Bellizzi’s recently-posted video has been receiving positive attention, both for its camera work and its content. If the flora and fauna are familiar, they should be: the backdrop is Lake Merritt.

When asked what inspired him to create the short piece, he responded that Lake Merritt has been instrumental in his recent focus on the horticultural aspects of permaculture — and that his  fascination with the colony of bees living and working there formed the basis for wanting to document some of their doings.

“Now with colony collapse and the myriad other issues: loss of territory, pesticides, mono-cropping… I’ve taken a deeper interest in trying to help them out as our lives and theirs are in the same interconnected boat, dependent on the pollination,” Bellizzi said in a recent email exchange with Oakland Local staff.

Perhaps one of the best things about the short piece — aside from its surprisingly smooth flight simulation and capturing of the characteristic busy-ness of the colony members — is that it seems especially hopeful and joyful. This also reflects its creator’s outlook. “I see a lot of potential taking place now with bees, especially here in the Bay Area, with education about them and helping them to have a home here in the hustle and bustle of the city, planting bee plants and understanding where we are and the ecosystem around us.”

And it will also be part of the statewide, national and global movement to ban fracking.

By now you’ve probably heard of fracking, short for hydraulic fracturing — a process of drilling deep into the earth’s surface and then sending millions of gallons of high-pressured water, sand and chemicals into the well to crack the underground rock formations and release petroleum and natural gas.

Currently the largest harvest from fracking is shale gas, recoverable reserves of which the U.S. Department of Energy estimates could total around 1.8 trillion barrels — a potentially staggering amount of energy that could help to contribute to U.S. energy independence and boost the economy for decades. That is the argument made by fracking advocates.

Those of us who have neither seen nor felt the direct impact of fracking likely have little concept of the sheer magnitude of the practice or the viscerally destructive, devastating quality of it. Fracking requires a mind-boggling volume of water — each well uses some three million gallons and may be refractured several times — and wells bore thousands of feet horizontally and vertically through the surface of the earth. Forests and public lands are cleared for drilling sites, trucks bearing heavy equipment and toxic waste trundle in and out of communities, and wastewater leaks into open pits. This large-scale production happens within hundreds of feet of schools, parks, reservoirs and homes  throughout the United States, with nearly 500,000 wells in total nationwide.

Hydraulic fracturing has been practiced for decades, but new technological advancements to tap hard-to-reach shale reserves have increased the fracking frenzy in the past decade. In California, an epicenter of fracking is the Monterey Shale oil reserve in the Central Valley, where oil wells coexist with our most fertile agricultural lands. In Colorado, where a friend of mine helped to lead an unprecedented citizens’ vote to ban fracking in the town of Longmont, tensions are high as the Colorado Oil and Gas Association, backed by the state of Colorado, engages in a distinctly lopsided political battle to access the gas and oil under Longmont.

There have been numerous citizen reports of air contamination through methane leaks, failures in the cement walls that isolate gas wells from water sources (leading in several cases to house explosions when gas leaked into tap water) and residents near fracking sites experiencing water contamination so great that they are literally able to light their tap water on fire. For the most part, however, these reports have gone unproven as the multibillion-dollar energy industry — ExxonMobil and the American Petroleum Institute included — continue to insist that there are no contamination risks associated with fracking.  At the same time, companies have sealed the details of suspected contamination cases from public review by privately settling lawsuits with landowners and plaintiffs.

So, about that party.

Organized by Underneath Us Performance Project, the anti-fracking party happens tonight in Oakland to serve as a conversation-starter. The gathering features pizza and discussion from 6:30 to 8 p.m., followed by a screening of Dear Governor Cuomo, a film that documents a protest concert organized to convince Governor Andrew Cuomo to ban fracking in the state of New York.

It was this film that originally inspired party organizer Jote Mahern to do something about fracking. “Fracking is an issue that encompasses land and water and air, so it threatens basically everything,” she said. “The film moved me to tears over and over.”

Mahern and co-organizer Utam Moses are interested in a model of movement-building that acknowledges the intensity of emotion that political and environmental issues can often elicit in people. Their aim is to include somatic and emotional exercises into their events, to interrupt what Mahern calls “negative feedback loops” that keep people too overwhelmed to act.

“First there’s outrage at learning about fracking,” Mahern said, “then determination to do something, then the feeling of overwhelm at the sheer magnitude of the problem, then folding back into normal life until you become re-outraged and re-overwhelmed. A lot of people shy away from the environmental movement completely because they don’t want to feel the intensity of the emotions or have their day derailed. So we’re trying to engage in pleasurable activities like performances and dance parties and connect to the element of celebration, too.”

Mahern and Moses first met through Kundalini yoga, which they say has a particular focus on the nervous system. Both also come from backgrounds in contact improv, theater and expressive arts, so combining all of those elements into a performance-based social change movement is the focus of their performance project, Underneath Us.

“We found that the basics of the [intentional movement] practices were extremely effective in changing spaces really quickly,” Moses said, “so we integrated that into our contact improv and theater practices.”

Along with tonight’s party, Underneath Us plans to host two experimental theater salons about fracking in July, both in Berkeley, that will each entail interactive installation pieces and audience participation. They are also hoping to organize more film screenings and informational house parties throughout the summer and will be participating in a Dear Governor Cuomo-like “festival of resistance” at Richmond’s Chevron Refinery in August.

Each of the upcoming events, naturally, will conclude with a good dance party. Tonight’s party will feature live sets by local groove-friendly musicians Meg Anderson and Moko Salados, among others. It’s the practice of using physical movement to build a sustainable political movement.

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MORE INFO:

WHAT: Momentum Dance Party: Get Fracking ACTIVE
WHEN: TONIGHT, Friday, June 14
WHERE: PLACE, 1121 64th St., Oakland
COST: $5-15 donation to support Food & Water Watch
MORE INFO: Facebook

Underneath Us is also hosting experimental theater salons on July 5 and July 13, and welcome involvement from anyone who wants to host a party or film screening and/or participate as a performer in the salons. They are also looking for dancers to join them at the protest at the Chevron Refinery on August 3.

For more information, visit underneathus.org or contact underneathusprojects@gmail.com.

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Oakland Social is a weekly arts and culture column devoted to upcoming events, new places, and narratives about going out in Oakland. Have ideas for what to cover? Contact goingout@oaklandlocal.com.

FRIDAY, JUNE 14

Litter Patrol Project
1 – 4 p.m.
1960 Mandela Parkway

Councilmember McElhaney will be co-hosting a cleanup with American Clothing Experiment, American Steel Studios, CORE Foods, and a dedicated group of people who live and work in West Oakland. Meet up between 12:30 p.m. and 1 p.m. on 20th street between Poplar and Mandela Parkway. All supplies will be provided. Lunch will be generously provided by 10th and Wood.

RSVP to anne@americanclothingexperiment.org.

West Oakland Parents Lead The Way
6 – 9 p.m.
McClymonds Youth & Family Center, 2607 Myrtle Street

Flatland parents address disparities and take on truancy, juvenile justice, teacher effectiveness, and nutrition in West Oakland schools.

For more information, please contact Carroll Fife at (510)435-7396, or visit www.ahc-oakland.org.

57th Street Gallery presents Barry Finnerty
8:30 – 11 p.m. (doors open at 5 p.m.)
57th Street Gallery, 5701 Telegraph Avenue

Barry Finnerty is an American jazz guitarist, keyboardist and bassist, best known for his work as a session musician for artists like Miles Davis and the Crusaders. He is also the author of two books on music improvisation. Musicians are Barry Finnerty on piano, bass and guitar; Peter Barshay on bass; Peter Horvath on piano; and Akira Tana on drums.

Admission is $15, with reservations recommended. For more information, please call 510-654-6974, email Contact@57thStreetGallery.com, or visit www.57thStreetGallery.com.

SATURDAY, JUNE 15

Koreatown Northgate Neighborhood Cleanup
10 a.m. – 12 p.m.
Interplay, 2273 Telegraph Avenue

Meet up to help clean up the neighborhood. Wear your KONO t-shirt or receive a free t-shirt if you do not have one yet. Lunch will be held at Telegraph Beer Garden at 12 p.m.

Please contact Shari Godinez at 510-343-5439 or 510-387-1989 with any questions.

Congresswoman Barbara Lee hosts A Place at the Table
1 – 3 p.m.
Oakland Museum of California, 1000 Oak Street

Please join Congresswoman Barbara Lee for a free screening of A Place at the Table, a documentary that brings the issue of hunger in America into focus through the stories of those living with food insecurity. The film will be followed by a panel discussion.

SUNDAY, JUNE 16

Father’s Day at Oakland Zoo
10 a.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Oakland Zoo, 9777 Golf Links Road

To celebrate Father’s Day, bring dear ol’ Dad to Oakland Zoo! Fathers get to ride the train for free on Father’s Day. Take a stroll to the Lion Deck, check out the alligator exhibit, or see the chimpanzees. Father’s Day at Oakland Zoo is a way to surprise Dad with a gift he will never forget.

For more information, please call (510) 632-9525, x100.

Dads and Jazz Concert
2 – 6 p.m.
Dunsmuir-Hellman Historic Estate, 2690 Peralta Oaks Court

The concert will feature Ric Alexander and the 2wo 4our 1ne Band. He has been nominated “Best Jazz Musician” for an East Bay Area Music Award and recently performed at six sold out shows at Yoshi’s. Alexander will be joined by Leah Tysee whose debut album, Real Good Fire was released in 2007 and features the song, “You Don’t Scare Me,” which won Billboard’s Best R&B/Blues Song of 2007 award.

This Dads and Jazz Series honors and celebrates fathers, and encourages a healthy active and fit lifestyle. It will be a day to not only honor fathers, but honor all men who have acted as father-figures, step-fathers, uncles, grandfathers, or Big Brothers. Every one will be able to enjoy great music, food, drinks, vendors and a free tour of the Mansion.

The program is held in partnership with East Oakland Sports Center, Lake Chabot Golf Course, and Get Blue 4 Life. Tickets are $20 Adults and $10 for children aged 12 years and under, available by visiting www.dunsmuir-hellman.com or calling 510-615-5555.

Spirit of the Zheng 10th Anniversary Zither Concert
7 p.m.
Oakland Asian Cultural Center, 388 9th Street, Suite 290

Come experience the music of China through the guzheng (Chinese zither). China’s Spirit Music Ensemble performs a vibrant, colorful and passionate program demonstrating ensemble and concerto arrangements of music from multiple regions.

Tickets are $15 or $25 advance purchase and $20 or $30 the day of the show. For more information, please call (415) 515-5797, email chinasspiritme@gmail.com, or visit www.winnieguzheng.com.

MONDAY, JUNE 17

4th Annual Oakland Senior Summer Free Day at the Oakland Zoo
10 a.m. – 4 p.m.
Oakland Zoo, 9777 Golf Links Road

Oakland residents 65+ receive free admission to Oakland Zoo. Seniors must be 65+ with valid identification and must be residents of Oakland. Oakland Zoo’s Senior Summer Free Days are in partnership with the Oakland Vice Mayor Larry Reid.

For more information, please call (510) 632-9525, x100.

TUESDAY, JUNE 18

Oakland City Council and Oakland Redevelopment Agency Meeting
5:30 p.m.
City Council Chambers, Third Floor, Oakland City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza

The City Council is the governing body of the City of Oakland, and consists of eight members who are elected directly by the citizens of Oakland: one representative from each of seven districts, and one at-large representative. The Council sets goals and priorities for the City, as well as approving the City budget, adopting ordinances to help the City serve its citizens, and appointing members to various boards and commissions. The City Council meets 2 to 3 times per month, on the 1st, 3rd, and 5th Tuesdays. A downloadable agenda is available at: http://clerkwebsvr1.oaklandnet.com/calendar/.

For more information, please call (510) 238-7370, or visit http://www2.oaklandnet.com/Government/o/CityCouncil/.

WEDNESDAY, JUNE 19

Local poets Jennifer Foerster and Shane Book at Diesel
7 p.m.
Diesel, A Bookstore in Oakland, 5433 College Avenue

Diesel, A Bookstore in Oakland welcomes local poets Jennifer Foerster and Shane Book to the store to read from their books Leaving Tulsa and Ceiling of Sticks.

For more information, please call (510) 653-9965 or visit http://www.dieselbookstore.com/oakland-info.

Allendale Park NCPC Meeting
7 p.m.
Allendale Recreation Center, 3711 Suter Street

For more information about this organization’s meetings, or to get on its mailing list, please email allendale_ncpc@yahoogroups.com.

Golden Gate NCPC 10X Monthly Meeting
7 – 8:30 p.m.
Golden Gate Recreation Center, 1075 62nd Street

This monthly meeting of the Golden Gate Neighborhood Crime Prevention Council recurs on the third Wednesday of each month, except for December.

For more information, or to get in touch with the organization, please visit http://groups.yahoo.com/group/NCPC-10X/cal.

THURSDAY, JUNE 20

Oakland City Council Rules & Legislation Committee
10:45 a.m.
Oakland City Hall, 1 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, Hearing Room 1

The Rules and Legislation Committee usually meets at this time on Thursdays (although it is recommended to confirm the day and time, as this is subject to change). A downloadable agenda is available at: http://clerkwebsvr1.oaklandnet.com/calendar/.

For more information, please call (510) 238-7370, or visit http://www2.oaklandnet.com/Government/o/CityCouncil/.

OFPC Work Group Meeting
5 – 7:30 p.m.
1000 Broadway, 5th Floor, Room A or B

The mission of the Oakland Food Policy Council (OFPC) is to establish an equitable and sustainable food system in Oakland. It strives to: ensure access to healthy, affordable food within walking distance of every Oakland resident; bring underserved neighborhoods to the food policy table and increase “food literacy” among Oakland residents; put food, hunger, and food systems on the City of Oakland’s agenda and contribute to the national dialog on food policy; and turn the Oakland food system into an engine for local economic development and involve local and regional agricultural communities.

For more information, please visit http://www.oaklandfood.org/.

Bicycle Pedestrian Advisory Committee Meeting
5:30 p.m.
Oakland City Hall, 1 Frank Ogawa Plaza, Hearing Room 4

Oakland’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Advisory Committee (BPAC) was chartered in 1995 to advise the City on the design of bicycle and pedestrian facilities and related issues. Members of the public are welcome to attend all or part of any BPAC meeting.

For more information, please visit http://www.oaklandpw.com/Page124.aspx.

Piedmont Avenue Stroll
6 – 9 p.m.
Piedmont Avenue

It’s the third Thursday of the month, and there will be music and lots of special activities in many of the stores and restaurants on Piedmont Avenue. It is great fun!

Melrose High Hopes NCPC Beat 27X
7 – 8:30 p.m.
Horace Mann School, 5222 Ygnacio

The NCPC is the main organizing group for the neighborhood. The Steering Committee, which is the NCPC leadership team, makes decisions about monthly meeting agendas and major events (e.g., speakers, priorities for OPD, elections, and projects like the Thanksgiving Food Drive, Annual Block Party, Courtland Creek Rejuvenation Project, Support for our Neighborhood School, Redevelopment on Foothill, and the like). The monthly meetings at Horace Mann School are a great opportunity to let the designated City Council Member and Community Policing Officers know about neighborhood concerns and engage them in helping the neighborhood.

For more information, please visit http://www.ncpcbeat27x.org/.

Events with Extras: How to leverage live events to build Social Media buzz for your brand
7 – 8 p.m.
Tech Liminal, 555 12th Street, #110

You put lots of energy into planning and creating an event. Let’s think about how events can have impact on a broader community than just the attendees. Social media has a role to play in promoting an event, and the event can in turn generate lots of rich content and engagement for your brand. Let’s talk about some strategies to make this happen for you.

Register here.

Marc Weingarten and Tyson Cornell at Diesel
7 p.m.
Diesel, A Bookstore in Oakland, 5433 College Avenue

Diesel, A Bookstore in Oakland welcomes editors Marc Weingarten and Tyson Cornell to the store to discuss and sign their new book, Yes is the Answer And Other Prog Rock Tales.

Progressive rock is maligned and misunderstood. Critics hate it, hipsters scoff at it. Yes Is The Answer is a pointed rebuke to the prog-haters, the first literary anthology devoted to the subgenre. Featuring essays by acclaimed novelists Rick Moody, Wesley Stace, Seth Greenland, Charles Bock, and Joe Meno, as well as musicians Matthew Sweet, Nathan Larson, and Peter Case, Yes Is The Answer is the first book that dares to thoughtfully reclaim prog-rock as a subject worthy of serious consideration.

For more information, please call (510) 653-9965 or visit http://www.dieselbookstore.com/oakland-info.

Bicycle Bingo benefitting SPAGGIA!
8 – 10 p.m.
Actual Cafe, 6334 San Pablo Aveune

Come out, have some fun with neighbors and raise some money for a community institution, SPAGGIA!, home of the community Yahoo! mailing list and so much more. Come learn what’s going on in the Golden Gate and how you can get involved. Most importantly, come have some fun, donate to a good cause, meet new and old neighbors, and win some fantastic bicycle bingo prizes.

For more information please visit the event page at https://www.facebook.com/events/657144097634103/.

Taking it all in last Sunday were thousands of people happily displaying their Oakland love — dancing, biking and strolling around Lake Merritt. Oh yes, and there were lots of happy dogs as well — although they, unlike their owners, didn’t know that the lake is a National Historic Landmark and the site of the nation’s oldest wildlife refuge.

We were all celebrating “Love Our Lake Day,” which featured the Lake Merritt Boulevard grand opening celebration, made possible by the passage of Oakland Bond Measure DD a decade ago. Our congresswoman, governor and mayor, among other dignitaries, were on hand with big smiles.

It was an especially satisfying event for me. During my very first week as the new Executive Director of Children’s Fairyland 11 years ago, I met with then-Councilmember Danny Wan, one of the people behind Measure DD. The bond measure had been inspired by the work of two of my favorite Oakland rabble-rousers and visionaries, Naomi Schiff and James Vann. These design and preservation activists, who were part of CALM (Coalition of Advocates for Lake Merritt), knew that we could do better than the slimy tunnel and pedestrian-unfriendly 12-lane mini-freeway at the 12^th Street end of the lake, and that removing the dam to return to a natural tidal flow could only be a good thing for our region’s abundant wildlife.

Danny asked me how Fairyland, a key feature of Lakeside Park, might use money from a possible bond measure. For starters, I told him, we could improve our drainage system and a lot of our decaying infrastructure. We could refurbish and expand our historic puppet theater, re-imagine a long-closed tunnel, and — a big dream — build the region’s only children’s performing arts theater.

Fairyland ended up being only a tiny part ($2.8 million) of a huge ($198 million) bond measure, but the opportunity for us was enormous. When Fairyland’s projects were completed three years ago, our wish list turned into dazzling reality.

I volunteered for the Measure DD campaign, and we were all amazed and delighted when the “Clean Water and Safe Parks” measure was approved by a whopping 80 percent of Oakland voters. With oversight by the Measure DD Coalition, 56 projects were undertaken, including the creation of the East Oakland Sports Center, creek restorations and the transformation of the Municipal Boathouse: all projects planned for the benefit and enjoyment of Oakland’s residents and visitors.

At the dedication ceremony last Sunday, Mayor Quan said she hoped that with the reinstatement of marshland around the lake we may once again have coral growing here — “a symbol of our renaissance.” Congresswoman Barbara Lee spoke of the amazing diversity of our city’s landscape, plants and animals — and of our people. “Nowhere is this diversity displayed more clearly than at Lake Merritt,” she said.

Governor Jerry Brown said the successful project demonstrated that “with enough money and good taste, you can do wonderful things.” Not even a heckler could dampen his enthusiasm. “Let’s give him a ride on the high-speed rail at 400 miles per hour,” the governor quipped. He closed by saying that Oakland is the best city in California, a statement that no one present was in a mood to dispute.

What followed next was a song performed by a young woman by the name of Andrea President. (“Yes, that’s my real name.”) “Oakland, You Are My Song,” speaks of the hard-working people and the physical beauty that make it the kind of place where “I’m proud to know my way around.”

Singer Andrea President (her real name) sings a song about Oakland at last Sunday’s Love Our Lake Day

Measure DD projects are not yet complete.  Major public arts projects are still underway: the 12^th Street Bridge pedestrian underpass, the 10^th Street Bridge Channel, the Lakeside Green Streets rain garden and the entrance gates for the Gardens of Lake Merritt.

But with the majority of the project completed, it was clearly time to celebrate, and we all did. As Naomi Schiff put it, “Sometimes the good guys win.” In this case, the good guys included private citizen-activists, the city of Oakland and other public agencies, and the voters who made it all happen.

At the end of the formal dedication, I sought out Joel Peter. As the Measure DD project director for a decade before his recent retirement, Joel had played a key role in the project’s oversight and ultimate success. Joel is a quiet and unassuming guy who never once seemed flustered by the many challenges of the job he had. On Sunday he was smiling. What was his favorite part of the many-faceted project, I asked him. “Every time I walk around the lake I stop in the middle of the pedestrian bridge and watch the water flow (from the estuary to the lake),” he said. It’s also a great view, he added.

Even in his retirement, which involves lots of hiking and sea kayaking, Joel can’t let go of his attachment to the lake. He and Jennie Girard, another of the project’s leaders from the very beginning, are members of the Lake Merritt Weed Warriors, who meet the last Saturday of each month to do the maintenance work that can’t be done by city workers.

If you love the lake as much these two committed people do, keep the love coming. All are invited. Learn more at facebook.com/LakeMerrittWeedWarriors.

The rate increase will phase in over two years:  9.75% in FY2014 and 9.5% in FY2015, for a cumulative increase of about 20%.  EBMUD’s website translates this, for the typical customer, to an additional $3.96 per month the first year and $4.19 more the second year.  Once the proposed increases are phased in, customers could see their water bills increase by almost $100 per year.

“What’s difficult is communicating the sum of all our budget pressures,” said Andy Katz, President of the EBMUD Board of Directors.  Both Katz and EBMUD’s Finance Chief Eric Sandler pointed to four factors leading to the need for this rate increase:

• Deferred maintenance: during years of recession, EBMUD has instituted a hiring freeze leading to a backlog of projects.
• Reduced water usage:  EBMUD customers conserve water at drought levels, using 20% less than before the last drought. “Regardless of whether you turn the tap on or use a high efficiency washing machine, the pipe that brings water to your house still needs to be maintained,” said EBMUD Spokesperson Abby Figueroa.
• The decline in new construction:  “A large portion of our cash flow comes from service capacity charges,” said Katz.  Sandler noted that the charges levied on new development have declined by 80%.
• Increases in energy and chemical costs: the inputs needed to turn river water into the East Bay tap water have gone up by a third.

Comparison of
EBMUD rates with 13 Bay Area water utilities

Fifty percent of the EBMUD’s 4200 miles of water pipes are 50 years old or older.  Many of the oldest pipes are in Oakland. Although Oakland accounts for less than 25% of the system, almost 37% (236 out of 638) of water main breaks in the past 12 months occurred in Oakland.

“We have an aging infrastructure,” said Katz.  “Priority number one for EBMUD’s next budget is to replace water mains so that we can prevent water mains from breaking.”

If EBMUD replaces 10 miles of pipe per year, as called for in the proposed budget (up from 8 miles now), it will take 210 years to replace the 50% of they system that are currently over 50 years old. “We’re catching the problem before the infrastructure falls apart,” Katz insisted.  He added that viability of the infrastructure replacement schedule was “an important question that I intend to ask on Tuesday.”

Figueroa reported that the utility had received 167 letters of protest in response to this rate hike.  By contrast, EBMUD received 847 letters of protest for a smaller rate increase in 2011.

“EBMUD is, at least theoretically, accountable to the voters,” said Stuart Flashman, a former EBMUD Director and an environmental and land use attorney.  “The problem with EBMUD, in my opinion, is that the elections are so low profile that there is rarely a contested election.”  Mindy Spatt of The Utility Reform Network (TURN), a consumer watchdog for privately owned California utilities, noted that “this points to a need for a consumer advocate” for municipal utilities.

“EBMUD is one of your more responsive water agencies, if not the most in California,” said Adam Scow, California Campaigns Director for Food and Water Watch.  He sees the infrastructure problem as bigger than one utility:  “A lot of cities and water agencies are facing really old infrastructure.  The whole country is.”  Scow added, “Water infrastructure is a federal, state and local responsibility.  It shouldn’t just fall on ratepayers.”

What do you think about EBMUD’s rate increase?  Let your board member know.

The Board Meeting is open to the public: Tuesday, June 11, 2013 at 1:15 p.m. in the EBMUD Board Room, 375 11th Street, Oakland, CA.

Executive Director, Oakland Rising

The beautiful possibility of Oakland is that there is real opportunity for everyone, not just people from some neighborhoods. Working together to build a 21st century Oakland we can be proud to call home means that we won’t leave anybody behind.

But the reality is that too many families in the flatlands are living on the edge of their dreams. Most are without good jobs, education and or opportunity for healthy livelihoods.

History shows we make great progress when we invest in a real partnership between our government and our people. As one of the most diverse cities in the nation, Oakland’s government has to work hand in hand with all communities to address all our people’s needs.

Oakland needs an authentic local democracy to tell elected officials what we want, and hold them accountable for making it happen. We should have votes that reflect our diversity and policies that make it easy for all of us to help make important decisions.

As the city moves to make its’ budgeting process more transparent and accountable, we can’t forget a critical priority for 2013 – redistricting.

Drawing new council and school board district lines after the Federal Census of 2010 is Oakland’s chance to protect neighborhoods and communities of interest while lifting up “one person, one vote” that ensures equal protection and representation.

Since our founding in 2009, Oakland Rising has fought to increase civic participation among low-income, immigrant and voters of color living in the flatlands of East and West Oakland. We have talked to over 50,000 residents and informed them about budget choices that create real public safety, security and opportunity.

Oakland is changing and I am deeply concerned about what I see. Poor, working class and people of color are fighting foreclosure, eviction, gentrification and displacement citywide (especially in West Oakland, Fruitvale, San Antonio and Deep East Oakland).

Flatland voters in these communities deserve better services and respect from city government. But that won’t happen if the city fails to involve residents in redistricting.

Redistricting should be about adjusting district lines in a way that reflect changes in population while keeping communities of interest together.

Building a brighter future in Oakland means nurturing places where we can live, work, play, learn, love, chill, jam, grow and hope together. It means honoring the history of our city, and cultivating trusting relationships between Oaklanders – old and new.

City government should prioritize responsible development that boosts beautiful neighborhoods, strong families, safe parks, excellent after-school programs, local arts, culture, and Oakland pride (without pushing people out). Anything less is not enough for this beautiful town!

That’s why Oakland Rising is partnering with Urban Strategies Council, ACCE, League of Women Voters and concerned residents to engage Oaklanders in learning more about Voting Rights, redistricting, and one person, one vote. Our coalition is honored to have received funding from the James Irvine Foundation to support this work.

You can learn more at www.oaklandvotes.org or by following #OaklandVotes on Twitter.

Editor’s Note: This piece reflects an individual opinion and is not a reported story from Oakland Local. Oakland Local invites community residents to share their views about events and issues in Oakland.

Scott was out of town with his wife and 6-year-old daughter on the morning of October 20, 1991.  His 13-year-old daughter was at a sleepover.

That morning, the Oakland Fire Department  was mopping up a grass fire they had put out the day before.  A hot, dry Diablo wind picked up embers that hadn’t been completely extinguished. “Within 3 minutes, it had caught the first house.  It was already out of control,” said Scott.

Only Frances was home on Alvarado Street.  A caretaker came for the day shift, prepared breakfast for her, and left to go to church.  By the time the caretaker returned, fire was licking across the dry hills and the police had set up barricades at the bottom of the street.   She couldn’t get through.

What followed were hours of frantic attempts to find Frances.  Scott’s older daughter called 911 to beg for rescuers to go to the house. Police told a family friend who rushed to the barricades that Frances had probably been evacuated to Alta Bates Hospital.

After fruitlessly searching area hospitals, Scott went on television with a photograph of his mother and a plea for information.

Scott couldn’t sleep Sunday night until he knew what had happened to his house. “We parked the car down near the Cal Campus and I walked through the neighborhoods,”  he recalled.  He was stopped by the police, who were patrolling for looters.  He set out again, more carefully, and was eventually able to walk across the hill in the dark. “As I was walking up the trail,” Scott said,  “there were all these crashing sounds of animals running through the forest in the dark.  It was very very weird.”

Where his neighbors’ houses had stood, he saw only little bonfires.  He didn’t see a bonfire where his house had been, which gave him hope.

Hope ended the next morning, when a friend loaned him binoculars to look across the canyon. “There was no doubt:  where our house had been was a gray patch on the ground.  The bay tree that had been in our front yard looked like a black hand sticking out of the ground.”

Two days later, with still no sign of his mother, Scott and his family tried to return to the site of their home to sift through the ashes for clues.  Refused access at barricades in both Berkeley and Oakland, they sat on a bus bench, frustrated.

What happened next is the stuff of spy novels:  An unmarked car drove up and the driver growled, “Get in.”  He drove them onto the closed freeway in the wrong direction.  When Scott asked, “You can do this?” the man said, “I can do anything.”  He dropped them on Alvarado Street and said, “Don’t tell anyone how you got up here,” before speeding away.

Sifting through the remains of the house, Scott’s older daughter found her grandmother’s remains. “It was traumatic,” he recalled.

While they were at the site, a Berkeley police officer approached them with a story to tell.  The officer had gone up to the house, seen Frances’ empty bed through the window, and assumed she had been rescued.  He went down the hill and was told that Frances had been on the phone from the house moments before.  The officer raced back but it was too late – the house was on fire.  Scott remembers the man almost in tears: “It really bothered him and he needed to talk to us just to have some closure for himself.”

“My view is that the fire was completely preventable,” said Scott.

A grand jury investigation after a 1970 fire that had come to within a block of his house, had three recommendations:
•    Convert hydrant hook ups to a standard size so mutual aide could use them;
•    Improve radio communications; and
•    Underground power lines for the pumps at reservoirs in the hills.
“After 21 years, the fire department hadn’t done any one of those things,” said Scott.  “We were really angry.”

Scott wanted to make a difference after the fire.  He instigated a new grand jury.  He joined committees and citizen advisory groups.  He was the first person to get a permit to the rebuild his house.  He drew up plans for 11 of his neighbors to rebuild their houses.

Some losses can’t be rebuilt.  Scott said his older daughter, “when she was 31, committed suicide, because of post traumatic stress.”  He noted that, “within a two block area of us on the hill, four people who were teenagers when the fire came have committed suicide.”

Almost 22 years later, the legacy of the fire is persistent. “I had two books in progress, I had done all the research.  All that was gone – just blown away.”  Scott lists irreplaceable items consumed by the fire:  “all my artwork, my architectural drawings, my grandmother’s paintings, my father’s photographs.”    He had just spent $130,000 remodeling to make the house more comfortable for his mother – money that was simply lost.  “It’s changed our lives,” Scott said.  “Everything we refer to is, ‘that was before the fire’, ‘that was after the fire.’  It was a gateway.”

FEMA map showing UC Berkeley treatment areas.

HCN’s main objection to the FEMA projects is UC Berkeley’s plan to eliminate eucalyptus groves from 300 acres of land owned by the University and the City of Oakland in Strawberry Canyon, Claremont Canyon and Frowning Ridge. “There is a concerted effort to identify this problem as caused by non-natives,” said Grassetti.  “We think this is a fraudulent use of money to advance ideological issues on public lands rather than an honest attempt to deal with the fire problem.”

David Maloney, a retired Oakland fire fighter who served on the Task Force on Emergency Preparedness & Community Restoration after the 1991 Oakland Hills fire, called the EIS “a land transformation plan which is masquerading as a fire hazard reduction plan,” adding, “It stands fire science on its head.”  Maloney noted that, in the Oakland Hills fire, “the radiant heat from the houses caught the trees on fire,” not the other way around.

1991 Oakland Hills Firestorm

The current debate hinges on two questions:  What caused the 1991 Oakland Hills fire? And what can humans do to prevent the next fire?

The answers are multi-faceted.  Wood shake roof shingles on houses in the hills were extremely flammable (statewide building codes have since been changed to require fire-resistant roofing materials).   Mutual aide crews from other cities were unable to hook their fire hoses to non-standard hook-ups in the hills  (they have since been replaced). Water supply to the hills dried up because pump station wires burned in the fire (those have since been undergrounded).

“Thankfully, most of those problems have been fixed,” said Grassetti.

Perhaps the most important factor was the hot, dry Diablo winds that whipped through the hills that day. Jon Keeley, a research scientist with USGS and Adjunct Professor of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at UCLA, said, “Under these severe fire weather conditions, fire spread is extremely rapid and the area has a history of devastating fires.”   A FEMA report on the fire adds: “in California, when the Santa Ana (or Diablo) wind is blowing, and a fire occurs in a susceptible area, there is very little that any current fire suppression forces or technologies can do to resist the spread of the fire.”

Politics

HCN isn’t the only citizen group with a position on fire hazard reduction in the Oakland hills:  Claremont Canyon Conservancy, which supports the FEMA funded projects, posted its own MoveOn Petition on May 19.  The Conservancy (which did not respond to requests to be interviewed for this article), aims to be “a catalyst for the long-term protection and restoration of the canyon’s natural environment and an advocate for comprehensive fire safety along its wildland/urban interface,” according to its website.

UC Berkeley has powerful allies in government as well.  In 2005, then Oakland City Council Member Jean Quan sponsored a resolution to exempt the FEMA project from Oakland’s policy of no pesticides on public lands so that the herbicide Garlon could be used to kill eucalyptus.  In a 2010 letter obtained through a Freedom of Information request by HCN, Senator Dianne Feinstein (whose husband, Richard Blum, is a member of UC’s Board of Regents), sent a strongly worded letter urging FEMA to move the project’s environmental review forward quickly.  Neither Mayor Quan nor Senator Feinstein responded to request for comment by press time.

Eucalyptus

At the center of the controversy is a tree: fast growing Australian  blue gum eucalyptus was planted in the mid-1800s for timber and has become part of the Bay Area landscape – loved by some, hated by others.

Tom Klatt, Environmental Projects Manager, Physical and Environmental Planning at UC Berkeley, has been spearheading projects to remove eucalyptus from the University’s land for the past 11 years.   He said that the eucalyptus groves in the project area have been cut down repeatedly in the past 50 years.    Sprouts from the stumps of the previously cut trees are now “over 100 feet tall.”

Disagreeing with the characterization of the proposed treatments as “clear cuts,” Klatt noted, “In this case, we’re purposely leaving the native trees and shrubs there.”  He sees this as effective fire hazard reduction: “Eucalyptus burn vigorously, they burn explosively and they burn prolifically.”

Grassetti countered that eucalyptus is no more fire prone than many native species, opining that, “If you are serious about fire risk reduction, you can’t favor natives over non-natives.”

The FEMA report on the 1991 fire, suggests, under the Mitigation heading: “Fuel control measures including controlled burns, clearing of dead wood, cutting tall grass and brush, grazing to thin vegetation in particular areas and similar measures,” but doesn’t mention removal of certain tree species.

The Task Force report commissioned by Oakland’s and Berkeley’s mayors, includes this prescription:  “Do not target particular species such as Blue Gum Eucalyptus or Monterey Pine for eradication or exemption from tree regulation policies, but require regular maintenance to reduce fire hazard.”  The treatment proposed by UC Berkeley under the FEMA grant targets both those species for eradication.

The comment period on the FEMA EIS closes June 17.

Years later, after stints in other California towns, north and south, I moved to Oakland. My first place was near Harrison and Grand, and Lake Merritt reentered my life.

On this day off, I decided to visit my old neighborhood, including Lakeside Park. My son wasn’t with me. Children’s Fairyland was not an option unless I borrowed a kid. I decided to think it over, over coffee. I parked, easily, along Grand Avenue and wandered over to Coffee with a Beat, one of Oakland’s first coffee houses. I used to spend quality time with their coconut cake back in the day.

Today, Justin and Nate Smith, Jr., were at the helm. They are two of four children of Nate and Joyce Smith, who bought Coffee with a Beat eleven years ago. The whole family works here. Back in the day, Coffee with a Beat served not only as a coffee house, but as an unofficial community center for Oakland’s black community.

When the Smiths bought “The Beat,” they decided to keep things that way. There are photographs of famous African-Americans, some local, hanging on the walls. Different local artists’ works are featured as well. All artwork is for sale, as is everything in their store: a glass case filled with books by and about Barack Obama (“My dad’s a huge Obama fan,” Justin tells me). All kinds of Obama memorabilia are for sale, as is a small selection of works by local jewelers and craftspeople. The singing and dancing James Brown doll, however, is not for sale.

I was most interested in the coconut cake. Did they still have it? Unfortunately, no longer.

What they do have is delicious coffee and pastries, and a relaxing, chill atmosphere where anyone would feel at home. In fact, CWB has seen their clientele evolve substantially over the past several years. Ever since a large senior home was built next door, about 40% of the people who hang out at CWB are elderly white folks. CWB is everyone’s hangout.

It would have been easy to stay there all afternoon, but I wanted to walk around the park.

It was my good luck that the Golden State Bonsai Federation Bonsai Garden was open that day. How many Oaklanders know we have a prize-winning, world-famous bonsai garden right here in Lakeside Park?

Some of these little trees are hundreds of years old. In fact, the first tree the collection received was presented to the City of Oakland by James Burlingame — yes, that Burlingame. The Curator of the collection, Kathy Shaner, is the only Japanese-certified Bonsai master in the U.S. It’s a spectacular garden, with Redwoods, pines, cypress, flowering trees like cherries and azaleas — all in meticulous miniature. It’s a magical place, and Kathy or one of the docents will be happy to tell visitors great stories about the trees. Admission is free, but a donation is recommended.

Just a few steps from the bonsai are the public gardens. Planting had started on this visit, and I could see schools’ gardens, local organizations’ gardens, planted with vegetables, fruits, and flowers. The gardens are a great place to mark the seasons here in our “seasonless” state, and a wonderful walk anytime.

If you go:

Coffee with a Beat
458 Perkins St, Oakland, CA 94610
Phone: (510) 835-5282 (JAVA)
Prices: $ ($10 or less)
Transit: AC Transit 12 Line and NL Line

The Gardens at Lake Merritt: http://gardensatlakemerritt.org/

Merritt Bakery: http://www.merritt-bakery.com/

Bonsai Garden at Lake Merritt: www.gsbf-bonsai.org/lake-merritt

Ironically, at the time this happened, Pook, who is a Public Information Representative for the East Bay Municipal Utility District (EBMUD) was hard at work on a brochure for EBMUD customers explaining the importance of inspecting and repairing or replacing sewer laterals.  EBMUD is under court order to improve the quality of the water it discharges into the San Francisco Bay.  When private sewer laterals are cracked, not only do they let sewage out, they also let rainwater in.  During winter storms, EBMUD’s West Oakland treatment plant is overwhelmed by an influx of water at rates up to six times the normal volume.  The facility can’t process the effluent fast enough and some of it gets released into the bay with minimal treatment.

Which is a shame because, on a normal day, what the plant does with sewage is pretty amazing.

Water managers no longer talk about sewage or wastewater.  According to Nancy Stoner, the EPA’s acting Administrator for the Office of Water, the favored term is “resource water.”  Stoner recently visited EBMUD’s plant as part of a national tour to highlight innovative practices in water management.

When sewage – excuse me, resource water – reaches the treatment tanks that you might see (or smell) as you head south on 580 after crossing the Bay Bridge, bacteria go to work on the effluent, essentially composting it.  A process that would take weeks in nature is accomplished in 12 hours as water is pumped through a variety of treatment tanks.

Solids waste, once separated from water that is treated and released into the San Francisco Bay, is fed into digesters and turned into methane gas.  Incoming sewage produces enough natural gas to supply 40% of the energy needed to power the 50-acre plant.  To meet the rest of the facility’s energy needs, EBMUD trucks in organic waste from farms in the Central Valley and restaurants in San Francisco. In 2012, the utility installed additional turbines with the capacity to produce up to 11 megawatts of power, which moved the plant from net zero energy consumption to being a power provider.

Storm water runoff disrupts the balance of this delicate operation.  High volumes of water can wash out the bacteria vital to processing waste.  A big winter storm can overwhelm storage pools that hold excess water, forcing release of partially treated waste into the bay.

Andrea Pook is glad her pipes will no longer be contributing to this problem. “I wish we would have caught it sooner,” she said.  “You realize that stuff is going on under your nose, literally, and you didn’t even know it.”

If you find this all fascinating and want to know more, you are in luck. The plant will be open for a rare public tour on June 15 at 10:00 am.  For more information or to reserve a spot, contact Allison Garrett, (510) 287-1445.