WE Riders: Eco-Tourists of Oakland

WE RIDERS DOCUMENTARY EXHIBIT

2007-01-23T13:36:00.000-08:00

The WE Riders documentary installation presented the projects components in an interactive format. Viewers could explore printouts of all of the weblog entries, see our GPS routes and read all of the collected surveys. The only piece that we left out was our tandem; we still needed to ride! So we presented a full-scale cardboard mock-up.

Some special features of the installation: a 10 foot table in the shape of Oakland fabricated by Bruce Douglas, detailed analysis of the surveys created by Jason MacCannell, PhD, and documentary footage of our rides filmed by Erin Stamos.

As part of the exhibit, Jason gave a very informative presentation about his analysis and findings concerning the surveys. The event was well-attended; participates engaged in a lively discussion about the intersections of art and science.

We want to give a special thanks to Pro Arts staff and volunteers who helped to make this show into a reality. And thanks again to our master documenter, Pamela Palma.

2007-01-23T10:20:00.000-08:00

WE Riders Analysis Report, Dr. Jason MacCannell

Excerpts from the Report's Introduction

"What have the WE Riders done? Though it sounds like a humorous accusation, the question is a serious one. Officially, the answer is “art”: arts funding supports it; art venues host it. While it is not a set of paintings on the wall, the documentation here fits the conventional definition of art more closely than some “conceptual” art. Here is a display, some distinctive patterns of visual design, and even a great deal of drawing, albeit not by the artists. If the artists themselves had produced the bulk of the works on display—nearly two hundred small sheets that include both drawings and writings—no one could question the “artistic” nature of the project. But the work is instead a collaboration between the artists and members of the public selected more or less haphazardly.

In this sense the project is more like social science than “art.” Instead of depicting their ostensible subjects, the sometimes elusive realms of West and East Oakland, the WE Riders mounted a survey, collecting eighty-one maps as well as a large volume of commentary. Every stage of the project has been lavishly documented, on paper, on a weblog, in digital photography, on video, and even in GPS point data from the rides. As a social scientist who met them quite by accident, I admit I was initially fooled by what Donna Haraway might call their scientific “drag.” It took some investigation to discover that their approach was entirely artistic.

… But my purpose here is not to judge the quality of the art, nor analyze the critique or celebration of science that some might see embedded in it. Rather, I intend to push the “science” of the WE Riders project as far as possible, treating their data as data, searching it for anything suggestive of a pattern or correspondences among its elements. In doing so I am quite conscious of blurring the boundary between art and science even further. By not asking a research question—“Where is East/West Oakland?” being too nebulous to count—the WE Riders have ensured that no answer will be found. There is no effect whose cause is sought, nor any stakeholders waiting to applaud or defy a politically important result. In the end the respondents became the scientists, the ones proferring hypotheses and presenting evidence.

… The portrait of Oakland and specifically these neighborhoods that emerges in the survey—a city divided by freeways, a city divided by a lake, a place with multitudinous pasts carried in the hearts of its residents, a place where the future seems to rumble like an angry faultline under the surface, a set of stops on the BART lines, a place that business and government desperately want changed, a place with Victorian houses and taco stands, a place where west is north and east is south—is a portrait as variable as the city itself that mere statistics could not achieve."

WE RIDERS IN THE NEWS!

2006-09-20T10:27:00.000-07:00

WE Riders has gotten the attention of several local journalists. The result: two very interesting articles in Oakland publications. Check out Matt Dibble's review of one of our West Oakland adventures in the Oakland Magazine.

You can also read Cecily Burt's timely article in the Oakland Tribune. She promoted our project in the 'Eye on the Arts' feature the day before our documentary installation opened at Pro Arts. The articles have brought in many people to see the show. In fact, the articles have encouraged people to visit our show who have never set foot in a gallery before!

DOCUMENTARY EXHIBIT, SEPT. 9 - OCT. 8, 2006

2006-08-16T15:01:00.000-07:00

You Are Invited!

We are in high gear now,  planning for our upcoming installation at Pro Arts Gallery, a long-time Oakland non-profit arts institution. They have been promoting local artists' work since the 1970s. They are located in Jack London Square (550 Second Street, near Cost Plus). We are very excited that they will be hosting our exhibit, which will document all aspects of the WE Riders's adventures. Plus, we are very pleased to present video footage by Erin Stamos, who has joined nearly all of our rides this past summer. In addition, geographer Jason MacCannell will present a fascinating analysis of the nearly 200 surveys that we collected.

The show will run from Saturday, September 9 through Sunday, October 8.  Some special events to note (all are FREE!):

On 9/14 from 6:30-8:00PM,, we will present an off-site performance at the Yerba Beuna Center for the Arts in San Francisco. This performance is part of the Sampling Oakland exhibit that's up right now. We will be sharing the stage that night with several other very interesting Oakland artists. This event is curated by Sarah Lockhart from 21 Grand.

We will give a presentation about our work on Saturday, 9/23 from 1-3PM at Pro Arts.

And finally, join us in celebrating the project at a First Friday closing event at Pro Arts on Friday, 10/6 from 6-8PM.

If you have missed the chance so far to participate in our Where is West Oakland / Where is East Oakland survey, this is your opportunity! We are eager to continue collecting input during the installation.

We are sorry to say that for now, our rides are over. But stay tuned for future events...

GPS ROUTE INFORMATION

2006-08-07T09:57:00.000-07:00

We have been tracking all of our rides with a Garmin GPS so that we have accurate information about where we have traveled in the city. Here is a collection of all of our rides. We have also posted each route as the final entry for each ride's journal. You'll notice that there are no route maps for rides #1, #2 and #6: that is because we only collected surveys during these rides and didn't travel about the city.

Once we learn how, we will download our GPS info onto Google maps; then our routes will be overlaid onto a Satellite image of the city. If anyone has this skill and would like to help us with this process, please email us at: marksearch@sbcglobal.net. Thanks!

GROUP RIDE WEST: AUGUST 5, 2006

2006-08-06T17:24:00.000-07:00

The Riders:

Saturday was the perfect day for our second and final group ride to West Oakland: once the early morning fog was wisped away, the air was cool and the sun was warm. When we arrived at City Hall at 10AM, there was already a small cluster of riders gathered. We were joined by a newly formed bike team comprised of lawyers who work in downtown Oakland, a father-son bike duo (James, at 4 years, was our youngest rider!), two women who brought their small dogs along to ride, a city cartographer, and several other Oakland folks. All together, a diverse dozen made up our West Oakland group. We were very pleased with the turnout.

Before we took off, we spoke with everyone about the project, had people fill out surveys and answered questions. Some had found out about the project from our flyers, others from various websites or word of mouth.

Most people expressed a similar reason for joining the ride: to get to know West Oakland better. One rider said he came “to learn more about the city where I work.” For many, West Oakland is an area beyond their direct experience. One woman who joined our ride recently moved to West Oakland and plans to start an after-school art program. She wanted to find out where the neighborhood kids hang out.

2006-08-06T17:18:00.000-07:00

The Route:

Once again, we planned this ride as a ‘best of’ tour, sampling some of the places we most enjoyed visiting on our previous West Oakland rides. From downtown, we rode on 14^th Street, making a stop at the Ebony Art Museum, then on to Mandela Parkway to see the newly developed median park, ending up at the Mandela Farmers’ Market. From there we toured some local farms and ended up at the Pretty Lady for a delicious home grown lunch.

2006-08-06T17:15:00.000-07:00

At the Mandela Farmers' Market:

We hung out at the market for a little while; people enjoyed meeting the vendors and sampling some of the delicious and very locally grown (West Oakland) produce.

We had an interesting conversation with Reggie, who met the last time we were at the market. He told us that this area of West Oakland is known as “Low Bottom”: “This is West Oakland, but people in the neighborhood, call it Low Bottom. The Low Bottom, they stereotype it, you know, as an area where there’s violence and corruption. But it’s really not like that here. People think the Low Bottom is bad, but it’s a good place to live.” He has lived here for many years. Reggie also told us that “People don’t really know West Oakland ‘til they come to West Oakland.” You can’t know a place from the outside.

One guy at the market proudly showed us his rig: he had decked out his rickshaw with a full sound system. He told us how he would modify our rig so that we could always travel with tunes. We were very impressed!

2006-08-06T17:11:00.000-07:00

Riding in the Hood:

After the Mandela Market, we made our way to City Slicker Farms on Center and Peralta Streets. First we detoured to an OBUGS butterfly garden. There we met a neighbor who has been involved with bringing sorely needed community services to West Oakland. She has started a medical clinic and also, more recently, she has initiated a nutrition program at corner liquor stores. She teaches them how to use a blender to make nutritious and healthy fruit smoothies—this is in an effort to bring healthy food into the neighborhood. While West Oakland has been redlined by supermarkets, there are liquor stores on nearly every corner.

Standing in front of this neighbor’s home was a piece of indigenous sculpture: a local artist has carved portraits out of neighborhood tree stumps.

2006-08-06T17:07:00.000-07:00

City Slicker Farm:

People really enjoyed visiting City Slicker Farms: it was full of activity that afternoon. Lots of folks were shopping from the vegetable cart, some farmers were composting, and another was working with the bees. We spent time walking around the farm and talking with neighbors. This was also a good opportunity for riders in the group to talk to each other about their local neighborhood concerns and interests.

We also had the honor of giving this little girl her first ever ride on a bike!

2006-08-06T17:04:00.000-07:00

Next Stop:  The Pretty Lady

Most people peeled off from the group at this point. But the adventure wasn’t over yet! We stopped at the Pretty Lady for a well-deserved lunch. Over sandwiches and potato salad, we took the chance to get to know some of the riders better. One member of the group lives in a well-established co-housing building at the Swan’s Market. It was interesting to hear about her experiences living in downtown. She has opted for a carless lifestyle and it is challenging for her to satisfy her daily needs locally. While Brown’s goal has been to move folks on into to downtown, the area is really not able to fully accommodate a self-sufficient urban lifestyle. Hungering for a sense a local community, she was very taken with the Pretty Lady and decided that it would become her routine breakfast joint.

2006-08-06T17:02:00.000-07:00

Low Bottom:

We decided to visit Lobot Gallery on our way home. Created in 2003, it is a relatively new artist-run space, named after the Low Bottom. We had an interesting discussion with one of the resident artists about the space, their mission and philosophy. One of their goals is to provide affordable studio space to local and international emerging artists. They are also striving to be a part of the local neighborhood by providing classes in music, performance and art for local kids. They also make sure that all of their events are locally publicized. While many artists are moving to West Oakland for the (relatively) cheap warehouse space, they have a reputation for separating themselves from the community. The folks at Lobot want to counter this tendency.

We were shown an artifact of one of their recent events: the barbeque bicycle. They told us they ride to the Korean supermarket on 25^th and Telegraph, stoke up the grill, and by the time they arrive back at the studio, yum, yum, yum, the chow is done!

2006-08-06T16:56:00.000-07:00

The End:

On our way home, we wove through an area of new infill condos (which seem to feed many people’s perception of the gentrification of West Oakland). Then we rode under an amazing maze of multi-tiered freeways---not a spot we would like to be when the next ‘big one’ comes along. We touched on a corner of Emeryville and then we headed back to our neighborhood via 45^th Street. We weren’t sure when we were leaving West Oakland and entering East Oakland. Maybe, as one person we surveyed had commented, “It’s all a state of mind.”

2006-08-06T16:48:00.000-07:00

GPS Route:

GROUP RIDE EAST: JULY 30, 2006

2006-08-01T17:04:00.000-07:00

The Riders:

Uncertain as to who or how many people would show up for our first group ride, we were pleasantly surprised when three cyclists pulled up in front of City Hall at the same time we did. As we were talking, a few more people rode up. All tallied we had seven people on this ride; we were mighty pleased with the turn out (and we only knew one of the other riders!).

We talked to folks about the project, our plans for the ride and their reasons for wanting to come out with us. A few of the people on the ride were newly transplanted to Oakland and wanted to learn more about the city. Another rider lived in East Oakland, but she wanted to explore other areas in the region and learn about some new bike routes. In general, everyone was up for an adventure on this beautiful Sunday morning. We redesigned our survey form to better understand the impact of the ride on the group. We asked people to answer some questions before and after the ride. At the end of the ride, one member of the group remarked, “Wow, East Oakland is closer than I thought it was!”

2006-08-01T17:02:00.000-07:00

Group Ride Route:

We thought of this ride as a 'best of' our East Oakland trips: we rode around Lake Merritt, up East 15^th Street to the Sunday Fruitvale Farmers’ Market. The round-trip route was just over three flat miles. We rode at a leisurely pace, stopping along the way to point out some of our favorite houses and buildings. The group was very eager and interested; they all answered passers-by as they asked about our sign! Here are some photos of our ride from City Hall to the Fruitvale Farmers' Market:

We stopped at the half-way point to see how all of our riders were holding up. We took a short conversation break, and then continued on our way.

It was great to come across this small sidewalk garden full of beautiful flowering plants. The local community had decided to green up their sidewalk in a two block area. Within the plants were signs that said: "These flowers were planted to make these streets better for children who live & walk here. PLEASE PROTECT THEM."

Our friend Stew found us as we were riding along (he lives in East Oakland...) and joined us for part of the ride. He shared with us some bike stories; he rides from East Oakland to Palo Alto every day to teach. Before he had to leave us and ride back home, he filled out a survey:

The market was very busy on this Saturday morning. Our group riders walked around, explored the plazas and met with some of the vendors. We told them about our first experience at the Fruitvale Village Plaza, when the security guard told us to leave the plaza. This led to an interesting discussion about public space, or the lack of them, in the contemporary urban fabric. An architect/urban planner team called REbar is creating an excellent project in downtown SF about 'privately owned public spaces.'

We spoke with the guy selling hand-made crafts and clothing. He was very interested in our tandem bike; one of his children is blind, and he wants to find a way for them to bike ride together. A tandem would be the perfect solution! He described East Oakland as "sometimes hard core" and West Oakland as "a good place to live.'

2006-08-01T16:54:00.000-07:00

Lunch on International Boulevard:

On our return home we stopped at Mi Grullense, a delicious and very popular taco truck on International Boulevard and 29^th. We decided to include a lunch stop; since many people told us that taco trucks were an East Oakland signature, we thought this would be a fitting place. No one was disappointed! During our half-hour stop, we saw loads of people, some in their Sunday best, stop for a yummy taco or torta. We checked out a virtual authority on the subject, www.tacotrucks.net, to read reviews of local hot spots. As it turns out, Mi Grullense is their taco truck of the month. Look here for more information on restaurants and taco trucks on the Comida Corridor (International Boulevard).

Everyone parted ways after lunch, with a full belly and a pocket full of new experiences. It was great for us to share some of what we have learned on our rides. We also enjoyed talking about many aspects of Oakland city life from art to bike lanes, food to politics, and the meaning of public space. Thanks to all who came ‘east’ with us!

2006-08-01T16:49:00.000-07:00

GPS Route:

HEADING EAST: JULY 21, 2006

2006-07-22T18:43:00.000-07:00

Our Last Solo Ride:

Our last ride was on one of those unusually blazing late July days (where is the fog when you need it??). The change in our local weather has really made us think hard about globally shifting weather patterns. At least by riding our tandem we are not contributing to global warming and we hope, by using the city’s bike lanes, we can promote more cycling. It would be great if Oakland became known as a cycle-friendly city. We ironically talked about this as we rode through Broadway Auto Row, Oakland’s car dealership district. One ray of hope among all of these vehicles was a VW ad promoting new bio-diesel cars.

We started out early so that we would not wilt under the sun. One of our main goals on this ride was to publicize our upcoming group rides during which we plan to show off some of the city’s bike lanes and also lead folks to some of the interesting sites that we have found. So that we could reach the widest possible audience, we had our flyers translated into Spanish and Chinese (many thanks to Oakland’s Equal Access Office!). We distributed close to 1000 flyers to city farmers’ markets, local public library branches, city rec centers, cafes and bike shops.

2006-07-22T18:40:00.000-07:00

Choosing Our Route:

While we were deciding on our route at City Hall, we spoke to a few people. It still surprises us, after many weeks of hanging out at Frank Ogawa Plaza, how eager and curious people are. We assumed that during the week business folks would breeze on by us with only maybe a slight glance. We spoke at length with one woman who was very excited about our project and extremely pro-Oakland. She was glad that we were doing something “that would make people really think about our city.” In her survey, she stated: “Oakland’s people all feel like extended family!”

It would be impossible for us to ride up in the hilly area of what some have called the ‘true’ East Oakland: our trailer weighs about 80 pounds. That’s a lot of extra weight to tow! We opted instead for some moderate hills: we would aim for the Laurel District. We hadn’t yet ridden on MacArthur Boulevard, a major city bike lane. On many surveys, this street was indicated as both a border and landmark of East Oakland.

2006-07-22T18:38:00.000-07:00

Thanks Pam!

Images of the two of us on this ride were taken by our faithful photographer, Pam Palma.

2006-07-22T18:34:00.000-07:00

Distancing From East Oakland:

We first stopped on Park Boulevard to drop off some flyers at the Francis Smith Rec Center (we had visited there on our June 22^nd ride) to invite some kids to come on our group ride. Then we headed up on Park to MacArthur. Before we got too far, our sign caught the attention of a guy crossing the street from the new Artists’ Café. When we told him what we were up to, he stopped right there in the middle of the street to talk to us about his confusions about what is East Oakland. According to him, this area is really East Oakland, but most people say it is part of the Lake Merritt District.

In our conversations we have found that a lot of people who live in what many consider to be East Oakland identify with a small neighborhood or community: they say they don't live in East Oakland. It seems to us like people distance themselves from the name East Oakland. And this may be because East Oakland is generally negatively characterized as unsafe and dangerous. A recent New York Times article about crime in East Oakland describes a new policy that the police are now implementing to help repeat offenders turn their lives around:
“There will be enticements in Oakland, not just threats. The authorities will offer social services, including job training, help with substance abuse and educational opportunities to help increase the odds that suspects do not return to the criminal world. Such services are already offered to offenders, but Operation Cease-Fire will make them much more readily available.”

Read here for an incisive criticism of Mayor Brown’s track record in dealing with Oakland’s violent crime.

Below is a pretty disturbing map showing where murders have taken place in Oakland (March, 2006). According to the SF Chronicle article, most of the homocides have taken place in East Oakland: "The slayings happened from North Oakland to the San Leandro border, leaving virtually no part of the city unscathed but for the Oakland hills and the neighborhoods surrounding Lake Merritt -- although that area has seen a rash of robberies that have some residents on edge." The number of homocide victims is now at 89 and sadly, every one out of three who has been murdered is a youth under the age of twenty.

2006-07-22T18:25:00.000-07:00

MacArthur Boulevard:

Riding on MacArthur is constantly interesting: the streetscape is ever-changing. We rode by small neighborhood homes, the freeway, local shops and a soon-to-be cut down forest (to make way for more development). Considering that MacArthur is a major thorough-fare, it is pretty pleasant to ride on. MacArthur runs from West Oakland through these neighborhoods (from west to east): Longfellow, Pill Hill, Grand Lake, Haddon Hill, Bella Vista, Dimond, Laurel, Millsmont, Eastmont, Castlemont, Las Palmas and into San Leandro. A group of folks from Mills College just completed a year-long photo-bio of MacArthur Boulevard; look here for more info.

After we had done some serious climbing up MacArthur, we stopped at a corner liquor store for some tree shade and a cool drink. As we were resting, a man saw our sign and was pretty upset by the question; he saw only one side. As he walked into the store, he angrily shook his head saying, “Where’s West Oakland? Don’t be bringing that shit here.” His were among the very few hostile comments and reactions we have received in nearly three months of riding.

2006-07-22T18:16:00.000-07:00

Visiting Dimond Park:

We decided to make our way to Dimond Park; we figured the creek there would offer a cool and relaxing spot to hang out for awhile. We were hoping that there would be lots of kids there to talk to.

We rode off of MacArthur down on to Canon Street, a small and winding road banked with lots of trees. As we pulled up into the park’s entrance, we were greeted by a group of excited three and four year-olds—they had never seen a tandem bike before. The two adults with the kids were very curious about our signs. They definitely agreed that we were not in East Oakland but in Central Oakland. They said that East Oakland started after Fruitvale. It is interesting that not too many folks have talked about Central Oakland. The two bus drivers we spoke to in West Oakland (May 31^st ride) told us that downtown was actually Central Oakland. The term ‘Central’ seems to imply a kind of neutrality.

Dimond Park is a pocket of green idyllic calm. Nestled in the Sausal Creek canyon, the park is mostly rolling green hills. Centrally situated is a lovely swimming pool and near to that is a newly renovated playground. The park is named after Hugh Dimond, a Gold Rusher. Read here for a history of the park’s development and some information about Sausal Creek: “When one visits the park today, there is a small, difficult-to-read plaque that sets forth a bit of local history. According to the plaque, the utility building across from the restrooms has incorporated adobe bricks from the 1897 Dimond cottage, described as a "playhouse" for the Dimond children, although a brief history on an Oakland Parks Department map references the adobe bricks as being from the Peralta home.” Up until very recently, the park was graced by an ancient oak tree. The tree was unfortunately cut down since its core was fairly rotten; the city was worried about being sued.

The park was welcomingly full of people for a Friday afternoon. Most of the parks that we have visited so far have been surprisingly empty. Not so here: there were kids everywhere, engaged in summer camp games. Young moms and dads were strolling babies around. Yet with all of this activity, no one wanted to talk to us. A lot of the kids were curious about the bike, but camp counselors and parents alike hurried them along and told them not to touch anything. We were pretty tired ourselves from the ride and the heat.

2006-07-22T18:10:00.000-07:00

Continuing on MacArthur Boulevard:

As we continued riding up MacArthur, it was as if we were traveling back in time. Some of the storefronts look as though they have not changed in over forty years or more. Two of our favorite shop signs: Donut Time and Coffee & Cheese.

We stopped at a few local markets, including the Food Mill, which has been a part of the Oakland food scene since 1933 and Farmer Joe’s, a family-run food store started in 1994, to drop off flyers about our upcoming group bike rides.

2006-07-22T18:08:00.000-07:00

The Laurel:

Our goal was the Laurel District for a lunch stop. We were struck by how ‘small town’ the district felt. As you come down MacArthur’s hill, you are first greeted by a huge arching sign announcing the district. And then it seems everywhere you turn, you see the name “Laurel”: on tree gratings, garbage cans and all manner of stores. Lots of local pride!

After a short walk around, we stopped at the Bay Café for a bite to eat. The café was crowded and air-conditioned; both were good signs. We parked our rig right by the front window where we sat; it was fun to see people slow down and read our sign, think a minute and then walk on. We wondered what stories they would tell about their experience.

Just as we were finishing up our lunch (very hearty home-style sandwiches, served with pickles and chips), a guy stopped at our table wanting to know what our project was all about. He told us that he has been seeing us ride around Oakland these past weeks, but has never been in a spot where he could talk to us. He described East Oakland as “home, neighborhoods, hills/flats”. His map was very detailed, differentiating between East Oakland and Deep East. Lake Merritt is a small island in the middle of the city between West and East Oakland. He appreciated the project and was happy to participate; he felt that it is important for people to pay attention to the shape of the city. We asked him about the name of this neighborhood: do people call it the Laurel, Laurel District, or simply Laurel? We had seen all three versions of the name on various street facades. He told us, “Most people call it ‘the Laurel’”.

We talked to a few more people as we were getting ready to leave the Laurel. In response to our question, as to whether we were in East Oakland, one woman told us, “This is definitely East Oakland, honey, because my car insurance let’s me know!”

2006-07-22T18:07:00.000-07:00

Towards Home:

We distributed our flyers to a few more local Laurel spots and then made our way back home. We had to unexpectedly pull over; the batteries in our digital camera died. Immediately behind us, a car tucked into a parking spot. We didn’t pay much attention until a woman came out of her car onto the sidewalk, laughing and saying. “I HAD to stop, I am just so curious. What are you guys doing? What is this all about?” We told her our story; then she shared hers with us. She had a very personal East Oakland boundary: the U-Haul depot on 53^rd and International. Turns out that she has moved a lot recently, but has finally settled in the Laurel. When we asked her if this was East Oakland, she said “This is definitely not East Oakland. Anything below the 580 is East Oakland. This is Borderline East Oakland.” This was a new distinction for us!

2006-07-22T18:05:00.000-07:00

Where Are We Now?

As we made our way back to North Oakland, we passed through a very tidy and Hollywood-esque neighborhood on Trestle Glen. We weren’t sure if this area was considered part of East Oakland. Unfortunately, we didn’t see anyone to ask out on the street.

2006-07-22T18:01:00.000-07:00

GPS Route:

HEADING EAST: JULY 16, 2006

2006-07-17T17:20:00.000-07:00

To Chinatown:

On this brilliant and scorching Sunday, we first rode to Chinatown. A number of people who we surveyed wondered whether Chinatown was part of downtown or East Oakland. We thought what better way to find out than to ask people there! The area was full of hustle and bustle---Oakland’s Chinatown covers about 8 city blocks, roughly from 12^th to 7^th Street and Harrison and Broadway. It is less tourist-driven than San Francisco’s Chinatown and is filled with myriad shops, tea houses, herbalists, grocers and restaurants as well as many residential buidlings. Chinatown is now a pan-Asian community including Chinese, Vietnamese, Korean, Filipino, Japanese, Cambodian, Laotian, Mien, Thai, Samoan and others. Check out the excellent Wikipedia entry to learn about Chinatown's history and development.

2006-07-17T17:17:00.000-07:00

The Pacific Renaissance Plaza:

We had trouble figuring out where to set up our rig: most sidewalk space was occupied by spillover from store displays and trucks unloading various goods. We finally decided to pull into the Pacific Renaissance Plaza located at Franklin and 9^th since we figured that there would be a lot of casually foot traffic there. The Plaza is a comfortable mini-mall nestled among some towering residential buildings. Inside you can find restaurants, cafes (we highly recommend the sweet shop next to the B of A: they serve excellent tapioca fruit drinks), the Asian Branch of the Oakland Library and the Asian Cultural Center. This plaza was built as a redevelopment project in the early 1990s. Due to community struggles during the 1970s and 1980s, the developer was required to build and pay for affordable housing, a library and community center as part of the project. We got the feeling that this was a strong neighborhood gathering place even though in 2003 it was the site of a huge tenant-developer conflict.

While there were lots of people of all ages strolling about, sitting at the fountain area and on benches, people were very reluctant to talk to us. We thought this might be an issue of language; we tried to encourage people to respond to our survey written in Chinese. One older man just raised his hands in confusion and smiled. We did speak to one woman; she thought that both West and East Oakland are dirty and that Chinatown in “the dividing line between them.”

Then the security guard saw Erin filming the scene; he approached us but carefully avoided being caught on tape. He ducked and scooted around, all the while smiling and saying, “Please, you can’t do this here.” I asked him if this was public space, and he replied “No.” Seems like these redevelopment plazas are not so conducive to free speech.

So out we rolled, and set up on the sidewalk at the Plaza’ entrance. Some people slowed down to look at our trailer, but few stopped. We did speak with a group of women from Danville, as it turns out, who came to visit the Plaza for dim sum. They didn’t know anything about Oakland.

2006-07-17T17:14:00.000-07:00

Dim Sum Lunch:

Their talk of food inspired us to visit one of our long time favorite dim sum shops, Sum Yee Pastry, on on 8th and Webster. They have yummy and cheap pork buns. We also stopped at the Vietnamese café next door for delicious vegetarian rice paper rolls filled with noodles, lettuce and lots of mint.

2006-07-17T17:11:00.000-07:00

East Oakland Downtown:

Then we headed off to our next destination: The Frutivale Farmers’ Market. We rode on East 15^th Street; since it was a beautiful Sunday, there were lots of people out working in their yards, on their cars, and sitting on their porches. As we hit International Boulevard, it was clear that this was Oakland’s ‘real’ downtown: the stores, serving the various needs of the community, were all open and there were loads of people walking around. It has the kind of presence that is sorely lacking from what is known as Downtown Oakland. When we rode down Broadway to City Hall, we saw very few people and most of the fast food joints and restaurants were shut. The area clearly serves the Monday-Friday business crowd.

2006-07-17T17:09:00.000-07:00

The Fruitvale Farmers' Market:

The last time we were at the Fruitvale Village, we were asked to leave by the plaza security guards, so we weren’t sure what our welcome would be like. As it turns out, the market itself was held in the area right off of International Boulevard, a spot that appears to be more public than the heart of the plaza surrounding the fountain. Every market that we have visited so far has been a unique reflection of a specific community and this one was no exception. In addition to vendors offering wonderful fruits and veggies, there was a display of indigenous Mexican handcrafted items for sale a local real estate consultant presenting his services and an info booth about pest and insect control. With grants from national organizations such as the Project for Public Space and state funding, farmers’ markets are popping up in low-income communities afflicted by “food deserts: communities where access to fresh, locally-grown produce is extremely limited.” All of the produce was very affordably priced, and like the other markets we have visited in West and East Oakland, this one accepts WIC and is outfitted with EBT, an electronic way that folks can use their food stamps to pay for market produce.

People were immediately interested in our set up and came over to talk to us. We spent some time talking to four teenagers about East Oakland and Oakland in general; they weren’t so positive about the city, but maybe this was just their way of being cool. Laughing, they told us that “Oakland is a confused, dumb ass city.” Turns out that these guys are AmeriCorps members and one of their jobs is to manage the market. They told us that the market has been around for about four years. They were in charge a the community service booth, and unfortunately, the music. Much to the dismay of most of the markets’ attendees and vendors, they loudly played grating heavy metal music. Some of them live in East Oakland, but they definitely didn’t want to connect to the community. Some guys who were sitting and relaxing in the sun kept yelling at them to turn off the music. The AmeriCorps guys just turned their backs.

One man, who is a long time Fruitvale resident, told us that Fruitvale is actually in the center of Oakland and should be considered the divide between West and East Oakland. We spoke to the realtor who said that Fruitvale is “the heart of Oakland” and “the Spanish-speaking community feels very comfortable here; they feel safe walking around and living here.” And then, a few minutes later, we spoke with another guy who told us that “There are a lot of drugs around here and muggings for drug money. I don’t go out after 11PM. It’s really not safe here.” To see the rest of the surveys, click on the orange Flickr bar and use the tag: 'East Oakland Ride, 7.16.06'.

We noticed that Fruitvale, like many Oakland neighborhoods, has street flags. But what’s different about these flags, instead of only proclaiming the neighborhood’s name, the flags boast local heroes. Near the Fruitvale Plaza, there was a flag of Anabella Martinez, a very ambitious president of the Unity Council.

2006-07-17T17:05:00.000-07:00

Oaklandish Radio Regatta:

We were feeling pretty baked by the sun, so we decided to head to our final destination: Lake Merritt. The lake looked so invited as we rode by; it was a beautiful and idyllic scene to see so many boats out on the water. When we rode in to the lake park, we saw that the SF Mime Troupe was on stage with its latest performance. We opted not to stop. We wanted to check out Oaklandish’s Radio Regatta. Oaklandish designed a party on the lake and at the boathouse, complete with DJs, archival film and sangria. It was the perfect day to relax by the lake and everyone knew it! There were lots of people there. The way it worked: you could rent a boat at half price---you were given a radio that was tuned in to the DJ’s radio frequency, so you could enjoy the tunes while you paddled or sailed or simply floated on the water. And they were playing so pretty awesome old-timey music.

We set up our kiosk down by the boat dock; we spoke with close to fifty people. Because it was an alternative artsy crowd, most people ‘got’ what we were doing and were eager to fill out surveys. One guy, who was not too familiar with Oakland, described both West and East as “stupid, dumb and hyphy” , which is actually part of the lyrics to a popular rap song by mistah fab. You can take a listen to the song here and read the lyrics here. We talked to a guy who helps run the boating program who told us about a project that his dad is working on: over the past 25 years, he has roller bladed every single street in Oakland! Now he is working on skating all of the streets in Albany, Berkeley and El Cerrito. It is a pretty nifty project; check it out at tristo.org.

A lot of people described West Oakland as ‘gentrified’ and East Oakland as ‘ethnic’. One person said that “West Oakland was destroyed by urban renewal and East Oakland is a street car suburb without the street cars.” Another woman said that “both areas are economically poor compared to other parts of Oakland, but with many old, proud communities and creative people therein.” One of our favorite comments was that “Oakland is like a family member: sometimes you don’t like it, but you always love it!”

You can read all of the surveys here.

We hung out at the lake for several hours, enjoying the interesting crowd, the inviting water and the great music. Good work Oaklandish!

2006-07-17T17:00:00.000-07:00

GPS Route:

HEADING EAST: JULY 7, 2006

2006-07-07T19:31:00.000-07:00

Today we decided to head out towards the ‘Deep East’; people have told us that that is anywhere past 70th Ave. and International. If you want to go, it is open on Fridays, 10-2pm, April-December. Ave. down through to the edge of San Leandro. Farmers markets have been a good destination target for us, so we aimed for the East Oakland market at Faith Deliverance Church on 73rd Ave. and International. If you want to go, it is open on Fridays, 10-2pm, April-December.  Look here for a comprehensive listing of the East Bay's farmers' markets, large and small.  

We found out about all of these markets from a new and interesting publication called Edible East Bay: “Edible East Bay is a quarterly newsletter that promotes the abundance of local foods in the East Bay area. We celebrate the family farmers, fishermen, fishmongers, food artisans, chefs, and other food-related businesses for their dedication to using the highest quality, fresh, seasonal foods.”

We planned for an early start and a long ride. It seems that as our project progresses, our rides are getting longer and longer! We ended up riding nearly thirty miles today. We started out, as usual, at City Hall.

As we were planning our route, a guy stopped to look at the kiosk and wanted to know what we were doing. As we explained, he kept nodding his head. Turns out he is a post-doc geographer and is working on various projects for Cal about how people use and understand public space. In his previous research, he has tracked the movements of the homeless, an often-invisible group of people who use public space. Jason is concerned with how to make cities livable and comfortable. He has lived in both West and East Oakland and he found both too noisy to be livable. His main gripes: cars with stereo systems so loud that they rattle apartment windows as they cruise by, and bullet holes in his apartment window. Now he lives in quiet Davis and his bike is his primary mode of transportation. He was very excited about the project and wanted to get involved, so he will be analyzing all of the data we have collected in our surveys. We are pleased to have Jason’s input and expertise.

2006-07-07T19:19:00.000-07:00

E. 15th Street Neighborhoods:

We routed our ride to maximize our use of the City’s bike lanes: up on E.15^th Street until it ends, then jog over to E.16^th and E.17^th until we hit Bancroft Avenue. East 15^th is a lovely street to ride on; it is a two lane one-way street that ambles through an old and varied residential area, a seemingly comfortable Asian and Latino blend. We rode through small business districts that were refreshingly comprised of local non-chain stores. Some looked like they have been there for years. Mixed in with the houses, we passed by lots of churches, community centers, small parks and corner stores. Since it was a Friday morning, not too many people were out; those who we saw, we waved to and they waved back, some with smiles, others with confused expressions. As usual, many people pointed one way or the way, depending on which view of the sign (Where is West Oakland? Where is East Oakland?) they saw.

2006-07-07T19:16:00.000-07:00

Cesar Chavez Park:
At 38^th Ave and E.18^th, we came to Cesar Chavez Park, a small green space nestled in among a few old houses and city project housing units. What gives the park a special charm is Peralta Creek, which runs through the southwestern edge of the area. In 2003, Urban Creeks Council and the Unity Council worked collaboratively to implement a major creek restoration project: “The intent of the design was not only to improve the function of the creek but to create a more community-oriented space for the schoolchildren and residents that pass through the park every day." The result is a quiet respite from the harshness of urban concrete. We rode over a small bridge; the creek still looks pretty clean and the banks include native plants and trees such as buckeyes, oaks, and alders along with a diversity of native groundcover plants and shrubs such as monkey flower, blue elderberry, California lilac, and coyote bush. The Urban Creeks Council worked closely with the community on the restoration process to alleviate the drug and crime activities that went on in the creek’s culvert.

2006-07-07T19:13:00.000-07:00

Bancroft Ave.:

As we hit Bancroft Avenue, a busy four-lane road that has a bike lane, we felt the unrelenting damage of urban renewal. Bordering the avenue are primarily new low-rise housing developments, with a scattering of strip malls. All in all, the route was very inhumane; we saw very few pedestrians and no cars stopped to interact with us at all.

To satisfy our hunger, we stopped along the way at a taco truck that was parked in an auto parts store. We weren’t sure how long it would take us to reach the farmers market and what kind of food they might have available there, so we had some gooey quesadillas. People stared at our rig, but no one asked any questions.

After a while, two young boys rode along side us on their bikes; they asked us all kinds of questions about our tandem. Then one of them kept asking us, "Hey, can you do a willy, can you?" We weren't sure what he meant until he zoomed out in front of us and popped a wheelie! He and is friend rode with us for a couple of blocks, weaving through traffic and doing crazy tricks, and then turned off one of the side streets.

2006-07-07T19:09:00.000-07:00

East Oakland Farmers' Market @ Faith Deliverance Church:

After a hot several miles’ ride on Bancroft, we arrived at the farmers' market, situated in the Faith Deliverance Church parking lot. Though it was smaller than we had expected, only 4 vendors of fruits and veggies, it had a friendly atmosphere. Rosemary and Charles were sort of the market ‘greeters’, sitting at a table near the entrance of the lot. Like the Mandela Farmers' Market in West Oakland, this market is geared towards low-income folks. The market is ready to accept WIC and food stamps. On top of that, prices for the organic produce is about half of what you might pay at the Jack London or Berkeley Farmers' Markets.

We started talking to Rosemary and Charles about the project and our group rides. They were really curious about our questions; we spent a lot of time talking about the possible boundaries for West and East Oakland. Finally, because they were in some disagreement about which street serves as the borderline and whether downtown counted as West or East Oakland, we took out the map. They were disappointed that we didn’t come with the definitive answer. We explained that there really is no definitive answer, only opinion and approximation. They finally agreed that Broadway was in fact the dividing line, saying that “They consider it East Oakland from Broadway on back; the city officials call it one way, and the people call it another. But what the people call it doesn’t count.”

Because we had some flyers to distribute about our upcoming group rides, Rosemary suggested we talk to the market manager, Wilma, to make sure it was ok that we left the materials. She was busy talking to other vendors, so we walked around the market and talked to the farmers. Most came from the Central Valley, so they really didn’t have much to say about West and East Oakland, except that they were “the city” or “the hood”. We some of the juiciest plums from a farmer outside of Fresno; he also participates in the Jack London Sunday farmers market. While this one doesn’t bring in as much business, he believes it is really important to have good, fresh, organic fruit and veggies available to folks in this area, which is surrounded by fast food restaurants.

We finally met up with Wilma, who was intrigued and excited about the project. We asked her the story behind this market. Her daughter started it a few years ago; both Wilma and she are members of the Faith Deliverance Church. She wanted to do something for her community; she wanted to both support local farmers and bring organics into her neighborhood. She got a grant from the state and the county to start the market. They collaborate with the 5 A Day program, a national effort to change people’s approach to nutrition. They also work with the UC COOP Extension which provides technical and education resources to local communities. They emphasize land-management, health and nutrition, and youth involvement with nature and gardens. Now that Wilma’s daughter is away at school to get her MSW, so Wilma is now running the market. They no longer have grants, so it is a labor of love.

Wilma’s colleague had some key words to describe West Oakland: “The way to go” and East Oakland, “On the rise”. They both think that these areas are really changing---people who had moved out are now returning, especially to West Oakland (she considers downtown to be West Oakland).

Everyone who shops at the market gets a 5 A Day prize: a t-shirt, a bag, an apron…we won an apron. Wilma’s colleague also plays a nutrition ‘wheel of fortune’ game with the kids. They spin the wheel, it lands on a vegetable or fruit, and they have to describe the nutritional value of the food. It’s all in good fun; Wilma works hard at making sure folks enjoy their visit to the market and that they return. She knows a lot of folks there by name. You get the feeling that it could be a real community magnet.

2006-07-07T19:04:00.000-07:00

Out By The Coliseum:

We wanted to take a different return route. Since a lot of people mentioned the Coliseum as an East Oakland landmark, we aimed to ride by there. As we were trying to cross the 8-lane street, a young guy stopped us. We talked to him for a while about the differences between West and East Oakland. He told us something important that no one else so far has mentioned: “You know, in East Oakland, there are Latinos, Asians, Middle Eastern people—all these communities. And the people own their own businesses! In West Oakland, the blacks don’t have their own businesses. That’s not good.”

After you cross International Blvd., 73^rd Ave changes to Hegenberger. It was a nightmare. Even though there was a bike lane, we felt like we were riding on the freeway. Cars were rushing by at over 50 mph on the 8-lane street. For the first time since we started the project we felt vulnerable on our bikes.

2006-07-07T19:02:00.000-07:00

Another Part of the Bay Trail:

Fortunately, we only had to ride a short distance on this ‘freeway’ before we hit the entrance to the Martin Luther King Jr. Shoreline Damon Slough Staging Area. Up in the park we caught part of the Bay Trail, a wonderful bike/walking path that hugs the shoreline. What a welcome change from the grueling hardscape! The breeze was soft and cool; we saw lots of birds and rode by beautiful native grasses and marshes. Across the way was Alameda, houses floating as if from another world.

The Bay Trail petered out and we had to ride through hybrid industrial waterfront areas with warehouses, the glass factory, debris, and homeless encampments. Right by High Street we came upon a new park along the water. It is a very nicely designed small space, with a meandering path, native grasses and appealing benches. In this park there was an enormous mound of material; it looked like the entire contents from a multi-unit apartment complex had been carefully piled to form a new kind of dwelling. We didn't see anyone around, but assumed that at least one person lived there. After a short distance, the path unfortunately dead-ended, so we had to ride on E. 7^th Street, paralleling the freeway.

2006-07-07T18:51:00.000-07:00

Jingletown to Jack London Square:

We rode for a few miles on E. 7^th, passing through Jingletown. This part of the city, which extends from International Blvd. to the Estuary and from 23^rdAve. to Fruitvale, was the site of cotton mills in the early 1900s. A lot of small, beautiful cottages still dot this part of the neighborhood. It was called Jingletown “…because of millworkers’ habit of jingling coins in their pockets on payday to show off their earnings.” To learn more about Oakland’s neighborhoods, we highly recommend taking a look at a new book called Oakland’s Neighborhoods, by Erika Mailman. She has compiled an excellent collection of photos, accounts, poems and short stories organized neighborhood by neighborhood. (Our only complaint about the book is that she neglected to highlight specific West Oakland neighborhoods.)

We wound our way through some of the bike paths by Jack London Square, taking a short rest stop by one of the residential areas. There, two young guys approached us (who didn’t want to be photographed). They were very confident about where East and West Oakland were located, and described the east as “the lively part of the city” and the west as “the grimy part of the city.” From Jack London Square, we took our tired selves home, feeling satisfied that we covered a large part of what many call East Oakland.

2006-07-07T18:46:00.000-07:00

GPS Route:

COME RIDE WITH US! JULY 30th & AUGUST 5th

2006-07-06T15:13:00.000-07:00

Two Group Rides With WE Riders

We are planning two exciting, unusual and scenic Oakland bike adventures: the first will be to East Oakland on Sunday July 30th and the second will be to West Oakland on Saturday August 5th. Both rides will depart from Oakland's City Hall at 10AM. Please make sure to bring with you: your bike, a helmet, plenty of water and some food for lunch. Each ride will be leisurely and flat, lasting between 2 and 3 hours. The itinerary of the rides will be based on the information that people have shared with us about where they think West and East Oakland are located. We will make stops at various locations that we visited on previous rides. We plan to use, as much as possible, Oakland's new bike lanes.

We want to see you on the road with us!

HEADING WEST: JULY 1, 2006

2006-07-02T17:04:00.000-07:00

It was a great relief to ride in cooler weather. For some reason on this Saturday morning, a number of people asked us for directions. It is quite handy that we have a detailed map, a pretty good sense of the city and are wearing official uniforms. There was a German family piled with their jumble of luggage, hanging out on a bench in Ogawa Plaza. Save for them and mounds of yet to be collected trash, the plaza was brutally desolate in comparison to its weekday bustle. While we were figuring out our westward route for the day, the mother (?) came over to ask us where to find the RV rental center so they could pick up their vacation vehicle. We helped them as best we could; their destination was near the airport. After we gave them directions via BART, they continued to sit on the bench with their luggage. Were they lost? Were they waiting?

2006-07-02T17:02:00.000-07:00

On the Way to the Mandela Farmers Market:

We decided to check out the Mandela Farmers Market, located on 7^th Street right near the BART station. During our last visit to West Oakland, we had trouble finding people to talk to so we thought the market would give us a ready-made opportunity for conversation.

We rode from downtown along 14th Street, through layers of architectural history and part of the post-industrial heart of West Oakland.  Massive plants stand empty, in various stages of decay, with huge signs to entice leasers or buyers.  With the swift tide of gentrification, seems like it won’t be long before these buildings are reformatted into now ubiquitous luxury live-work studio spaces.  One of the words that many people have used so far to describe West Oakland is ‘gentrification.’

2006-07-02T16:58:00.000-07:00

Mandela Parkway:

From 14^th we turned onto the Mandela Parkway to ride through the new Loma Prieta median park. The park , built in 2005, replaces “…the ugly scar from the now-demolished Cypress Structure (and became) a flowering ribbon of greenery, with walking paths, ornate streetlights, benches and bike lanes.” The bike lane is part of the Bay Trail “…a planned recreational corridor that, when complete, will encircle San Francisco and San Pablo Bays with a continuous 400-mile network of bicycling and hiking trails. It will connect the shoreline of all nine Bay Area counties, link 47 cities, and cross the major toll bridges in the region. To date, approximately 240 miles of the alignment—over half the Bay Trail’s ultimate length—have been completed.” The 1.3 mile park also includes site specific sculptures and memorials to the Loma Prieta earthquake in 1989. The park is an attempt to soften the area’s landscape; it is a hopeful remediation for a community that was demolished and divided by the Cypress Freeway.

Unfortunately, it seems like it will take years before the park can ‘grow’ into itself. Right now the area feels stark and exposed. The trees are small and more concrete than green is visible. The park, though a promising attempt at urban greening and community-building, lacks intimacy and personality. As we rode through the park towards BART and the new 7^th Street development, we saw only one or two pedestrians and no other cyclists using the park.

2006-07-02T16:53:00.000-07:00

Mandela Farmers Market:

We could hear the farmers market before we saw it; some old soul music was wafting through the breeze. Before we entered the market itself, we saw a fellow, who is almost an Oakland landmark himself, painting the scene. The market was smaller than we had imagined, with only a few people milling about. It was the 4^th of July weekend, and it seemed that much of the city cleared out for a long weekend holiday. The market is about two blocks long; what it lacks in size, it makes up for in variety. Along with fruit and veggie vendors, there were some folks selling handcrafted shea butters and skin products, paintings, used books, records and tapes, as well as some prepared food. Because of the market’s small scale, our arrival to the market caused somewhat of a scene. The DJ, David, announced our presence over the PA by preaching “Where’s East Oakland? Where’s West Oakland? It’s right here, brothers and sisters!”. We waved, and set-up our rig, eager to join in the festivities.

It didn’t take long before we were deep in conversation with folks about the market, how it started and who is there. The Mandela Market, also called the Mo’ Better Foods Market, was first started in 1998. You can read here a full history of the development of the market and more information about Mo’ Better Foods. One of the main goals of the market is to support black farmers in order to bring healthy, organic and affordable produce to black communities. Here is a list of Mo’ Better Foods’ economic priorities:

Assist Black farmers with their production
Develop markets for their produce in urban communities
Create farmers markets in the inner cities throughout the U.S.*
Develop a community outreach /marketing team to promote the produce of the farmers, present special events including local talent, etc, to the market and other venues.
Certify kitchens in the community to conduct cooking demonstrations and promote entrepreneurship by supporting catering business and congregation of cooks in general.
Create distribution outlets for the farmers utilizing corner stores
Develop Cooperative Grocery Stores in urban communities

And here's a fact that fuels their efforts: "Every year, African Americans lose between 500,000 - 900,000 acres. In 1910, African Americans owned around 15 million acres. Currently, African Americans own between 2 million acres and 8 million acres (if you include heir property which many of us just pay taxes on). In 1910, there were roughly 54,000 Black farmers in the United States. Today, there are around 18,000 African American farmers in the U.S (mostly in the Southern states of the U.S)."

The people we spoke with about West Oakland expressed both resentment mixed with some hope for the future. Ted, a long time resident who has lived all over Oakland the past 50 years, said that “West Oakland has been manipulated and taken over, both in the past and now. West Oakland has some of the best property in Oakland, but it was swiped away when BART and then the freeway were built. RJ, who has lived in West Oakland for 18 years, was more optimistic in describing the area with these words: “successful, unity, egalitarian, determination, freedom.” He is a strong believer in the farmers market; he sees it as a powerful way to build a healthy community---especially by bringing the market to the people (instead of asking people to come to a market outside of West Oakland.)

We met with some of the local farmers and artisans; OBUGs (Oakland Based Urban Gardens) is a local non-profit that believes using farming and nutrition to build community. They have several plots of community garden land throughout West Oakland. They sell gorgeous flowers and veggies at the market that are grown right in the neighborhood. True to their mission, they have a very accessible pricing structure: free, next to nothing, and Berkeley Bowl prices. It is up to the shopper to choose the appropriate price range. They also sell goods produced by the City Slicker Farms,a group that “…seeks to increase food self-sufficiency in West Oakland by creating organic, sustainable, bio-intensive market farms and back-yard gardens that provide affordable fresh produce to West Oakland residents. These gardens also create earning opportunities for participants and serve as community spaces for children and adults who want to learn about the connections between ecology, farming, and the urban environment.”

It was inspiring and invigorating to be among grass-roots activists who are working are changing their community. Plus we ate some of the best strawberries that we have ever tasted! One woman we spoke with told us that since eating the greens from the market, she has gotten a new lease on life: all of her environmental illnesses and allergies have disappeared. We felt welcomed at the market, and folks there wanted us to encourage EVERYONE to come to the Mandela Market on Saturday mornings.

2006-07-02T16:40:00.000-07:00

OBUGS Farms:

We set out to visit some of the local farms that produced the veggies at the market. Our search wove us through some of the oldest streets in West Oakland, packed with amazing Victorians. We quickly became lost, but this seemed to be a part of the adventure. We stopped to ask some kids for directions, to see if they knew where the farm was. They weren’t sure, but wanted to know why Bruce’s shorts were so tight! They were curious about our signs—they said we were definitely in West Oakland.

We finally found the Cornell McBride Garden on 11^th Street, nestled in a lot between two houses. It was unfortunately closed, but through the fencing we could see amazing flowers used to attract butterflies, and creative uses of old tires.

2006-07-02T16:35:00.000-07:00

On to City Slicker Farms:

We rode to the Center Street Farm on the corner of 16^th and Center. City Slickers owns this small plot outright; they use over fifty farms of varying sizes throughout West Oakland. Some of the plots are on vacant lots, some backyards are ‘leased’ to the farm by neighbors. The Center St. Farm, at a mere 4,000 square feet, produces over 2,000 pounds of produce per year! This farm is host to a variety of chickens and ducks, 11 fruit trees and a rotating density of crops. The farm has an extensive education and volunteer program.

The farmers there were real friendly and told us all about their work. They were interested in our project and helped us with our survey. There we met a local teacher who described West Oakland in this way: “grounded, gang killings, but very rich.” She is worried about the kids but has hope: in her school she believes that there is a great deal of respect among people; that when someone says “Bless you” or “Have a blessed day”, they really mean it.

Across the street we noticed a bunch of old chairs in front of the building. They just seemed like junky abandoned chairs, out there with no purpose. After being at the farm for a short while, we saw the chairs slowly fill with a group of guys, just hanging out and enjoying the sunny Saturday afternoon. It can take time to understand a locality; if we had just zoomed by in our car, we wouldn’t have known the story behind the chairs.

2006-07-02T16:24:00.000-07:00

The Pretty Lady:

After all of this roaming around, we were getting pretty hungry and tired. So we asked Susan, the teacher, for some lunch spot tips. She advised us to go to the Pretty Lady, just around the corner. To her it is something of a West Oakland landmark. The Pretty Lady has been around for fifty years or more; before we entered the diner, we spoke to a regular waiting to pickup his order. He goes to the Pretty Lady every Saturday after his shift at Kaiser. After he eats his meal, he joins his neighborhood buddies out on the chairs at Center Street. He told us that the new owners, though Asian, have stayed true to the traditional southern style of the original owner. He has been working at Kaiser for twenty years; after he retires, he plans to return to his family’s farm in Texas. He goes their every summer to help his father, who is 103.

He was telling us how West Oakland has a lot of the southern spirit to it; a lot of folks who live in West Oakland are originally from the south. He thinks that the concepts of West and East Oakland are all made up, though he thinks they are the worst places to live and North Oakland is the best place to live.

We had a delicious lunch at the Pretty Lady. We highly reccomend their potato salad.

2006-07-02T16:17:00.000-07:00

Ebony Museum of Art:

As we first headed out to the Mandela Market, we passed by the Ebony Museum of Art. On our return to downtown, to satisfy our curiosity, we made a stop at the museum, housed in a three story Victorian on the corner of 14^th and Lindon. The fenced in front yard is filled with an unusual assortment of statues, buggies, and an eerie model constructed out of bones and wood, of what is described to be the first slave ship. The place looks official, but we had no idea of the hours or how to enter. We rang a buzzer on the gate. Just as we were about to climb back on our bike, an elderly black woman slowly opened the door and asked us what we wanted. We told her we were interested in knowing the hours of the museum; she emphatically told us, “Well, it’s open now! It’s open Tuesday through Saturday, 11-5pm. You want to come in?" She opened the gate and led us upstairs to her museum/house. Just walking through the door was an other-worldly experience: the foyer, staircase and front room are filled floor to ceiling with artifacts, sculptures, photos and books. Vernita, the 80 or 90 or 100 year old woman was a slow speaker: before she would address any of our questions, she insisted that we know some history, some background information about what we were seeing. She wouldn't let us take a picture of her, "..because I'm not dressed for visitors." Here's a photo of her from the early '80s:

Her wavery voice competed with the blaring tv; it was easy to tell that her daily life melded with the museum. Near the bookshelf was her bed (in what could have been a dining room) and an early 1990s computer stood out in the hall. Vernita started this museum in 1982; she had been an importer of African art. After some time, she accumulated her current collection and opened the museum. She wanted to insure the historical education of black children; she boasted that school groups as far as Sacramento come to her museum, “which is the only one of its kind in the US.” She doesn’t want her collection to go to a public museum. The process of display is very important, as she described that in Africa, these artifacts were not considered art, but were tools and utensils, used as part of daily life. She told us, “I put in here what I established this place for.”

In addition to being a business-woman, Vernita was also a jeweler and sculptor until her eye-sight failed her. She created tableaus from traditional black food, such as chitlins, beans, collard greens, and bones from chickens, pigs and turtles as a way to confront the embarrassment some feel towards these foods. Instead, she wants people to realize that these are the foods of survival, that the slaves had to eat this in order to live. She wants people to know their history because this is the only way that people will begin to know themselves. (We weren’t allowed to take photos of these sculptures because they are protected under copyright.)

Vernita gave us the full tour of her museum:  four floors of rooms filled with amazing art, images and sculpture.  We highly encourage you to visit this museum, but only when you have at least an hour or two to dedicate to your visit.  Check out the Flick'r bar on the right to see more images from the museum.

2006-07-02T16:04:00.000-07:00

Ecotourism:

Our visit to West Oakland was a true local ecotourist experience: we felt like we had traveled by bike to a different culture far from home. And yet West Oakland is only minutes away. What we saw was a beautiful expression of the urban fabric: the scale of this part of the city is people-oriented and the businesses and activities felt ‘home-grown’. Plus everyone we met seemed genuinely happy to be there. The gardens, City Slickers and OBUGS are a wonderful and essential addition to the community. This is not to say that folks are angling for change and improvement: West Oakland has been redlined by many essential businesses such as food markets. In response to this, people have taken it upon themselves to improve their community.

2006-07-02T16:00:00.000-07:00

GPS Route:

MANDELA FARMER'S MARKET: JULY 1, 2006

2006-06-27T09:45:00.000-07:00

We will be heading out to explore West Oakland this Saturday. You can visit with us at the Mandela Farmer's Market, located at Mandela Parkway and 7th Street, near the West Oakland BART Station. We will be there at noon. We will likely stay there for about an hour, and then we will continue our ride---only after we have gotten some delicious locally grown food.

HEADING EAST: JUNE 22, 2006

2006-06-24T18:33:00.000-07:00

Meeting Ron Dellums:

Our ride stated auspiciously at City Hall: only days after Dellums’ victory was announced, he was holding a press conference in Ogawa Plaza. We seized the opportunity and rode over to talk to him. Under a blazing sun (it must have been close to 90 degrees) Dellums appeared incredibly cool while wearing an elegant white suit. We had to wait to make our break into the crowd to talk to him. When we did, he gave us his full attention.

We explained the premise of our project and then asked him to give us three to five words that would describe West and East Oakland. He answered (almost majestically) that “Humanity can’t be reduced to three words.” Towering at well over 6’,Dellums then flowed into his political reverie, outlining West Oakland’s post-industrial woes and his vision for revitalization. After a few minutes, Dellums returned from his trance-like political oration; as he focused his gaze upon us, he discussed his plans for ‘greening’ Oakland and invited us to be members of his citizen-based environmental committee.

Dellums’ pr crew ushered him along; he couldn’t move very quickly. Every few feet he was stopped by optimistic passers-by, who all hoped that the change in Oakland’s ‘leadership’ will offer Oakland a chance at a new soul. Look here to read a very insightful interview with Ron Dellums as part of the UC Berkeley Institute of International Studies. He said this about his childhood in West Oakland:

“I was born in 1935. West Oakland, early on, was a definite community. There were many white ethnics who lived in West Oakland as a working-class community. When World War II began, West Oakland became the major point of entry for black people coming in from the South, who came in to take advantage of the economic expansion and opportunities of the war economy, as it were. As a result of that, suddenly West Oakland over night becomes a small Southern town.”

It is also important to note that his uncle was instrumental in forming the African American trade union in the history of America, the Brotherhood of Sleeping Car Porters.

2006-06-24T18:30:00.000-07:00

Stopping at Albertson’s on The Way to The Parkway Movie Theater:

Quite a few people we surveyed listed the Parkway Movie Theater as an East Oakland landmark, so we decided that this would be an appropriately short and flat route on this blistering day. The City has made an temporary bike lane alongside of the lake. Measure DD renovation plans include the construction of a permanent bike route along the lake. For now it is a good effort; just be careful at the entrance/exit on Lakeshore; there is an abrupt merge between the bike lane and street due to the preservation of parking. Our trusty videographer, Erin Melina Stamos, followed us by car to film the journey.

On our way to the Parkway, we decided to visit the Merritt Bakery, another East Oakland icon. The restaurant had recently suffered from a fire; it was open for business while part of it was under reconstruction. We waved to and had brief conversations with the construction workers. The Merritt Bakery, an old time diner, is tucked away in a very suburban looking strip mall.

As we slowly rode around, we thought about where we could set up our rig. Strip malls, often with names like “town square”, “the commons” or “plaza” attempt to recall a time when cities and towns had public space where community gathering was an important part of daily life. Now one is hard pressed to find space in the so-called public domain that isn’t actually under some sort of private jurisdiction. At the risk of getting booted out (as we had been at Fruitvale Village a few weeks ago), we decided to talk to people on the sidewalk outside of the recently renovated Albertson’s. Before we could even turn our rig around, a young shopper stopped us to find out what we were all about. Turns out that his true interest was in hitching a ride from us with his load of groceries back into downtown (central?) Oakland. Since we had just come from that direction, we declined the adventure. He did offer that he thought we weren’t yet in East Oakland, and that he felt that he lived in West Oakland at around 7^th and Washington.

After we set up on the sidewalk, people pretty much ignored us. Maybe it was because of the heat, or maybe because people busy with their shopping and driving had no time for an unusual experience. We didn’t go after people; we didn’t want to be mistaken for pollsters, solicitors or petitioners. Just as we were giving up all hope for an interesting encounter at Albertson’s, a woman with her cart stopped to talk to us. At first her expression was very closed; she seemed almost disturbed by what we were doing. Then, after a few minutes of back and forth Q & A, she understood what was going on. She was a long-time resident of this neighborhood, which she told us was not really considered East Oakland. At one time it was called the San Antonio. Then, more recently, it was changed to the Upper East Lake. When we asked her about the significance of the name change, she told us she thought it was all about image. If the name is different or changed, then this will change people’s perceptions too. Once considered dangerous, this neighborhood is now desirable. (According to the Walk Oakland Map, this particular neighborhood has no specific name.) Also, even though she felt that this area was not actually East Oakland, she believed that Lake Merritt was the dividing line between west and east.

She also commented on the name change of 14^th Street to International: she’s in favor of both the name change and the changes to the neighborhoods themselves, especially Fruitvale. She attributes the positive trend to influx of Asians and Latinos, as well as Brown’s efforts.

It was interesting to see that the longer we spoke with her, the more she blossomed: it seemed like it had been a long time since someone asked her to express her opinion.

2006-06-24T18:18:00.000-07:00

F.M. Smith Park:

We rode on to the Parkway. Since it was in the early afternoon, the theater was shut. There was no one there we could talk to. Unsure of where to go next, we continued to ride on Park Boulevard. We passed some new funky looking cafes, a clothing store---

We were going to turn around at Francis Smith Park. A bunch of kids ran to the fence yelling, “Hey, what’s that? What’s your sign mean?” Then a few men where pointing and laughing. We thought that this would be a good place to stop. After we figured out how to maneuver through the narrow rig, we met John Ball, the unofficial keeper of the park’s history and the director of a youth rec program. When we asked him about East Oakland, he said this was definitely not it. “It starts across 23^rd Ave and goes all the way to San Leandro. This here is the Lake Area. People call it lots of names.” His description of East Oakland: “Overpopulated and bad streets: you should see the potholes! MacArthur, East 12^th, First Ave, they’re all bad. Bad for bikes.”

He helped to start the youth program at the park several years ago; there’s a computer lab with some twenty machines and all sorts of summer programs for kids. While we were there, we saw various camp counselors leading games for kids from five years on up. Some of the teenagers were helping to run the groups. He believes that it is vital for kids to have a safe place to learn and play together. He’s there every day to run the center.

This oasis is flanked with huge redwood trees. The park has a unique sculpture: near one edge of the park stands a group of four proud mules. We asked John the story behind the mules. He chuckled and said, “Do you know whose house this used to be?” The rec center is JM Smith’s granddaughters house. Smith, who discovered a vast reserve of borax in the desert, built his vast estate covered five blocks of Park Boulevard. The name of his company was Twenty Mule Borax. In 1912, he gave the city this plot of land with specific instructions that it be used as a park for kids.

2006-06-24T18:07:00.000-07:00

10th Avenue Historic District:

We enjoyed talking to John and some of the kids at the park, who described East Oakland as “hyphy”; the cool shade was a welcome break from the day’s brutal heat. We asked John for some tips on local sites. He suggested that we cruise around some of the old mansions near 10^th Avenue. We climbed up 21^st Street, a tough chore under the blazing afternoon sun, but well worth the effort. On our way to 10^th Ave., we passed through some welcoming neighborhoods with 1920s homes and a healthy sprinkle of local businesses and shops.

We rode around to tour these fantastic victorian homes. We highly recommend the visit. Other than a few languid waves, we didn’t talk to anyone. The heat had made everyone move in thick, slow motion. Luckily our ride back was all downhill. The lake seemed very enticing as we rode by, heading towards home.

2006-06-22T06:08:00.000-07:00

East Oakland Pride:

Always on the look-out for references to East or West Oakland around the city, we noticed this license plate frame on a parked car across from Lake Merritt:

2006-06-22T06:00:00.000-07:00

GPS Route:

JUNE 17 RECONNAISSANCE RIDE

2006-06-18T10:25:00.000-07:00

Temescal Street Fair:

People have been asking us, SO what about North Oakland? Even though we live have lived in North Oakland for about 20 years, we, along with others, have questions about its boundaries and ever-changing characteristics. But for this project, because we are interested in exploring the idea of being a local tourist, we wanted to focus on areas of the city that are unfamiliar to us.

June 17^th was the third annual Temescal Street Fair. We thought this event would provide an interesting opportunity for conversation. The day was glorious: the sun was brilliant, the air was hot and crisp. A good day for a festival. The atmosphere was almost electric with excitement. It is amazing how the closing off of a major street changes the community dynamic. People really enjoyed being able to freely walk about Telegraph Avenue.

2006-06-18T10:22:00.000-07:00

Surveys & Conversations:

In the two hours that we were at the Fair, we spoke with well over a hundred people. Since people were leisurely experiencing the fair, they had plenty of time to talk to us and fill out survey forms. We spoke with local folks, people who were new to the neighborhood, people from West Oakland and people who live in East Oakland. We spoke with people of all ages and colors.

It was interesting to note that most of the survey responses were very positive about Oakland in general and West and East Oakland in specific. In some of our previous conversations with people, responses about West and East Oakland have been predominantly negative, such as “ghetto, dangerous, dirty”. At the street fair, we had included with some negative responses, we also had some inspirational responses such as “Victorian homes, up and coming, progressive, funky, cheap”.

What impresses us consistently is how sincere, serious and honest people are when they participate in the project. It is exciting for us to see how this adventure has become a platform for sharing people’s opinions and engaging in an important city dialog.

2006-06-18T10:20:00.000-07:00

West Oakland History:

Among all of the interesting conversations with had with folks at the fair, probably among the most memorable were the stories shared by two older African American men.

One lamented, “West Oakland is not what it used to be. When I lived there, in the 1940s and ‘50s, there was a sense of community and camaraderie: people knew each other. There were black owned businesses. When the freeways were built, many homes were destroyed and people were forced to move to East Oakland. Now it’s like a ghost town.” He told me some important landmarks are: Esther’s Orbit Room, Ramondy Park and the 16^th Street Train Station. He describes Grand Avenue as the dividing line for the West, but in general believes that “…all maps are political. How the city is divided up and what is called West and what is called East all depends on the politicians and how they want to see the city.”

Pursey, the other older man that I talked to for awhile, first told me that he admired our tandem bike because he thought it was a great way to pick up the ladies! In wondering where is South Oakland, he thought that West Oakland is actually south and that anything east of Lake Merritt is East Oakland. He grew up in West Oakland in the 1940s, but he remembers that his mother got them out of there as soon as she could because “it was a negative place.” Blacks moved from West to East Oakland when construction forced them out: the freeways, the post office. But people also wanted to move to East Oakland because a lot of the houses were newer. Now West Oakland is being gentrified and people want those old houses: “I remember in the 70s I had the opportunity to buy a house, a beautiful Victorian, for eleven thousand dollars. Now lots of people from San Francisco, not blacks, are buying houses and moving to West Oakland.” Wikipedia has a good overview of West Oakland history.

After talking to Pursey, we enjoyed some delicious food from Tanjia, a local Moroccan restaurant, an early member of Temescal’s so-called gourmet ghetto. Then we wrapped up our conversations for the day.

VIRTUAL SURVEYS

2006-06-15T12:18:00.000-07:00

We received a request a few days ago for a way that people can participate in the project online. We thought that was a great suggestion! So below you will see our various survey forms. The best way to participate is to click on the form you want to use, print it, and fill out a hard copy. Then you can scan your completed form and email us a jpg at marksearch@sbcglobal.net. Or, you can simply email us your answers to the questions. We look forward to hearing from you!

TEMESCAL STREET FAIR: JUNE 17, 2006

2006-06-13T12:44:00.000-07:00

Hey, if you're in the neighborhood, come and visit us! We will set up shop at the Temescal Street Fair from noon until 2PM. We'll see what North Oaklanders have to say about the West and the East. Hope to see you there!

TO THE MIDDDLE: JUNE 10, 2006

2006-06-10T13:28:00.000-07:00

To the City’s Dividing Line

At least a good third of the people we have talked to so far have told us that Lake Merritt is the dividing line for the city: the east is on one side, the west is on the other. So we thought that we would travel to the zone of the great divide to find out people’s opinions there. What better place to meet folks than the Saturday Grand Lake Farmer’s Market?

2006-06-10T13:27:00.000-07:00

At The Market:

When we arrived, we scoped out the site to see where we could set up. The market is jammed packed with all sorts of vendors, from fresh fruit and veggies to homemade jams, soaps and other handcrafted creations, not to mention people of all colors and ages. We settled on a small patch of grass between several rows of vendors. As we were setting up the kiosk, a tall fellow approached us. He introduced himself as the market manager. We were concerned about being kicked out because of our experience at Fruitvale Village yesterday (see post from 6/9/06 for details). Instead, he extended his hand, welcomed us, and confirmed that in this spot we would not be in anyone’s way. He was curious and excited about the project and assured us that we could come to the market any time. Public space is still alive and well!

2006-06-10T13:24:00.000-07:00

Farmer Marketers:

The marketers are generally an inquisitive and pleasant lot: people are out for a leisurely Saturday shopping experience. A good number of people stopped to talk to us. Interestingly enough, people spent a long and thoughtful amount of time filling out survey forms. Even though we spoke to well over 20 people, we have only ten forms completed. Pairs and small groups of folks often collaborated on the forms. You can click on Flikr (the right orange bar) to see all of the completed surveys.

One woman questioned our survey format: she took our sociological endeavor to heart and believed that we should “…restate your questions in order to get a much broader perspective of what people really think.” She was bothered, as we have been too, by the generally negative descriptions of West and East Oakland. According to her, West Oakland is “The place where the city began” and East Oakland is full of “culturally diverse neighborhoods.” We appreciate her concern and sincerity. Because of her comments, we have since changed the questions on our survey forms.

2006-06-10T13:22:00.000-07:00

Oaklandish

Just by chance, we had set up our rig near the Oaklandish booth. Up until a few months ago, Oaklandish, a group of creative renegades and urban activists had an eccentric warehouse art gallery/community center/alternative Oakland museum in the produce district in near Jack London Square. The City ousted them from this space. Now that the group is nomadic, they have a stall at this and other farmers markets. Check out their website for a full listing of exciting events this summer, including movies projected on the sides of downtown buildings, weekly games at Ogawa Plaza and short-wave Radio Regatta at Lake Merritt on July 16th. It is also worth reading the recent Express article about Oaklandish, which describes their recent history.

They are one of our project sponsors, so it was great to run into Jeff Hull, the director of Oaklandish. We had chance to chat about how we will collaborate. We plan to be at their Radio Regatta event on the 16^th and other events later this summer. We will keep you posted!

2006-06-10T13:09:00.000-07:00

At The City’s Dividing Line:

Next, we were off to Lake Merritt itself, to see if we could talk to folks there about their impressions of how to locate West and East Oakland. Lake Merritt, sometimes referred to as the ‘Jewel of Oakland’, is one of the City’s most unusual features: it is the largest fresh and salt-water lake contained in an urban area.

After we rode through the Lake’s beautiful pergola, we ran across a group of high school girls doing some community service work: they were dredging what looked like thousands of Canada geese from the lake. The geese have made this spot their permanent home. We stopped to talk to the girls. They all agreed that the Lake was definitely not East Oakland. However, they were all pointing in different directions to try to set us towards East. Their teach pitched in and gave us her sense of the easterly direction too.

2006-06-10T13:06:00.000-07:00

Walkers & Runners:

Loads of people enjoy the three-mile path around the Lake. While we received many curious stares, hardly anyone stopped to talk to us as we were riding. We were really surprised by this, because even as we ride through the city streets, drivers and pedestrians often pause to at least ask us “WHY?” or “WHAT?”

2006-06-10T13:04:00.000-07:00

Wildlife Refuge:

We finally set up beside a playground near one of the ‘bird islands’ Lake Merritt is the oldest wildlife refuge in the nation; it was dedicated in 1865. Starting in 1915, five artificial islands were constructed as refuges for the thousands of migratory and local birds. You can see egrets, heron, coots, comorants, geese, gulls, grebes and others.

We attracted the interest of one young father who has lived in Oakland for only three months. We shared with him the stories and questions of the people we have talked with so far. And we also spoke with an out-of-town couple who are tandem bikers about the pleasures of riding double.

2006-06-10T13:02:00.000-07:00

A Note on Documentation:

Many thanks to Pamela Palma an excellent photographer, who documented our activities today. She shot most of the photos of this ride.

2006-06-10T13:00:00.000-07:00

GPS Route:

HEADING EAST: JUNE 9, 2006

2006-06-09T13:34:00.000-07:00

We developed a new format for interacting with people: a survey with five open-ended questions. We found that on our ride to the West, few people wanted to fill out our map form. So we created this survey as a way to easily record our conversations with folks. We added a new question to try to get a better idea of people’s perceptions of the West and the East: What 3-5 words describe West or East Oakland?

We got a chance to test our new format before we even left our driveway: one of our neighbors stopped as she was riding by to find out what the rig was all about. We told her our story and asked her our survey questions. After thinking for a minute, she easily described East Oakland in this way: “industrial, neighborhoods, the biggest part of the city.”

2006-06-09T13:32:00.000-07:00

PLANNING THE RIDE:

We arrived at City Hall at approximately 2:00PM to strategize for our eastward ride. We had expected Frank Ogawa Plaza to be empty after the lunch-hour; we were surprised by the steady flow of foot traffic. Our kiosk grabbed the attention of a few people. One woman was visibly excited about our project and enthusiastically shared her views about East Oakland. She described East Oakland as 'The Heartlands'. She elaborated that East Oakland “…has the best weather in the City. It is also a very livable area, with beautiful homes and accessible commercial districts. It is so easy to walk or ride your bike from home and take care of all of your shopping needs. East Oakland is full of little neighborhoods. Even though there is high crime in some parts of the region, it is really changing. There is lots of redevelopment in the area.” It was interesting that another person we spoke with, a young man who grew up in East Oakland, described the area as having “the best f*@#!ing weather”. There is no fog in East Oakland!

The Plaza has its own micro-community during the workday: we saw someone ride by on cowboy bike that was rigged with leather and spotted cowhide wheel covers. A real beaut! And as we were deliberating about our route into East Oakland, we witnessed a true City Hall character: an elderly fellow pulling a red wagon full of slices of fresh cake. As he slowly walked, he sang out: “Cakeman, cakeman! Cakeman, cakeman!” It felt like we were transported to a different place and time.

The region that people designated as East Oakland is easily four times larger than the West Oakland region. It was hard to decide where to begin our search. Many people told us that Lake Merritt was a boundary line for East Oakland.

2006-06-09T13:29:00.000-07:00

To International Boulevard (E. 14th Street)

We rode through downtown and Chinatown until we hit E. 14^th Street or International Boulevard. We thought it would be interesting to stop at a park. We have this idea that people gather in parks; but so far our experience has shown us that only a very few people (most seem like they’re on the edge) hang out in parks on a weekday afternoon. This is a big contrast to other urban park experiences we have had both in the US and overseas. We past Madison Square Park (one of the four parks that surrounds the Oakland's old downtown) and the entrance to the Lake Merritt Channel Park (which is slated for a major rennovation through Measure DD funding). We rode around and through Clinton Park at International and 6th Ave. We saw about five guys drinking at a park bench. When we rode by the Oakland Adult School Neighborhood Center’s classrooms (where local ESL classes are taught day and night), we saw all of the students get up out of their seats to look through the window. We waved to each other. We decided it would be helpful to know the Oakland Adult School’s class schedule so we can coincide our ride with either the beginning or end of class.

2006-06-09T13:26:00.000-07:00

Rest Stop on International Boulevard:

We rode up International Boulevard (East 14^th Street) in search of a pit stop. Close to Clinton Park we found a new Hong Kong-style café. Our rig got quite a few looks from the patrons as we parked outside. We sat out front on a comfortable sidewalk bench and enjoyed our strong decaf made with rich condensed milk. Many people walked by, most without verbal comment. Some wore amused expressions and pointed at different directions. Others were simply confused by our signs.

Angela and her two friends stopped and asked us what we were doing. We explained and asked them for help. In reply to whether we were in East Oakland they said:

“No, this isn’t East Oakland. This is the San Antonio. If you want to get to East Oakland, you have to go all the way that way [pointing up International Boulevard]. If you want to know where East Oakland is, you should ask the police.”

Then they started laughing and singing a rap song that mentions some East Oakland streets. They couldn’t remember the name of the song.

They told us we would know we were in East Oakland when we started to see taco trucks. They described East Oakland as ‘industrial’ and ‘ghetto’.

2006-06-09T13:21:00.000-07:00

The Street Scene:

The traffic was pretty thick at 3PM as we rode up International Boulevard.  We saw a lot of interesting old Victorians and a blend of Asian and Latino businesses.  In comparison to our West Oakland ride, we kept saying that East Oakland felt very lively:  lots of people walking on the streets, lots of activity.    

A bus that was driving behind us started to ride slowly alongside of us. The driver opened the door and as he was driving, started to shout out directions. Unfortunately, we couldn’t hear him. But we were happy that he was so enthusiastic. And a few cars also slowed down beside us to talk about what we were doing.

2006-06-09T13:18:00.000-07:00

Is This East Oakland?

We first saw at taco truck at 16th and International: according to Angela and her friends, we had officially arrived!

2006-06-09T13:16:00.000-07:00

The Fruitvale Village: 30th Street & International Boulevard

We decided to ride towards the Fruitvale Transit Village: a few people said this was an East Oakland landmark.. When we arrived, the Plaza was packed. We couldn't help but notice that the small street heading into the Village was named De La Fuente Way, in honor of City Councilman and mayoral candidate Ignacio De La Fuente. He was instrumental in the creation of this mixed-used transit hub, which serves as a model for other developing other transit communities near Oakland BART Stations.

As we were walking through the first plaza, a group of tipsy and/or high folks laughed and shouted to us. One woman got up and started to look at the map on the sign; she confessed that she’s not too good at maps, but that she knows a lot about West and East Oakland, because she’s from the west and now lives in the east. She said, with a strange sense of pride: “West Oakland is where all of the rejects from East Oakland go. I should know: I’m from there.” We didn’t really know how to respond to that, so we rolled along.

Then we entered the main part of the plaza; a lush fountain rose out of the center and around the periphery were storefronts, some occupied and some vacant. Three stories of buildings grew out of this ground level. The building house community centers, medical clinics and affordable residences.

We setup in front of a vacant storefront so we wouldn’t be hindering any business. A few store employees/owners stepped out to witness what was going on. The plaza was a mix of school age kids and young parents with babies.

We noticed that the Village was being watched over by two security guys. They noticed us too. After we were all setup, the younger of the two, a brawny guy with dark sunglasses, came over and asked us what we were up to. He was pounding away at a new pack of Salems. We explained and he nodded, uh huh, uh huh.

Security:“Yeah, that’s nice and all, but you can’t be here.”
WE Riders: “Well, this is an art project, sponsored by the city.”
S: “Yeah, I don’t care. You can go over there (pointing to the sidewalk near the BART entrance). Then it’ll be the BART Polices’ problem.”

He didn’t leave much room for argument; his intimidation prevented us from asking the most obvious question: isn’t this public space? We supposed that this beautiful plaza is like so many shopping malls that spring up: regulated private places in the guise of public space. A high price to pay for urban renewal.

2006-06-09T13:14:00.000-07:00

After-School:

We talked to a lot kids who were hanging out after-school. Three very self-assured girls, Rock, Shorty and Sonara, told us that this was East Oakland. They described it as even more dangerous (than West Oakland), crazy and hyphee. I said, “HUH?, What does hyphee mean?” Short said, “It’s, ya know, dumb, but in a good way.” And then all the girls laughed. Since our conversation I have seen and heard the word being used all over the place. Check out the definition in the Urban Dictionary here and here.

Another student, a high-school age girl answered our questions by stating: "I don't really care where West and East Oakland are because it's like claiming your territory."

One guy we talked to wasn’t too pleased about the project; when we asked him three words to describe East Oakland, he said, “The opposite way.” Then he told us: “Why don’t you leave well enough alone.”

We talked to another guy who was on his way home from West Oakland:

“When I tell people I live in East Oakland, they say ‘OOHHH’. But when I tell them that I live in the Laurel District, they say, ‘That’s really nice.’” He had just moved from Emeryville where he feels that the all of the development is causing the sense of community to dissolve.

2006-06-09T13:10:00.000-07:00

Leaving Fruitvale:

As we left The Fruitvale Village, we walked by a really interesting ceramic mural of various mechanical shapes near the Fruitvale Station bike repair shop. We went in and talked to them briefly. We wondered if they had a map with the new bike routes printed on it. They looked at us with confusion: bike routes? They didn’t know anything about them. They had a map of Alameda’s bike routes. So we left them a card with info and weblinks to the new routes.

2006-06-09T13:06:00.000-07:00

What about South Oakland?

The burning question now is, why doesn’t Oakland have a region designated as South? Lots of people we have talked to have commented on the fact that East Oakland is geographically situated in the southern area of the city, while the Oakland Hills constitute due east. So, what about it? Why no South Oakland? We were amazed and shocked, that as we rode towards downtown from Fruitvale, that we encountered a CalTans sign for…SOUTH OAKLAND!!!

2006-06-09T13:02:00.000-07:00

GPS Route:

OUR NEXT RIDES: JUNE 9 & 10, 2006

2006-06-04T18:16:00.000-07:00

You can catch us on our next rides this week: On Friday, June 9th we will head out towards East Oakland. We are not sure where we will end up. Check back here to see our route. On Saturday, June 10th, we will be at the Grand Lake Farmer's Market at 10:00. Then we will ride to the eastern part of the lake to see where people will direct us next.

HEADING WEST: MAY 31. 2006

2006-05-31T19:58:00.000-07:00

To venture into the so-called western and eastern regions of the city, we layered all of the responses we had received from our two City Hall visits onto the Walk Oakland map. By doing this, we could see how far people's perceptions of the regions spanned and where their areas of overlap lay. Cool colors denote the 'boundaries' of the west and warm colors denote 'boundaries' of the east.

We are using City Hall as our launch site. Even as we pull up and begin to select our route with the map and GPS, curious passers-by want to know what we is going on. One person called us the ‘mobile geography lesson’. That’s pretty on target, except for the fact that we are looking forward to people teaching us a thing or two about the city. We have very few answers. We decided to first head west and travel towards the area that most people designated as West Oakland.

2006-05-31T19:56:00.000-07:00

Lafayette Square Park

We were very curious about where the borderline between the West and downtown might be. First we rode to Lafayette Square Park (10^th and Martin Luther King), which dates back to Oakland’s earliest days. Nicknamed “The Old Man’s Park”, Lafayette Square underwent a major revitalization in 1999 after suffering for years as a drug dealing hotspot. At the opening of the event, people were very excited by the park’s potential: ``We said `no' to sweeping the poor out,'' Eller-Issacs said to rounding applause. ``That's not the way to rebuild a park. You make it a place for all people. This is a new beginning for Oakland.'' Learn more about the park’s reopening by reading the 1999 article in SF Gate.

When we arrived on the scene, it was shortly before noon.We rode around the park, impressed by its attractive seating (tables with embedded chess boards surrounded by chairs), sweeping old oaks and inviting play area.We were very surprised at how abandoned and empty the park seemed to be: all of ten people were using the space; several men gathered at one of the benches eyed us with inquisitive grins and a few other homeless folks were camped out with their carts. With its proximity to City Hall and the Federal Building, we thought this would be a popular lunch spot.We were wrong. It seemed like Jefferson Street was profound boundary; people walked around east of the Federal Building but not west of it. We also considered that the park might have more people in the later afternoon after school is out.

2006-05-31T19:55:00.000-07:00

Bus Depot: 82 International

We decided to park next to the bus stop, as this was the most peopled area. This was one of the end points for the 82 International, that runs along International Boulevard starting at 11^th Street running all the way through East Oakland to the Hayward BART station. Traveling this bus route would give you an excellent snapshot of Oakland through its cultural transitions.

As we were unpacking our gear, one of the bus drivers asked us what we were up to. So we asked her if she knew where West and East Oakland were. We figured if anybody ought to know, it would be a bus driver. But she told us, “I just drive from one point to the other, and I really don’t know where West or East is; if we have to make a detour for an accident or construction, they tell us where to go. I really don’t know this city; I’m from San Francisco.” But then she got curious, so she called her dispatcher and asked where the borders of West and East are. She was told that East Oakland begins just beyond Lake Merritt at 1^st Avenue and ends at 104^th Avenue. And West Oakland starts at 11^th and Jefferson. She even asked one of the passengers her opinion as she was getting on the bus. The passenger didn’t know. Then it was time for the driver to take off; she gave us a hearty wave and wished us luck.

The next bus driver to pull up was prepared to give us some answers. She got off of the bus and started pointing here and there. She told us that West MacArthur and Grand Avenue separate North Oakland from West Oakland. And East Oakland begins near Highland and 14^th Avenue. She described the downtown area as “Central Oakland”, a designation that we hadn’t heard of. We also talked about how in the eastern region, all of the streets start with an ‘E’ before the number, but in the west, only West MacArthur and West Grand specify geographic location. She has been a driver for five years and told us, “Yeah, when they train us, they just tell us the route. They don’t tell us anything about the areas around the route."