact Theresa Navarro-Lopez at 510-238-6250.

Many of you may be wondering about the progress of the Kwik Way project on Lake Park Avenue. The developers are continuing to work on the details of the project and are in contact with the Bank of America regarding their input. In order to accommodate the bank’s need to continue to do business at its present site, the developers have proposed a different footprint to the development that will still allow new retail on the ground level as well as the originally planned condominiums above.

The developers have presented a formal proposal to BofA that will allow 10 dedicated parking spaces for bank customers in the new development and the possible use of the municipal parking lot across the street for additional parking needs. They are optimistic about their negotiations with BofA and are excited to continue with the Kwik Way project as soon as possible. I will continue to keep you informed on the progress of this project.

Lincoln Square Master Plan Community Meeting

On Wednesday, January 18 from 6:15-7pm in the Lincoln Elementary School Gymnasium (located at 225 11th Street) I will be co-hosting a community meeting with Lincoln ElementarySchool to allow the public to review the initial design for the Lincoln Square playground renovation.

Like many parks in Oakland, Lincoln is in need of master planning and capital improvements to ensure that the small city block that the square calls home is configured to maximize open space and recreational opportunities. I have identified city funds to begin a master planning process to improve and beautify the Lincoln blacktop. The Lincoln Recreation Center and Park host children from Lincoln Elementary School, Lighthouse Charter School, and Oasis School. In addition to the hundreds of students that use the recreation center and park from morning until evening, dozens of adults and seniors participate in daily basketball, table tennis, and tai-chi programs throughout the day.

My office, along with the Oakland Asian Advisory Committee on Crime, and the Chinatown Neighborhood Crime Prevention Council will sponsor the first annual Chinatown Public Safety Fair on Saturday, January 21 from 8:30am – 12 pm at the Lincoln Square Recreation Center (250 10th Street). The Fair will feature workshops in Cantonese, and Vietnamese on topics such as crime prevention, personal safety, self-defense (demonstrations only), and neighborhood safety. To register, please call 510-238-6883 or fax in the registration form by January 13, 2006.

First Community Meeting Regarding the $2.7 million “Revive Chinatown” Streetscape Project

The design process for the Revive Chinatown Streetscape is underway and the City is interested in your opinions. In early February, the City will host a community meeting to unveil initial designs for the $2.7 million streetscape improvement project in Chinatown. As the meeting approaches, I will inform you of the date and time of the meeting. At the first of three community meetings about the project, participants will have the opportunity to provide the City with input regarding on design elements, including the color and style of streetlights, street furniture, sidewalk designs, and crosswalk patterns.

In September 2004, my office, Asian Health Services and the Chinatown Chamber of Commerce, and the City of Oakland helped to secure $2.7 million in state and local funding to make Chinatown safer and more attractive for shoppers and residents. The “Revive Chinatown” Streetscape project will feature sidewalk bulbouts, high visibility crosswalks, and pedestrian “scramble” signals at four core intersections in Chinatown. The project will also feature pedestrian countdown signals throughout Chinatown and decorative pedestrian scale lighting on two Chinatown streets.

For more information, please contact my office at 238-7002.

ANNOUNCEMENTS/COMMUNITY EVENTS

A Message from Eva Paul announcing her retirement

It is with mixed feelings that I am announcing my retirement from working for District Two and the City of Oakland as of the end of January, 2006. I have enjoyed working as an aide to several Councilmembers over many years and have during that time made friends of many of our constituents. Being the constituent liaison has brought me great gratification and in contact with so many of you. I hope I have been able to help you work through the maze of City bureaucracy and also helped you on the many projects in your neighborhoods. Yet, it is now time to pass on the reins.

The job has been most fulfilling for me and working with so many talented and friendly colleagues, in our office and City wide, has given me so much respect for what has been accomplished by our City government. I have also seen how effective an informed electorate can be with so many projects initiated by citizen groups in an effort to help the quality of life in their neighborhoods.

Since 1990, I have had the privilege of working with Councilmembers Mary Moore, Natalie Bayton, John Russo, Danny Wan and now Pat Kernighan. The City has improved under their leadership and District Two has been and is currently very well led by effective and dedicated leadership. I will miss being part of the team but still intend to stay active locally.

Looking forward, I plan to be able to spend more time with my supportive husband and family, enjoy my 8 grandchildren, travel, take classes, play tennis, do some volunteer work, organize tons of photos and home movies, and stay healthy and involved.

Councilmember Kernighan is planning a retirement party for me on Sunday afternoon, February 5th. If you can come give me a send off, I’d be so delighted. Please call Kathy Dwyer in our office at 238.7246 for more details.

Thank you for your help making my job so meaningful and enjoyable.

Best wishes to all,
Eva Paul

Lunar New Year Celebrations in Oakland

The Chinese and Vietnamese Lunar New Year usually takes place in January or February of the western calendar. This year's celebrations, to usher in the "Year of the Dog" (year 4703 according to the Chinese calendar), promise to bring the usual excitement and panache to Oakland. Though lunar new year's day falls on January 29, many community organizations will celebrate the lunar new year on Saturday, January 21 and Sunday, January 22. For more information about Chinese New Year, click here. For more information about Tet, visit here.

Chinese New Year Bazaar

The Oakland Chinatown Chamber of Commerce will sponsor itsannual Chinese New Year Bazaar that draws over 35,000 visitors annually, making it the largest event of its kind in Northern California. One hundred vendors will sell food, souvenirs, clothing, flowers, toys and other unique wares on Saturday, January 21 and Sunday January 22 from 9am to 5pm. Located in the Pacific Renaissance courtyard, on 9th Street and on Franklin Street, the bazaar will feature traditional dance, martial arts, dragon and lion dancing, and the Chinatown Lions club Little Prince and Princess contest. For more information, please contact the Oakland Chinatown Chamber of Commerce at 510-893-8979 or OaklandCTChamber@aol.com.

For the fourth year in a row, Oakland’s Vietnamese community will be hosting the Vietnamese Tet Festival at Clinton Park (between E.12th and International and 6th and 7th Avenues) on Sunday, January 22 from 10am-6pm. “Tet”, which stands for the Vietnamese New Year, is the most significant holiday for the Vietnamese. According to the festival organizers, the Vietnamese American Cultural & Educational Association of the Bay Area (VACed), Tet is comparable to the “combined spirit of Thanksgiving, the New Year, and Memorial Day”. This year’s festival will feature 40 booths, many serving authentic Northern, Central, and Southern Vietnamese cuisine.

The opening ceremony is scheduled to begin at 11:30am and feature dragon and uniform dancing and other ceremonial activities. The Festival will offer a variety of attractions to people of all ages, including musical and cultural performances, youth talent competitions, karaoke, and a martial arts demonstration. Best of all, the event is free of charge. For more information, please contact Phuc Tran at (510) 452-2538 or ptran1@pacbel.net.

Lunar New Year Celebration 2006 at the Oakland Asian Cultural Center

The Oakland Asian Cultural Center will be hosting a free Lunar New Year Celebration on Saturday, January 28 ( 12:00 PM - 4:00 PM). The event will offer a daylong celebration of cultures with elements of Chinese, Vietnamese,
and Korean cultures. The celebration will feature:

-Traditional music, dance, & martial arts performances
-Lunar New Year arts and craft activities
-Educational materials available for visitors

The Oakland Asian Cultural Center (inside the Pacific Renaissance Plaza, Second Floor), 388 Ninth Street, Suite 290. For more information, call (510) 637-0455 or visit www.oacc.cc.

Kathy has been a District 2 resident for over 20 y

ears and joined the office staff in December 2005, replacing Monique Tsang, who became the Neighborhood Services Coordinator for Chinatown. Through her three children she has been involved in a variety of areas with the Oakland schools. These activities include serving as a PTA President, working as a substitute teacher and chairing an advisory committee for the OUSD. One of her favorite pastimes is being a classroom volunteer, most recently at Lockwood School. Kathy’s last few years have been spent concentrating on children’s issues, specifically dealing with education and hunger.

Kathy works in the Council office on weekday mornings and can be reached at 510-238-7246 or kdwyer@oaklandnet.com. If you would like to schedule a meeting with Pat, e-mail is the best way to contact Kathy.

I Need Your Input: Parking Shortage at Splashpad parking lot during Holidays -Competing Parking Needs of Grand/Lakeshore Avenue merchants, Brent’s Xmas Trees, and Farmers Market

I Need Your Input:
Parking Shortage at Splashpad parking lot during Holidays
-Competing Parking Needs of Grand/Lakeshore Avenue merchants, Brent’s Xmas Trees, and Farmers Market