Oakland Global Newsletter – February 2015

On February 20, Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf announced the appointment of Sabrina Landreth to the post of City

Sabrina Landreth

Administrator, a role that is central to a functional City Hall and critical to the Oakland Global project, which is a partnership between the city and developers.

Landreth, 39, is the current Emeryville City Manager after serving in Oakland government for many years, most recently as Deputy City Administrator. She is scheduled to start July 1 or as soon as Emeryville hires a new city manager, whichever comes first.

Landreth handled difficult Oakland budget issues in the wake of the 2008 housing market crash and recession and Schaaf credits her with leading a subsequent budget overhaul , including a structured monitoring and forecasting of city revenues and expenditures.

Landreth will have her hands full again, not doubt. A recent municipal report shows that the city faces a $30 million shortfall in its operating budget, which is expected to exceed $500 million and must be finalized in June.

The Oakland Global project works directly with the City Administrator’s office as part of a 2012 development agreement signed by the city and developers California Capital & Investment Group (CCIG) and Prologis to develop the former Oakland Army Base.

An expected long term city administrator is a welcome relief for the project, given that the city’s top management office had rampant turnover under former Mayor Jean Quan.

During the past two years, the Oakland Global development team has worked with four city administrators, two of whom were hired as interims. Landreth will be the seventh Oakland City Administrator hired since 2008, when the city selected CCIG as the master developer for the 150-acre, former Army Base property.

The project broke ground in November 1, 2013 on a 48-month infrastructure phase, including replacing outdated utilities and roads, adding rail lines and preparing the property for modern warehouses that will expedite the movement of goods and materials throughout Northern California. The new warehouses and other logistics facilities will follow the completion of the infrastructure phase.

“It is great news that we’ll have some stability in the City Administrator’s Office,” said CCIG CEO Phil Tagami. “It’s good for the project and it’s good for the city.”

Oakland Global News did not hear back from Landreth. She told the E’ville Eye online publication in 2013 that she is a fifth-generation resident of the East Bay and lives in Oakland with her husband and two kids.

The West Oakland Job Resource Center is hard at work in its efforts to place Oaklanders in solid jobs and continues to provide job training workshops in a range of industries, according to a recent report provided by the center’s Program Director Julina Bonilla.

As an example, on Thursday, Feb. 26 at the center, Green Energy Training Services (GETS) presented information for individuals interested in careers in energy efficiency, solar power and construction. Participants in GETS programs work in classroom, lab and field settings. Their curriculum includes information about energy efficiency and reducing carbon emissions, job-site safety practices and basic construction skills.

The Job Center developed out of community meetings related the Oakland Global project and is incorporated into the project’s binding jobs policies. The center is a collaborative effort between the City of Oakland, employers, unions, community organizations and developers. It offers career counseling, referrals to training and employment, and assistance with apprenticeship test preparation.

In addition to sponsoring workshops, the Job Resource Center staff reaches out to local builders with upcoming construction projects. Recently the center’s staff met with representatives from the Brooklyn Basin housing development to discuss the role of the center in supporting local hire requirements on the project.

The Job Resource Center’s reporting data, which covers the period from March 2013, when the center opened, through December 2014, shows that 756 individuals attended orientations. Out of that number, 377 were screened for work history and interests and directed to social services, apprenticeship programs or employment.

The center is open Monday-Friday, 9a.m. – 5 p.m., West Oakland Library, 1801 Adeline Street, 2nd Floor. It can be accessed by the AC Transit NL and 26 lines. Job seekers can pre-register to attend orientations by calling: 510-419-0509.