I'm a Cleveland Heights resident. Closing one lane of car traffic on Lakeshore Ave on weekends and concentrating vending near El Embarcadero helped SO MUCH with neighborhood safety and navigability during daylight hours last year, and I'm requesting that you prioritize these again this year.

I am a 73 year old resident of D3 who has lived across from the Lake for the last four years. These are my comments,

1. The budget of approximately 1.510M is for 31 weekends and holidays. However, we have considerable, increasing amplified noise problems on week days between 10pm and 1am. The budget should also include money for enforcement of the noise control/unlawful occupancy of the Boathouse and Park areas near Bellevue and Perkins during week nights as well as the problem is not limited to weekends.

2. This proposal appears to cover areas of the Lake in both D2 and D3, yet only Council Member Bas has been a leader supporting the proposal. Does it also provide for trash, noise, traffic and safety protections for those of us in D3 in the Grand Corridor? Is out Council Member, Carol Fife, an enthusiastic proponent of the Plan as well. It is important to us, as her constituents, to know that she has our interests in mind as well.

3. What are the likely funds to be used to support the recommendations? Are any of the American Rescue Plan funds allocated to
Oakland likely to be available to support this Proposal.

I oppose the measure because it does not go far enough to curb the activity. I live a block from the Lake and have been enduring the summertime weekend spillover chaos from the vending for over a year. While sympathetic that the vendors needed to make a living during the pandemic, it is clear that Oakland cannot or will not prevent the negative consequences for the residents near Lake Merritt. Essentially, Oakland has been allowing unpermitted vending and a street party every weekend day during the warm weather months. The traffic and noise and litter impacts substantially degrade the quality of life for residents living near the Lake. If the vending is allowed to continue, it MUST be strictly controlled so that residents are not impacted. At most - allow it one weekend day per month. Move it to different parts of the Lake so that the same neighborhoods are not always bearing the brunt. Have a visible OPD presence to curtail illegal activity like sideshows and unruliness. Prevent cars from using the neighborhoods as a bypass to Lakeshore. It is not fair that the residents near the lake should be made to endure this level of negative impact week after week. The purpose of this vending was a short-term solution to allow people impacted by COVID to make money in terrible circumstances. With the pandemic abating, this activity should be scaled back accordingly. This should not be a permanent event. That is asking the residents around the lake to bear too much burden.

I have lived on Lake Merritt for 23 years. When I first moved , I hoped to live the rest of my life here. The last 2 years have become impossible. I threaten my spouse over and over again, “we must move away because I don’t want to live having to deal with the daily noise, abuse, and disregard for the residents from the very community I have supported.” after working hard, building a business in Oakland . It's obvious that paying property tax gets little support from the city to address those issues that plagued the Lake now. It is just getting worse by the week. It seems backward to emphasize turning the lake into a free-for-all circus thinking this is the way to make up for social reparations, only resulting in the mismanagement of city laws, and turning away from efforts to diminish what is socially right and wrong or what is black and white. This new direction is only going to create more mistrust and disregard between those of us who work for a living, respect the laws, pay our taxes and support our neighborhood. The's no simple way to create equality but diminishing my quality of life ,allowing trandom outbursts, loud amplified music late thru the night, disregard for the laws Oakland turns its back on all the work that was put into their creation.. Lake Merritt, known as the “Jewel of Oakland” has become the repository for nothing but garbage, noise, disrespect, and pollution. I support proposals that take Grand & Bellevue into consideration as well as Lakeshore.

I wholeheartedly support all the other comments that have been made and concur with the details shared regarding current life around the lake.
I see several distinct, but interrelated problem issues to be addressed -
A- the parking violations and traffic congestion around the lake, primarily on weekends
B- the noise violations, including music, fireworks, and car/motorcycle engines
C- management of the vendor locations and alcohol/cannabis sales
D- unsanitary and unsafe conditions in and around the park
E- late night noise and traffic violations in the area of the Bellevue boathouse.

It is heartening to see that the neighborhood and the city leadership are acting to address these issues as evidenced by these proposals. It is a start, but hopefully, also an indication that the neighborhood will not be "sacrificed," an absolutely unthinkable outcome.

I’ve lived on lakeshore for 11 years. It used to be a wonderful place to live. The weekends are now an onslaught of constant extremely loud noise, garbage and too many cars creating an unsafe environment.

The City’s failure to act has made the situation on lakeshore worse. Permissiveness has only invited more vendors from out of town along with people who want to party and trash the lake and leave. Closing the street on weekends helps a great deal, but as another commenter noted that once OPD picked up the cones at 6pm, the evening party crowd set up booths and bars in a hurry and stay till midnight, making a mess and playing loud amplified bass.

My apartment is shaking right now from bass. Car alarms are set off every 5-10 mins from motorcycles.

It isn’t safe to ride a bicycle on lakeshore. People hang out next to their cars in the median. There is human waste everywhere.

City workers are threatened by vendors — I am shocked this is tolerated. None of this behavior is congruent with a public park.

I have lived on Lakeshore Ave for over a decade. As others have already highlighted in their comments, what is occurring at Lake Merritt is untenable: every Saturday and Sunday with decent weather there is noise, garbage, reckless driving, public intoxication, people urinating and defecating in the landscaping (the City's and on private property), the smell of exhaust from idling vehicles, and difficulty accessing the area due to traffic and parking violations. The pilot program from last year helped (although as others pointed out it had short comings). Since the program ended, things have reverted to where they were, or even gotten worse. The City of Oakland needs to act, NOW to address the situation. For instance, on Lakeshore today (3/28( by 10:15 am from Wayne Ave to the Pergola by 10:15 am the middle lane was full of illegally parked cars, the entire sidewalk was lined with vendors and there was no parking on Lakeshore. Throughout the day, the area impacted by illegally parked cars and traffic has expanded and noise (amplified noise and vehicular noise especially motorcycles) has increased throughout the day. This precludes any one from the park-like use of the lake, and effectively traps residents in their homes with no respite from the noise or forces us to leave for the entire day if we don't want to endure it. Then, in the morning we will be left with piles of garbage and human waste lining the streets and floating in the lake. Please take action on this.

As a Lake Merritt neighbor desperate for an end to the past year's chaos, I support this effort, but I believe there have to be better solutions. First, this is not solely a weekend day problem. The unregulated vending, noise, litter, partying, and illegal parking are increasingly common on weeknights. During the pilot in the fall, the crazy driving and the house-shaking noise picked up as soon as OPD left and continued well into the evening--does this plan include any provision for evenings? Second, even if there are permits for amplified sound, neighbors should not be subjected to that every Saturday and Sunday. Farmer's markets only operate for half a day, one day a weekend, and don't usually include amplified concerts. Why should we treat these vendors differently? I'm glad the City wants to support Oakland residents affected by the pandemic, especially the Black and brown communities who were already vulnerable. But if that's the goal, why not provide direct economic support? And I do want to reduce contacts between OPD & communities of color, but enforcement has to be part of the picture when people are doing wheelies down Lakeshore. Turning the Lake into a permanent weekend mall / outdooor bar / food court / concert venue is not the answer. Let's make the Lake a place for families to chill out in safety and peace again.

Actions to support the safe and equitable use of Lake Merritt need to be comprehensive and address all areas of the Lake. I live on the Grand Ave side of the Lake where amplified music emanating from the Lake Merritt Boathouse parking lot area is out of control. It is severely impacting the safety and well-being of Lake residents and visitors alike. It must be stopped.

Early in covid the parking lot became a favorite of roller skaters. The large empty space was perfect for this wonderful, covid-safe, outdoor activity. However, the small-but-consistent, quiet crowds drew the attention of DJs. Now DJs appear 5 to 7 days a week. They start pumping out loud amplified music in the early afternoon and continue late into the night. Families and young skaters are replaced at dusk, or earlier, by young adults gathering to use the space as a party site. The music typically gets louder in the evenings, fueled by alcohol consumption. The party atmosphere attracts others, notably cars who race in both directions on the one-way Bellevue Ave and engage in side-show activity, adding their engine noise to that of the amplified music.

Bellevue Ave in the Park, from the Boathouse to Fairyland, has clearly become an identified party location where anything goes. The city must address this and take steps to stop this abuse of the Park. Closing Bellevue at both the Fairyland and Perkins St gates at night would be a good start, and OPD enforcement is critical.

We are part of the residential community around the Lake. We love people coming to enjoy the park: all kinds of people. Young, old, different
sizes, different colors, now things at the Lake are totally out of control. Sunday, we went out on an errand and drove up BelleVue from Lake to Grand. There was double parking the entire way. No way a fire truck could get through. The we turned on to Grand and , again, double parking to Pergola. The new food trucks at Grand and BelleVue are causing this as people leave their cars to buy food. It feels like nobody cares about the residential community. At your last meeting, Carol Fife said white people just don’t want see black people! That is offensive. We live in Oakland because of the diversity. I don’t care if the people breaking rules are from Norway. The Lake is out of control and there is no accountability.
The amplified music is out of control. I thought it was against the rules of the park. When rules are not enforced, people take liberty and chaos can prevail! Motorcycles around the Lake,
rev and rev and rev right in front of the bird sanctuary. There are multiple people living in their cars on BelleVue.
One gentleman, who lives in a van, has three or four dogs who start barking at dark thirty and bar all day long. The usually are not leashed and run wild in the park causing other dogs, leashed, to bark wildly. Of course we share the park with everybody, but the park is no longer a park. It has become a continuous festival.

The jewel of Oakland. Formerly, Lake Merritt was stunningly beautiful, a place where all of Oakland met to walk, enjoy nature, experience the sunset, and hold family reunions and prayer services. It was a economic asset that brought businesses and jobs to our City and kept them here. It was an ecological asset protected by a network of civic organizations for which the lake provided purpose.

Now, it has become a source of chaos and stress, a free-for-all that sets a tone and a bad example. A relatively small number of people with jacked-up mufflers and powerful amplifiers have claimed Lake Merritt as their turf and they trash it. The people who live here, our pets, our elderly, and our children do not feel safe. Reckless driving, fireworks that explode against our windows, and sleeplessness leave us traumatized. The vibrations that shake our buildings and rattle our windows also shake and rattle our brains.

Structure, through enforcement, is the way to reduce people's anxiety and improve their behaviors.

I know it is difficult for council members to imagine and empathize. So, you are invited to visit my home on any warm and sunny Sunday at about 6 pm. I will provide drinks and snacks, although conversation will not be possible.

I love Oakland, and I want to be the change. Council President Bas and city staff have proposed a creative, equitable, feasible, and sustainable solution that protects investments made by the City of Oakland and Oakland's residents.

Every weekend, I'm baffled at how law enforcement, the Mayor of Oakland, City of Oakland leadership can turn their backs on what is happening at Lake Merritt. It's an embarrassment for firetrucks to not be able to get down Lakeshore to address an emergency because of cars illegally parked. This Saturday, a car was parked, unattended, at a stop sign. Parked. At a stop sign. Cars block the bike lane all along Lakeshore - this is a public safety nightmare. Cars park in the median. All day. With no repercussions. Another public safety nightmare. Last weekend, some girls decided my complex's carport would suffice as their toilet - and that wasn't the first time. If this were happening in the Mayor's neighborhood, would it be allowed? If this were happening on Broadway, would it be allowed? Why is it allowed on Lakeshore? DO something. Enforce the laws that are already on the books. Money from the parking citations that should be given out could support this project.

I'd prefer the vending go away unless it's tethered to a special event. The farmer's market has a set time and set place for one day, and it requires permits and is managed. On Sunday, the farmer's market area is completely empty. Could the vendors use that space (with a permit process)? Or, they could be moved to the huge field across from the farmer's market parking lot by the playground. I would love to just enjoy the lake on the weekend without it being a weekly flea market/festival environment.

This proposal is an important start in the effort to improve the lives of Oakland residents, protect the lake and it's visitors, and equitably address Oaklanders seeking a livelihood through vending.

I've lived on Lakeshore Ave. near Bowden for the past 3 years. Conditions in this once-peaceful neighborhood of apartments have become intolerable for residents and alienating to visitors, with the constant Fri-Sunday amplified noise, blocked streets, overflowing trash, sideshows and burning rubber, and public toileting. This was once a space where families came to picnic and BBQ lakeside. Grassy space on the tiny slice of park on Lakeshore is now used exclusively by wall-to-wall vending from the Pergola to Brooklyn and beyond. Now even residents can't sustain indoor conversations or visits by friends any weekend from 3 to 8 PM. Wall-vibrating vehicle noise and high-intensity party music from speakers pointed at apartments force the lucky among us to leave our homes. Fireworks season is approaching: we fear for the kind endangerment last July brought to this street.

It feels like the neighborhood is being sacrificed by the City. Even the simplest enforcement of rules re. traffic, parking, and noise -- simply ORGANIZING the vending (hours, location, permits) -- would make a big difference. The lake and park is a precious urban resource, and a sustainable residential neighborhood should treated as an asset by the City, not make its residents feel like their lives don't count.

As public school teachers, community members, and new parents we have found that this area has become unsafe and obnoxious. The twice weekly concert at the Black Solidarity Market literally shakes our walls. This is a park, and wildlife refuge, not a festival ground. We have been harassed, and this week attacked while going for a walk. The bike lanes are blocked, there is urine everywhere, and there is one big party 2-3 days per week. This is not the inclusive Oakland we love. We have the laws in place, all we ask is that you enforce them. One possible solution is for a permitted market on Sundays where the farmers market takes place.

As 30-year Oakland residents, 28 years in Montclair and 2 years at the Lake we write to express our complete dismay at conditions in the club de sac. Noise at all hours of the day-today, March 28 loud music played in front of our building until 5:00 AM, but this is almost a daily occurrence and the road itself is like s speedway with cars doing donuts and knocking down fire hydrants. There is essentially no policing of the city's own ordinances on amplified noise and speed. The medical impacts of noise are clear: loud noises kill. Like many other residents we are ready to move to the suburbs and the council should not let this happen.

Next week, I look for a new place to live because I cant go though another summer like last year.

By moving, I give up affordable rent, a community I've been a part of for almost 15 years and an apartment I've enjoyed living in...up until last may.

I'm black, working class and a mentor to young students of color in the community - with that come long hours of work, weekend mentoring sessions and exhaustion.
My weekends have been ruined because I can no longer count on then to be chill and (relatively) quiet like they used to be.

The scene at the lake has turned into something that I and most of my friends and neighbors avoid.
The vibe ain't always right - it's been allowed to devolve into something that doesn't resemble the community-minded events like the "Fab Bam" parties or the "BBQing While Black" events where the organizers helped manage and made sure our parks were cleaned after the festivities ended.

I really hope I don't have to move, I can't really afford to, but I don't have much confidence in the city's willingness to stay ahead of this and create an equitable space fo all to enjoy.
The people who are driving residents away from their homes are above reproach, no enforcement of the same laws us residents have to comply by, and their reckless and dangerous behavior goes unchecked.
Trust me, the Bay Area know that Lake Merritt is where anything goes and they are bringing that energy every weekend (and on weekdays as well) because the city does nothing.

Imagine you are lucky enough to have found a place to live, and it happens to be near Lake Merritt. Imagine you’ve worked really hard all week. Now imagine how, on your two precious weekend days off, you do not have one moment of peace! You’re not able to open windows because you’re not able to hide from amplified music or revving motorcycle engines. Your weekend is shattered.
That’s what it’s like to live here. And please, please, please don’t reply “the park is for every Oaklander,” because I couldn’t agree more.
But this is what I know. Groups of non-Oakland motorcyclists race through neighborhoods, blasting music as they do. These motorcyclists park in middle lanes and block traffic. These motorcyclists rev their very large and very noisy engines as they try to navigate extremely crowded streets. And that revving thunder bounces and reverberates off buildings, as it’s doing as I’m writing this at 8:15 pm after a full day of the same. There is not a moment of peace on the weekend. Does this seem fair to you?
We lake-people, renters, owners, and homeless alike, deserve better. The poor migratory birds deserve better. Being tortured by these out-of-town groups is not fair. It is not right. Why doesn’t anybody care? WE are Oakland.

I think we have tried the ambassador Program last year without any success or impact. Police enforcement with citations will be necessary to get the situation under control at first.

I think this is a great step in the right direction. I live on Lakeshore Ave., and with the constant noise from the amplified music as well as the constant motorcycle stunt driving, it's impossible to relax or focus on anything with the noise in my apartment and the vibration of my windows, let alone all the safety hazards that come from all the traffic crowding the meridians. I support vending as long as the amplified noise issue is taken into consideration–I would love for us all to be good neighbors and support each other in this time of need.