Letter from Rotary Nature Friends
May 18, 2019
Dear Members of the City Council, and Mayor Schaaf,
As a citizens group supporting the Rotary Nature Center at 600 Bellevue in Lakeside Park, The Rotary Nature Center Friends implore you to halt the Mayor’s planned budget cuts in maintenance funding and staffing for Oakland Public Works. Those cuts will adversely affect the Rotary Nature Center and all of the parks in Oakland.
We note that:
As a citizen’s group, we supported the Rotary Nature Center Framework, Shared Vision and Priorities articulated by OPR&YD’s Director Nicholas Williams and the RNC CORE group in June 2018. Support by the City is needed to make them a reality.
Halt this ill-advised cut to Oakland’s Public Works staffing for parks. Support use of the Soda Tax Fund for parks.
Sincerely,
The Rotary Nature Center Friends (RNCF)
Katharine M. Noonan, Co-chair; David Wofford, Member; Lain Hart, Secretary
The Rotary Nature Center Friends is a citizen’s group that advocates for an inclusive, transparent planning process for the Rotary Nature Center under the direction and approval of OPR&YD for an interpretive education and science center for Lake Merritt for the people of Oakland.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Letter from Measure DD Community Coalition
May 21, 2019
Dear members of the City Council, and Mayor Schaaf,
This is to report that those in attendance at the May 20, 2019 meeting of the Oakland Measure DD Community Coalition adopted the following position statement:
The Oakland Measure DD Community Coalition urges full funding and immediate filling of all Public Works parks maintenance positions. We strongly oppose the freezing of 8.5 FTE. As one of the previously most-drastically-cut, yet smallest sectors of the general budget, and at the same time a sector which serves a huge number of residents, maintenance should be funded fully. (Although park acreage has increased, "park maintenance staffing is only 60% of what it was in 1970"—2018 Report on the State of Maintenance of Oakland Parks.)
Citizens and organizations participating in the Measure DD Coalition, together with others, advocated for, passed, and are monitoring $198,000,000 of capital improvements and additional leveraged funding that DD has made possible. For years we have worried that this investment is at risk due to inadequate maintenance. As new facilities are completed, cutbacks have threatened their usability. At the same time that parks usage has gone up, maintenance has been reduced. For the last 3 years, the City Council appropriated a $400,000 supplement for
enhanced lake area maintenance. That supplement is needed now more than ever.
Any reductions in staffing will decrease the operational effectiveness and efficiency of OPW park maintenance staff and cause further decline of city parks with reduced mowing, weeding, planting, minor irrigation repair, litter pickup, and general landscape maintenance. Blight, illegal dumping, vandalism, and homeless encampments make park areas unusable.
Unmaintained parks are havens for crime. Alternatively, park maintenance is an integral part of enhancing health and public safety. Our parks provide some of the few free activities that everyone can enjoy. They provide outdoor space, exercise, light, air, and social activities, and create green oases and water access amid increasingly-paved surroundings. Furthermore, penny- wise is pound foolish: In maintaining our parks, money is saved by avoiding more costly repairs.
As Oakland grows denser, its people use the parks more intensively, requiring further improvements, and even more maintenance to keep up with the current state of our public lands.
For the continued health, beauty, and utility of the City's parks, we urge fully funding and promptly filling all parks maintenance positions.
Thank you for your consideration.
Transmitted on behalf of the Oakland Measure DD Community Coalition, William Threlfall , Coalition Administrator
____________________________________________________________
Letter From Oakland Parks and Recreation Foundation
Dear Oakland Parks Supporter,
As many of you know, Mayor Schaaf has issued her proposed 2019 - 2021 budget. We applaud and appreciate Mayor Schaaf and city staff who worked long hours to assemble a balanced budget proposal.
There are items in this budget related to our parks that we support, and items that we disagree with.
We support the proposal to use funds from the voter-approved soda tax (SSBT) to bolster the budget of the Oakland Parks, Recreation and Youth Development department (OPRYD). The proposed use of SBBT funds will allow OPRYD to expand programming for aquatics, girls sports, community fitness hours, and more. The funds will also allow OPRYD to meet higher demand for the Town Camp summer program, offered at 15 recreation centers throughout the City. The soda tax was approved with the understanding of most voters, that funds raised by the tax would be used to provide programming and services to improve Oaklanders' health. OPRYD provides critical programming to promote the health of our children. Without SSBT funding, OPRYD will not be able to meet increased community demand for its services and programs. We urge all Oakland Parks Supporters to contact their city council representatives to support using these funds in the manner proposed by Mayor Schaaf.
We respectfully disagree regarding the mayor's call to cut funding for 8.5 FTE's in the parks division of the Oakland Public Works Administration (PWA). As Mayor Schaaf acknowledges in her budget, this proposal would "negatively impact our ability to maintain park facilities and grounds." Our report Continuing Crisis shows that some very-modest improvements in parks maintenance have been made over the past two years. We cannot afford to turn back just as some momentum around this issue has been achieved. These 8.5 positions should be filled, not cut. As the mayor's budget states, "although these positions are currently vacant, the salary savings has been used to do this maintenance work using over-time hours." The loss of this funding would have devastating effects on the state of maintenance for our parks, parks facilities, and sports fields. We urge all Oakland Parks Supporters to contact their city council representatives to voice support for funding and hiring to fill the 8.5 maintenance positions.
Thank you for your support!
Sincerely,
Ken Lupoff
Executive Director
Oakland Parks and Recreation Foundation
Supporting Parks and Recreation Programs for Everyone in Oakland.
______________________________________________________________
Letter from Lake Merritt Advocates,
I write to bring to your attention an opportunity to speak out for our beloved Lake Merritt and it's surrounding parklands, which are at risk of being damaged in the just initiated Oakland Budgeting process for '19-'21. The Mayor's proposed budget was presented at the Tuesday May 7th City Council meeting. This budget proposal is dire for parks. Shockingly, Parks & Recreation is the only department that is slated for "cutbacks"
** 8.5 FTE gardener staff will be "frozen" i.e., ("not re-filled," including 5 currently vacant positions) ... All other departments will be maintained at current staffing levels
** Fire and Planning will have additional staff positions.
** 45 to 55 small city parks will receive no maintenance over the 2 year budget period.
IMPORTANTLY, there is time for you to weigh in on the budget
** Contacting the City Council to voice your opinion is a priority; hearing from the public can influence their thinking as they engage in the process
** At a Special Session on June 10th 5 pm, City Hall Chambers, the City Council President will present the City Council's budget.
** By June 30th these two budget's the Mayor's and the Council's must come together.
Lake Merritt is the public asset that has brought our group together. The essential LMA organizing principle is to build a coherent "voice" for Lake Merritt. We can be that voice. We who enjoy and use Lake Merritt, who treasure the gift that it is every day in the lives of thousands of Oakland residents need to advocate for Lake Merritt. Today, if you value this asset, you can speak out, on behalf of your organization and encourage your members to join you in doing so.
To help you form and voice your opinion, below are:
Excerpts from the policy budget:
“To balance the shortfall in the Landscaping and Lighting Assessment District (“LLAD”) --which
supports City services including street lighting, parks maintenance, and recreational facilities--
this budget freezes 8.5 FTEs, which will negatively impact our ability to maintain park facilities
and grounds. We must acknowledge that revenues in the LLAD have not increased for more
than 30 years, and the continued deficit in the LLAD is no longer sustainable. Addressing
this challenge will require us to prioritize the development of a new revenue measure that can
close the ongoing deficit in the fund and provide much needed improvements in our parks
facilities, grounds, and programs.”
“The Resolution authorizes and directs the City Administrator to explore and provide options for submitting a new revenue measure to the electorate that will provide facilities, programs, trees, and open spaces and related City services ,,,”
Taking action to support Lake Merritt is fundamental to Lake Merritt Advocates. Thank you for investing in doing so and in gathering others to join you. This work will pay off as we exercise our citizenship, standing for the quality of care for the public asset we love.
In partnership,
Mary Ellen Navas, Jennie Gerard, John Kirkmire
May 18, 2019
Dear Members of the City Council, and Mayor Schaaf,
As a citizens group supporting the Rotary Nature Center at 600 Bellevue in Lakeside Park, The Rotary Nature Center Friends implore you to halt the Mayor’s planned budget cuts in maintenance funding and staffing for Oakland Public Works. Those cuts will adversely affect the Rotary Nature Center and all of the parks in Oakland.
We note that:
- the Rotary Nature Center has just recently reopened after 2 years of closure for deep cleaning. OPR&YD found that necessary after decades of dwindling maintenance and staffing. It is an example of what can happen to our historic parks if not maintained.
- through on-site surveying (tabling), the Rotary Nature Center Friends has determined that between 300-600 Oaklanders from all areas of Oakland pass by the RNC per hour on a given weekend afternoon, consistent with independent study by PRAC Commissioner Corbin. (Capital Improvement Program proposal submitted by RNCF in October 2018).
- Lakeside Park is a central meeting place for all generations to engage in healthy exercise, relaxation, meeting one another and to collaborate on projects and events that create a common community spirit in our ethnically and economically divided city. For that parks are unequaled.
- loss of staffing in surrounding parklands will put at jeopardy the recent upgrades at the Rotary Nature Center (painting, flooring, yet to be accomplish bathroom repairs, and nascent programming). There will be less formal and informal supervision.
- the grounds around the Rotary Nature Center including the wildlife refuge bird yard are maintained by OPW. Cuts in staffing will impoverish our stewardship of this historic legacy site.
- the Rotary Nature Center has historically partnered with the Marsh Corpew Garden Center, the Lake Merritt Boating Center, and looks forward to partnering with the Junior Art and Science Center.
- If the condition of parklands continues to deteriorate, it will affect the attractiveness of these areas and the City of Oakland as a whole.
As a citizen’s group, we supported the Rotary Nature Center Framework, Shared Vision and Priorities articulated by OPR&YD’s Director Nicholas Williams and the RNC CORE group in June 2018. Support by the City is needed to make them a reality.
Halt this ill-advised cut to Oakland’s Public Works staffing for parks. Support use of the Soda Tax Fund for parks.
Sincerely,
The Rotary Nature Center Friends (RNCF)
Katharine M. Noonan, Co-chair; David Wofford, Member; Lain Hart, Secretary
The Rotary Nature Center Friends is a citizen’s group that advocates for an inclusive, transparent planning process for the Rotary Nature Center under the direction and approval of OPR&YD for an interpretive education and science center for Lake Merritt for the people of Oakland.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Letter from Measure DD Community Coalition
May 21, 2019
Dear members of the City Council, and Mayor Schaaf,
This is to report that those in attendance at the May 20, 2019 meeting of the Oakland Measure DD Community Coalition adopted the following position statement:
The Oakland Measure DD Community Coalition urges full funding and immediate filling of all Public Works parks maintenance positions. We strongly oppose the freezing of 8.5 FTE. As one of the previously most-drastically-cut, yet smallest sectors of the general budget, and at the same time a sector which serves a huge number of residents, maintenance should be funded fully. (Although park acreage has increased, "park maintenance staffing is only 60% of what it was in 1970"—2018 Report on the State of Maintenance of Oakland Parks.)
Citizens and organizations participating in the Measure DD Coalition, together with others, advocated for, passed, and are monitoring $198,000,000 of capital improvements and additional leveraged funding that DD has made possible. For years we have worried that this investment is at risk due to inadequate maintenance. As new facilities are completed, cutbacks have threatened their usability. At the same time that parks usage has gone up, maintenance has been reduced. For the last 3 years, the City Council appropriated a $400,000 supplement for
enhanced lake area maintenance. That supplement is needed now more than ever.
Any reductions in staffing will decrease the operational effectiveness and efficiency of OPW park maintenance staff and cause further decline of city parks with reduced mowing, weeding, planting, minor irrigation repair, litter pickup, and general landscape maintenance. Blight, illegal dumping, vandalism, and homeless encampments make park areas unusable.
Unmaintained parks are havens for crime. Alternatively, park maintenance is an integral part of enhancing health and public safety. Our parks provide some of the few free activities that everyone can enjoy. They provide outdoor space, exercise, light, air, and social activities, and create green oases and water access amid increasingly-paved surroundings. Furthermore, penny- wise is pound foolish: In maintaining our parks, money is saved by avoiding more costly repairs.
As Oakland grows denser, its people use the parks more intensively, requiring further improvements, and even more maintenance to keep up with the current state of our public lands.
For the continued health, beauty, and utility of the City's parks, we urge fully funding and promptly filling all parks maintenance positions.
Thank you for your consideration.
Transmitted on behalf of the Oakland Measure DD Community Coalition, William Threlfall , Coalition Administrator
____________________________________________________________
Letter From Oakland Parks and Recreation Foundation
Dear Oakland Parks Supporter,
As many of you know, Mayor Schaaf has issued her proposed 2019 - 2021 budget. We applaud and appreciate Mayor Schaaf and city staff who worked long hours to assemble a balanced budget proposal.
There are items in this budget related to our parks that we support, and items that we disagree with.
We support the proposal to use funds from the voter-approved soda tax (SSBT) to bolster the budget of the Oakland Parks, Recreation and Youth Development department (OPRYD). The proposed use of SBBT funds will allow OPRYD to expand programming for aquatics, girls sports, community fitness hours, and more. The funds will also allow OPRYD to meet higher demand for the Town Camp summer program, offered at 15 recreation centers throughout the City. The soda tax was approved with the understanding of most voters, that funds raised by the tax would be used to provide programming and services to improve Oaklanders' health. OPRYD provides critical programming to promote the health of our children. Without SSBT funding, OPRYD will not be able to meet increased community demand for its services and programs. We urge all Oakland Parks Supporters to contact their city council representatives to support using these funds in the manner proposed by Mayor Schaaf.
We respectfully disagree regarding the mayor's call to cut funding for 8.5 FTE's in the parks division of the Oakland Public Works Administration (PWA). As Mayor Schaaf acknowledges in her budget, this proposal would "negatively impact our ability to maintain park facilities and grounds." Our report Continuing Crisis shows that some very-modest improvements in parks maintenance have been made over the past two years. We cannot afford to turn back just as some momentum around this issue has been achieved. These 8.5 positions should be filled, not cut. As the mayor's budget states, "although these positions are currently vacant, the salary savings has been used to do this maintenance work using over-time hours." The loss of this funding would have devastating effects on the state of maintenance for our parks, parks facilities, and sports fields. We urge all Oakland Parks Supporters to contact their city council representatives to voice support for funding and hiring to fill the 8.5 maintenance positions.
Thank you for your support!
Sincerely,
Ken Lupoff
Executive Director
Oakland Parks and Recreation Foundation
Supporting Parks and Recreation Programs for Everyone in Oakland.
______________________________________________________________
Letter from Lake Merritt Advocates,
I write to bring to your attention an opportunity to speak out for our beloved Lake Merritt and it's surrounding parklands, which are at risk of being damaged in the just initiated Oakland Budgeting process for '19-'21. The Mayor's proposed budget was presented at the Tuesday May 7th City Council meeting. This budget proposal is dire for parks. Shockingly, Parks & Recreation is the only department that is slated for "cutbacks"
** 8.5 FTE gardener staff will be "frozen" i.e., ("not re-filled," including 5 currently vacant positions) ... All other departments will be maintained at current staffing levels
** Fire and Planning will have additional staff positions.
** 45 to 55 small city parks will receive no maintenance over the 2 year budget period.
IMPORTANTLY, there is time for you to weigh in on the budget
** Contacting the City Council to voice your opinion is a priority; hearing from the public can influence their thinking as they engage in the process
** At a Special Session on June 10th 5 pm, City Hall Chambers, the City Council President will present the City Council's budget.
** By June 30th these two budget's the Mayor's and the Council's must come together.
Lake Merritt is the public asset that has brought our group together. The essential LMA organizing principle is to build a coherent "voice" for Lake Merritt. We can be that voice. We who enjoy and use Lake Merritt, who treasure the gift that it is every day in the lives of thousands of Oakland residents need to advocate for Lake Merritt. Today, if you value this asset, you can speak out, on behalf of your organization and encourage your members to join you in doing so.
To help you form and voice your opinion, below are:
- an excerpt from the Mayor's policy budget that identifies the proposed lamentable action of freezing the open positions of 8.5 FTE's (Full Time Equivalent employees) further reducing the already bare-bones Public Works staff who are responsible for maintaining the jewel of Oakland, Lake Merritt; Recognizing the burden of this decision the policy proposal goes on to direct the staff to develop a new revenue measure that would be put to voters to fund the much needed services and materials for park maintenance. These two actions are independent of each other. We do not support freezing the open positions and we do support the development of a new revenue measure.
- a list of the Oakland City Council Members with email and telephone contact information, as well as the schedule fo their budget forums; The two council members whose districts together encompass all the parkland around Lake Merritt are District 2 Councilmember Nikki Fortunato Bas and District 3 Councilmember Lynette McElhaney. The Council will deliberate on the mayor’s proposed budget, make its own adjustments, and then adopt a budget for FY ’19 – ’21 by the end of June. The time for your action is NOW, as the Council becomes familiar with the Mayors policy budget in preparation for their deliberation in June.
- to provide context, a link to the Mayor's proposed policy budget for '19-'21
Excerpts from the policy budget:
“To balance the shortfall in the Landscaping and Lighting Assessment District (“LLAD”) --which
supports City services including street lighting, parks maintenance, and recreational facilities--
this budget freezes 8.5 FTEs, which will negatively impact our ability to maintain park facilities
and grounds. We must acknowledge that revenues in the LLAD have not increased for more
than 30 years, and the continued deficit in the LLAD is no longer sustainable. Addressing
this challenge will require us to prioritize the development of a new revenue measure that can
close the ongoing deficit in the fund and provide much needed improvements in our parks
facilities, grounds, and programs.”
“The Resolution authorizes and directs the City Administrator to explore and provide options for submitting a new revenue measure to the electorate that will provide facilities, programs, trees, and open spaces and related City services ,,,”
Taking action to support Lake Merritt is fundamental to Lake Merritt Advocates. Thank you for investing in doing so and in gathering others to join you. This work will pay off as we exercise our citizenship, standing for the quality of care for the public asset we love.
In partnership,
Mary Ellen Navas, Jennie Gerard, John Kirkmire