It does not make sense for anyone to lend a business or person money when they owe so much already.  Mr. Dellums, or should I say Mrs. Dellums, please do not insist on this. I am under the impression that you are not an expert on managing your own finances.  Merritt sounds like a poorly maintained sinking ship.  Whatever happened to common sense????? Political correctness in ruining society. Do I remember reading that the Black Muslim Bakery got money from the City too? 

Are there any other sources of money (foundations, grants, gifts, etc.) to help Merritt Bakery?    Jim Gonsalves and I used to eat there when we lived in the neighborhood.   Back in the day, we used to see various Oakland officials at the restaurant.

From a business perspective, we as taxpayers cannot afford to invest anymore money into Merritt Bakery.

Merritt continues to demonstrate that it is on willing to get its finances in order and make an honest effort to pay back the tax payers the money they loaned them.

Merritt’s main problems are it’s out of date décor, high prices and lack of fresh foods and ingredients. Why would anyone want to pay high prices to get frozen items reheated and fried when Denny’s is so much cheaper for the same things?

If Merritt wants help have them call Kitchen Nightmares, not the city.

While Oakland is facing laying off police officers due to budget cuts, and murders continue to go unsolved I don’t think we need to throw away anymore money on business that are failing for there lack of management and quality control.

It sucks for the people who work there but that's life.

It is an East Bay staple and I understand why some people don't want to see it close down, but I also completely agree with the above comments.  While this money is not coming from the same place as funding for police (that's the general fund...this is... some other kind of fund... sorry for lack of info... I'll find out more at the council meeting tomorrow night), it's still money that could be spent somewhere perhaps more worthwhile.  

I hate to see it go, but it is obviously not up with the times.  Throwing money at them just to help with cashflow and whatnot is not the solution.  Maybe they could be urged to work with a consultant to get themselves out of this mess. Ya know, teach a man to fish.  Don't even know if that's possible at this point though, which is very sad. =/

This is a great discussion, There are more good comments on the Oakland Local Facebook page, I'd like to understand what other businesses had such favorable loans and what the rationale is for giving this loan now--is there a way to help Merritt Bakery save itself and improve, or is this staving off an inpending closure? What will the City Council say? I have a suspicion they are going to approve the loan.

"On the other hand, this is a long-time Oakland institution, owned by a woman and person of color."

WOW! Is this a condescending comment, or what??? This basically states that women and people of color are lesser individuals and somehow handicapped by their limited intellect. If this woman has been in business for 35 years, she should know not to charge personal items to her company card. In fact she would have known this at least 34 years ago, or the first time she met with her accountant. This economic cycle is certainly cleaning house and maybe it is time to let this business die, as it probably should have years ago due to mismanagement. Sex or race is no excuse for mismanagement. The employees of this company should be angry that the Merritt Bakery owner for stealing from them for so long and should not expect the City to clean up her mess for their sake.

Lots of valid points from everyone above including Is This Necessary's comment "Sex or race is no excuse for mismanagement."

I very much agree with Jess's comments. I went to Merritt Bakery about two months ago after not having been there since about 1990. Nothing seems to have changed. The servers were absolutely lovely but the place feels so old and uninteresting. Call Gordon Ramsey!

The other bakery that's an Oakland institution, at least in my estimation, is Neldam's. They're making some monstrous changes including leaving the spot they've existed in for 80 years. They allude to getting some assistance from some cities. I wonder what that's all about. Anyone know? http://www.neldamsbakery.com/

 

 

Thanks for these comments, everyone. The news update is that the city is going to reconsider the loan on May 1st, but the Mayor really wants to make this loan--with some conditions. We'll have more on this later today.  As for Neldams--yes, this merits a story indeed.

I visited Neldam's this morning shortly before 7 am. After 80 years in Oakland, they are forcefully relocating to Pinole because their location is being turned into a grocery store. During my visit, I purchased 3 bakers dozens of assorted cookies ($6 per pack, $18 total) to take to an event, a package of 6 scones, and a package of 12 dinner rolls for a total cost of $26.85. I was assisted by one staff member and didn't observe other staff members on the premises. After remembering the news that Merritt Bakery had received an additional $150,000 in loans from the city of Oakland, I decided to head over there to give them the remainder of my business. I arrived shortly after 7 am. I purchased two dozen assorted cookies to take to another event for a total cost of $31.90. While the cookies I purchased at Merritt Bakery seemed slightly larger, I won't be convinced that the additional $13.90 was justified until I give them both the taste test. While I was at Merritt Bakery, I observed 4 employees and a manager. Two of the employees were enjoying an extensive conversation with each other. The employee waiting on me was very friendly and the manager was kind enough to ask me if I was being helped. There were very few customers in the bakery. I also noticed the business includes a bakery (i.e. cakes, cookies, pies, etc.), scoop ice cream, a to go counter, a restaurant, and bakery memorabilia for purchase. This attempt to be all things to all potential customers left me wondering about the focus of their business model. Given the confusing business focus, non competitive pricing, outdated decor, staffing model, relative close proximity of competition (i.e. grocery stores for baked goods and Grand Lake restaurants), and the reported concerns of the City Auditor, I have serious doubts that this business will ever be able to repay the city any of the money it has received in loans. As an Oakland taxpayer, I would rather have seen this money spent on schools and vital services.