Community Forums
As part of a transparent and collaborative approach to creating and maintaining a safe, clean, thriving Jack London District with flourishing businesses, vibrant events, and a high quality of life, the Jack London Improvement District hosts community forums.
Jack London Improvement District invites community partners, local and regional experts and moderators to generate discussions on development, commerce, resilience, industry, history, culture, and other conversations relevant to the mission of the District. The discussions are educational and will help guide the long range vision of the District.
Keep an eye on our events calendar and sign up for our newsletter to be the first to know about upcoming forums.
Past Forums
Link 21 Open House
On Monday, October 2nd, community members gathered for an open house hosted by the Link21 program and the Jack London Improvement District. Multiple mega infrastructure projects in and around our district are currently underway and are in different phases of planning. Attendees learned about Link21 and the proposed new train crossing between Oakland and San Francisco, Alameda County Transportation Commission’s Oakland Alameda Access Project, the Oakland-Alameda Estuary Bridge, and Lake Merritt Transit-Oriented Development. Thanks to the industry experts who attended and the community members who voiced their feedback. JLID is proud to advocate for new possibilities of transit in the East Bay!
By clicking on the links, below, you can view:
• Brief presentations on the Oakland Alameda Access Project and the Oakland-Alameda Estuary Bridge
MERCHANT SAFETY AND DE-ESCALATION WORKSHOP
Matt Mayo is the CEO of Critical Intervention Corps, a safety and security company based in the East Bay. On Thursday, April 13th, Mr. Mayo gave a presentation to our merchant community about personal safety, crime prevention through environmental design, and de-escalation. The 1-hour presentation is available to watch on Youtube at the link below.
WATCH THE PRESENTATION (YOUTUBE)
CITY AUDITOR COURTNEY RUBY PRESENTS AT NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCIL
On February 28th, 2023, City Auditor Courtney Ruby gave a special presentation at our monthly Neighborhood Crime Prevention Council meeting.
The presentation was a summarization of her findings from a performance audit conducted to investigate the City’s homelessness services.
To view the presentation slide deck, visit the link below.
NEW DEVELOPMENT AT 200 ALICE ST.
On November 29th, 2022, local real-estate design firm, Riaz Capital, presented updates on their current project located at 200, 220, and 236 Alice St. Their plan, which has been approved by the City, is to convert these three parcels into a five story, 165 unit apartment building. Riaz Capital specializes in creating affordable housing for young, workforce professionals. Check out their other projects they’ve completed in Oakland here.
Construction for this project is projected to begin in the Fall of 2023 and the estimated time of construction is 18 months.
DOWNTOWN OAKLAND SPECIFIC PLAN ZONING
We hosted a community meeting with the City’s planning office to learn more about how new zoning updates would affect the future of our district. The Downtown Oakland Specific Plan (DOSP) is a twenty-year plan designed to ensure continued improvement for downtown residents and the greater community. It was created with community review of multiple drafts, and since then, City staff have been working to develop related changes to the City's Planning Code and Zoning Map.
Key amendments that will impact the Jack London District include:
A revised zoning map that creates a transition to the West Oakland Industrial Area and brings the Victory Court area near the Lake Merritt Channel into conformance with the Estuary Policy Plan, facilitating new housing and other mixed-use development. The proposed amendments also include special districts such as zoning overlays to address sea level rise, improve underpasses under I-880 to reconnect Jack London with the rest of Downtown Oakland, and allow for development that activates the Lake Merritt Channel while protecting natural resources.
The zoning changes main objectives are to boost economic development, affordable housing, culture keeping, connectivity, safety, community health, sustainability, land use, and urban form.
Alameda County District Attorney Candidates Forum
On October 11, 2022, we co-hosted this forum with business organization partners to hear from Alameda County District Attorney Candidates Terry Wiley and Pamela Price. The District Attorney's office is critically important in implementing policies and programs that improve public safety, and ensuring that justice is served on behalf of the residents of Alameda County.
The discussion was moderated by Cathy Adams, CEO, Oakland African American Chamber of Commerce.
Host Organizations include: Oakland BID Alliance, Oakland Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce, Oakland African American Chamber of Commerce, Downtown Berkeley Association, Berkeley Business Development Network, Berkeley Merchants United, Berkeley Chamber of Commerce, Visit Berkeley, Oakland Latino Chamber of Commerce, Oakland Chinatown Chamber of Commerce, Oakland Vietnamese Chamber of Commerce and Visit Oakland.
A SEAT AT THE TOWN TABLE
The Oakland community was invited to participate in A Seat at The Town Table – the first 2022 forum of mayoral candidates, hosted by Visit Oakland and the Jack London Improvement District (JLID). The event welcomes Hon. Treva Reid, Hon. Loren Taylor and Hon. Sheng Thao – the three current city officials running in the 2022 Oakland Mayoral race.