No Oakland Without Us: Shape our next campaign

What our survey data shows:

Oakland small businesses are pointing toward a more democratic local economy: one where workers can build wealth, keep businesses rooted, and collectively own the spaces and enterprises they sustain. In the NOWU survey, 42% of respondents selected the opportunity to cooperatively co-own commercial space as a priority for city investment, and 24% selected technical support for cooperative businesses.

Why worker ownership is good for the local economy:

In 2015, the City of Oakland passed a resolution in support of worker-owned cooperatives, but Oakland still lacks a formal implementation plan, dedicated staffing, and a clear strategy for helping workers collectively own businesses and commercial space. As a result, cooperative and nontraditional business models are often pushed to the margins of city systems that were built for conventional firms with more capital, more time, and easier access to legal and technical support. 

The survey also shows that cooperative development is not an isolated  concern. Respondents tied cooperative ownership to affordability, anti-displacement, long-term neighborhood stability, and a local economy that keeps wealth in Oakland instead of extracting it.

“City support for small businesses and coops is critical since these are part of the fabric of community safety and economic security in Oakland.”

- Black worker-owner in a downtown Oakland cooperative, survey respondent

“We need Black, community-owned cooperative zones and public investment that repairs past harm—so Black cooperatives can own land and businesses instead of being displaced again.”

-Black worker-owner, survey respondent

Recommendations:

1. Create a Worker Co-op Task Force to develop Oakland’s plan for supporting cooperative businesses and shared ownership

2. Create real city support for co-ops. Build a co-op support program that offers technical assistance, a clear city liaison, and easier pathways into permitting, licensing, financing, and business development for worker co-ops and shared ownership businesses. This could include a dedicated Cooperative Analyst in the Business Development Division

3. Make local worker co-ops a priority in city investment.
   Use tools like procurement/contracting preferences, bid discounts, tax credits, and fee relief so certified local worker co-ops are treated as key partners in Oakland’s economic strategy, not exceptions

The Problem:

Small businesses are being forced out of existence by out-of-control commercial rents, short leases, and landlords who are unresponsive to local needs. Multiple survey respondents described speculative landlords who would rather keep storefronts empty for years than lower the rent to a level local businesses can afford. Oakland technically has a commercial vacancy tax, but it is riddled with broad exemptions and weak enforcement, allowing long-term empties to persist on key corridors.

What this means for many of our businesses:

In the NOWU survey, (55%) of all respondents selected a strict vacancy tax on landlords as a top priority for city investment. Empty storefronts invite illegal dumping and blight, drag down foot traffic, and make nearby small businesses shoulder the cost of safety and corridor care on their own. Business owners connect vacancy and rent behavior directly, describing how high asking rents and empty spaces make it harder to stay rooted in Oakland.

“Greedy landlords here would rather their building sit empty than lease to a small business that can only afford a fraction of what they’re demanding for commercial rent.”
— Black- and Latin-owned restaurant and supperclub on International Blvd

Our Vision:

Oakland’s vacancy policy should discourage long-term empty storefronts, push speculative landlords to either fill their spaces or pay a real penalty, and reinvest vacancy tax revenue into the very corridors and small businesses harmed by chronic vacancies. Over time, stronger rules and enforcement can help bring asking rents closer to what local businesses can afford, while turning blighted, empty spaces into community-rooted storefronts.

Recommendations:

1. Make the vacancy tax meaningful for commercial properties. Raise rates for long-term and high-value commercial vacancies so it is no longer easy or profitable to sit on empty storefronts on key corridors

2. Clarify the rules and close loopholes. Set clear definitions for what counts as vacant and “in use,” tighten exemptions, and ensure the tax applies to long-term commercial empties rather than letting them slide

3. Strengthen enforcement and transparency. Invest in enforcement, data-matching, and regular audits, and create a public vacancy registry—starting with two priority corridors—so residents and small businesses can see where spaces sit empty and demand action

4. Reinvest vacancy tax revenue into small business stability. Direct a meaningful share of revenue to corridor revitalization and small business support: break‑in repairs, façade improvements, lease‑up assistance, and help for BIPOC, immigrant, queer, and women‑owned businesses to move into long‑vacant spaces

The Problem: Oakland’s overspending on OPD and police overtime has not changed conditions for small businesses

Public safety is a major concern for many Oakland small businesses and an issue that gets misdirected to support hard-on-crime approaches (high police spending, high incarceration). According to a recent article in Oaklandside, “By the city’s own accounting, somewhere around three-quarters of the money Oakland has the most flexibility to use goes to police and fire.” Although the Oakland budget crisis has been a recurring issue, an estimated ~ $72 million has been set aside for police overtime alone. When communities are denied access to their basic needs, the impacts result in an environment where crime and community instability take root. 

The City has piloted some promising alternative programs for neighborhood activation and community safety, but those efforts are underfunded and not fully coordinated because of the ongoing budget crisis and structural deficit.

What this means for Oakland’s small businesses:

In our survey, 67% of respondents disagreed with spending $72M on police overtime, and nearly 48% wanted direct investment in alternatives to traditional policing. Small business owners are asking the City to stop treating overtime as the main safety strategy and instead address the underlying economic conditions that make it hard to keep doors open and streets safe.

Our Vision:

When public dollars move from overtime into civilian response, corridor care, and economic stability, small business owners get:

• Non‑escalatory civilian responders trained in mediation and de‑escalation, not just armed officers

• Clean, well‑lit, and maintained corridors that bring back foot traffic and make customers feel comfortable

• Real investments in housing, jobs, and community well‑being, so safety isn’t just “more enforcement” but fewer emergencies in the first place

Recommendations: 

1. 24/7 non‑police crisis response (MACRO)
   Make MACRO available 24/7, especially on commercial corridors, so when someone is in crisis or a situation is escalating, small businesses can call trained civilian teams who de‑escalate and connect people to care instead of only having overtime as the option.

2. Safety upgrades and repair funding for our streets
   Partner with the East Bay Community Foundation’s Small Business Resiliency Fund to pilot a corridor safety plan using Crime Prevention Through Environmental Design (CPTED): lighting, visibility, sightlines, and design changes that make people feel safer and increase foot traffic. Create a matching grant program—like a modernized façade/tenant improvement program—so small businesses can get capital to fix break‑in damage, improve storefronts, and make safety upgrades co‑designed with CPTED experts.

3. Ambassadors on the ground in the neighborhoods hit hardest
   Expand Community Ambassadors to Oakland’s six most impacted neighborhoods, using the One Vision Oakland framework, so there is a visible, trusted civilian presence checking on businesses, helping customers, and addressing low‑level issues before they escalate. Standardize ambassador training and build a better public safety data system that tracks things like corridor activation, response times, and calls resolved without arrests—not just crime stats and 311 requests.

4. Shift away from a war‑economy focus toward local stability.
   Pass a City resolution urging the Port of Oakland’s Board of Port Commissioners to halt military cargo for Israel at Port‑controlled facilities, and commit to re‑orienting Oakland’s focus toward local economic stability. Small businesses benefit when public resources and attention are directed toward neighborhood infrastructure, jobs, and community safety at home, not supporting war abroad.

The Problem: Permits That Exhaust Small Businesses Instead of Supporting Them

Nearly half of survey respondents (47%) reported severe permitting or inspection challenges. Among food and restaurant businesses, every single respondent (100%) described steep permitting barriers.

Even after recent reforms like the One‑Stop Permit Center, same‑day digital approvals for some building permits, and the City’s 100‑day permit reform study, small businesses still face high fees, confusing rules, long waits, and difficulty getting help from staff—especially BIPOC, immigrant, and food businesses.

Permits and inspections are not a neutral step in doing business; for many, they are a major barrier to opening, expanding, or staying open.

What This Means for Our Businesses: Burnout and Missed Openings

A consistent theme in our survey was frustration and discouragement when trying to work with city staff on permitting and inspections. One business owner summed up the emotional impact this way:

“I left feeling frustrated, unseen, and discouraged… The experience honestly made me want to avoid the process altogether and just operate under the radar.”

• BIPOC small business owner, survey respondent

In BIPOC corridors like Fruitvale, many entrepreneurs in our survey described language barriers, high fees, confusing rules, and difficulty reaching staff who could actually help, saying they needed liaisons who understand underserved communities and can walk them through the process in their language. 

Together, these stories tell us that the current system delays openings, drains time and money, and drives many marginalized entrepreneurs to the brink of burnout, instead of supporting them to open and thrive.

Our Vision: Permits and Licenses as Support, Not Obstacle

When permits and licenses actually work for small, community‑rooted businesses, openings and expansions become possible instead of exhausting.

Recommendations:

1. Release the full 100‑day permit reform study so small businesses and community organizations can see, confirm, or challenge what the City sees and help shape the next phase of reforms

2. Equity tools made visible and usable. 

   1. Make existing fee waivers—like the parklet Equity Fee Waiver—easy to find and apply for, with clear rules, up‑to‑date information, and a real contact for support. Finish by‑right permits on key BIPOC corridors 

   2. Complete the expansion of by‑right permits for small‑business uses on major BIPOC commercial corridors (International, Fruitvale, 7th Street, San Pablo, Mandela Parkway) with a public timeline and reporting. Turn months of uncertainty into predictable approvals for common, neighborhood‑serving uses

3. Hire multilingual small‑business navigators in our neighborhoods.

   1. Build on Neighborhood Business Assistance by staffing bilingual, corridor‑based liaisons in Chinatown, Little Saigon, Fruitvale, West Oakland, and other key areas to help small businesses navigate permitting and licensing across departments

4. Create simple planning tools. Provide an easy‑to‑use fee and step estimator so owners can see likely permitting and licensing costs and departments up front, instead of discovering them piecemeal after investing scarce time and money

The Problem: Who Gets Oakland’s Money

According to the City of Oakland’s own disparity study, 70% of key contract dollars go to a small cluster of white, male‑owned firms, while Black, Brown, immigrant, queer, and women‑owned businesses struggle to win contracts at all.

Local entrepreneurs are being invisibilized by the city

Some BIPOC, immigrant, queer, and women‑owned firms never hear about city contracting opportunities, while others are routinely invited to events, listening sessions, and outreach—but those touchpoints rarely translate into contracts with real dollars attached.

“I was awarded a graphic design contract from the City of Oakland, and they never offered me any projects.” 

- Black entrepreneur, survey respondent

“Business survival in Oakland is not equitable. As a collective of small businesses led by women of color, it has often felt like we are on our own—pushing to thrive in a city that offers little infrastructure built with our realities in mind.”

- Black nonprofit founder, survey respondent

As a result, there is a growing disconnect between the businesses that embody Oakland’s culture and values and the firms that actually get paid to build the city’s programs, infrastructure, and services. 

Our Vision: Public Contracts as Tools for Building Community Wealth

Local Black, Brown, immigrant, queer, and women‑owned firms keep public dollars circulating in Oakland’s neighborhoods, supporting jobs, storefronts, and services where people live and work.

Recommendations:

1. Provide full transparency on what city contracts exist, who gets city contracts, and for how much

2. Set inclusion targets for minority‑ and women‑owned firms in every contracting category.

3. Provide hands-on outreach and technical assistance so BIPOC, immigrant, queer, and women‑owned businesses can navigate the process and win work

4. Smaller, more accessible contract structures so local firms can actually compete

5. Institute stronger oversight so city departments can’t sidestep equity/fairness through waivers or emergency contracting