3 24-0391 Subject: Informational Report On Progress To Date On The Black Arts Movement And Business District (BAMBD) From: Councilmember Fife Recommendation: Receive An Informational Report On The Following: (1) An Accounting Of Available City Funds To (A) Implement A Series Of Public Streetscape Upgrades Along Oakland's Fourteenth Street Corridor To Uplift The Black Arts Movement And Business District (BAMBD); (B) Support Arts And Cultural Institutions In The BAMBD, Including Cornerstone Legacy African American Institutions; And (C) Create A BAMBD Business Improvement District (BID) For Ongoing Revenue Generation For Tenant Support, Facade Improvement, Place-Making, Space Activation, Accessibility, And Safety Improvements Within The BAMBD; And (2) A Map That Establishes The Exact Boundaries Of The BAMBD And A List Of The Institutions Within The BAMBD Boundaries; And (3) A Proposal For Legislation, And A Proposed Timeline For Adoption, To Create A Special ("S") Zoning District Or Similar Zoning Control That Contains Measurable Standards For Development Projects To Meet The Intent Of The BAMBD And Ensure The Long-Term Vitality Of The BAMBD. - City of Oakland

Meeting: *Community & Economic Development Committee on 2024-05-14 1:30 PM

Meeting Time: May 14, 2024 at 1:30pm PDT

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Agenda Item

3 24-0391 Subject: Informational Report On Progress To Date On The Black Arts Movement And Business District (BAMBD) From: Councilmember Fife Recommendation: Receive An Informational Report On The Following: (1) An Accounting Of Available City Funds To (A) Implement A Series Of Public Streetscape Upgrades Along Oakland's Fourteenth Street Corridor To Uplift The Black Arts Movement And Business District (BAMBD); (B) Support Arts And Cultural Institutions In The BAMBD, Including Cornerstone Legacy African American Institutions; And (C) Create A BAMBD Business Improvement District (BID) For Ongoing Revenue Generation For Tenant Support, Facade Improvement, Place-Making, Space Activation, Accessibility, And Safety Improvements Within The BAMBD; And (2) A Map That Establishes The Exact Boundaries Of The BAMBD And A List Of The Institutions Within The BAMBD Boundaries; And (3) A Proposal For Legislation, And A Proposed Timeline For Adoption, To Create A Special ("S") Zoning District Or Similar Zoning Control That Contains Measurable Standards For Development Projects To Meet The Intent Of The BAMBD And Ensure The Long-Term Vitality Of The BAMBD.

View Report View Exhibit A View Exhibit B View Exhibit C View Exhibit D View Exhibit E

Eric Arnold 7 months ago
Support

Honorable Councilmembers, I urge you to continue to support CM Fife's efforts to cultivate the BAMBD.
Speaking as a member of the "Black Culture Keepers" group who developed the BAMBD resolution along with former CM McElhaney in 2016, and as a member of the DTO EQT "Equity Team" who led community outreach efforts and worked with the Planning Department to bring a social and racial equity lens to the Downtown Oakland Specific Plan in 2017-2018, I can reasonably say that City investment in the BAMBD has been a long time coming and is overdue. The ongoing displacement of African American residents and Black-owned businesses threatens to create a void in Oakland's cultural identity that has already eroded many event spaces and small businesses within the BAMBD, with others at risk of future displacement. Increased City investment into this cultural and business district can alleviate, mitigate, and reverse this unfortunate trend, and support existing businesses and cultural institutions while cultivating new growth and future development. Increased City support for BAMBD can only result in positive outcomes, such as increased visibility of cultural assets, and a tangible sense of cultural placemaking and place-keeping that will firmly establish the district as a destination for years and decades to come.
Respectfully,
Eric Arnold.