Oakland Report’s Newsstand is a daily roundup of Oakland news from across the spectrum — a one-stop destination for readers to keep abreast of what’s happening in The Town. “I got 5” features the top five headlines we found interesting or notable this week.
1. Oakland city workers get ready to strike at union “strike school”
The city union representing professional and technical employees held a “strike school” this week to prepare Oakland city workers for a potential strike. International Federation of Professional and Technical Engineers (IFPTE) Local 21 has for months hinted at a possible strike if the city doesn’t approve pay raises and “civilianization” of police jobs, among other demands. Read more
2. Janani Ramachandran uses city job openings to lure applicants to her campaign website
Council member Janani Ramachandran (District 4) posted an “informational” video on her Instagram account describing City of Oakland job openings that don’t require a college degree, noting the pay rates and whether teens are eligible to apply. In the video, Ramachandran encouraged potential applicants to comment “JOBS” on her Instagram post to receive more information. Ramachandran then replied to those comments with a link to her campaign website’s homepage. Read more
3. The real reason Caltrans may open I-580 to big rigs
Caltrans says the case for lifting the ban on heavy trucks on I-580 is about relieving pollution on I-880. But its own recently released study shows keeping the ban in place would result in lower diesel pollution overall by 2035. The trucking industry has pushed to lift the ban for nearly 60 years — and now holds the only industry seat on the Caltrans study’s advisory committee. Read more
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4. “I got y’all”: Carroll Fife threads needle with angry data center opponents
Council member Carroll Fife (District 3) clashed with socialists at an anti-data center rally this week, after announcements that the former American Steel building in West Oakland was recently leased to Prometheus, an AI startup co-founded by Jeff Bezos, and an affiliate of Tesla owned by Elon Musk. Fife once opposed the reuse of the American Steel building for the “tech boom,” saying in 2022 that the building should be preserved for use by artist collectives. She now says, “I’ve not shared my perspective on data centers... because I’m forming it.” Read more
5. OUSD’s credit rating tanks
Oakland Unified School District received bad financial news this week as Fitch downgraded the district’s credit rating to a dismal BBB with a “negative” outlook for the current fiscal year. Ratings lower than BBB- are considered high yield “junk” investments, according to financial analysts. The district has recently assured that its finances have significantly improved, but the new credit rating appears to contradict those assurances. Read more
Oakland Report’s Newsstand reviews over 200 publications for items that Oaklanders may want to know or find interesting — including local government, politics, public safety, business, schools, arts and culture. Headlines are refreshed daily.