Oakland Waterfront Ballpark District at Howard Terminal Community Benefits

The Howard Terminal proposal Community Benefits process is an opportunity to set a national precedent. It is the first to use existing conditions of racial disparities data from the Oakland Race and Equity Baseline Indicators Report that was published in 2019 to establish race and equity baselines from which community benefits will be developed.

Equity-Centered

The Howard Terminal community benefits process is equity-centered and community-focused. The City of Oakland is leading the process, working closely with community members and other stakeholders such as community advocates, community-based organizations, faith-based organizations, schools, health-care providers, public agencies, and partners from the West Oakland Environmental Indicators Project and the Oakland Asian Cultural Center, the Port of Oakland, and the Oakland Athletics.

Community Driven

The Howard Terminal community benefits process is community-driven and developed from a grassroots level through working groups that have been identified as Topic Cohorts. There are seven Topic Cohorts: Community Health & Safety, Culture Keeping & History, Economic Development & Jobs, Education, Environment, Housing, and Transportation. Topic Cohorts met between 2-4 times per month from March-August 2020, and membership iwas open to any Oakland resident or stakeholder.

A multi-stakeholder Howard Terminal Community Benefits Steering Committee is responsible for finalizing community recommendations that unites the Topic Cohort content. The Steering Committee was formed by the following: 1) Each Topic Cohort selected two members to the Howard Terminal Community Benefits Steering Committee. 2) In addition to the Topic Cohort representatives, the Steering Committee has four At-Large seats that represent the high Impact Areas (Chinatown, Jack London Square, Old Oakland, and West Oakland). 3) Lastly, the City of Oakland, the Port of Oakland, and the Oakland Athletics each has one seat on the Steering Committee.

Community First

Community involvement, particularly from those who are typically marginalized in public processes, is integral to identifying the appropriate steering committee, equitable metrics and terms, and a holistic and inclusive set of recommendations to be considered in the community benefits process. The Howard Terminal community benefits process focuses on participation from Oakland’s community members who are most impacted by racial, economic, and health disparities. Residential community members from the geographic areas that may experience higher impact levels (Chinatown, Jack London Square, Old Oakland, and West Oakland) are especially sought to get involved with the development of the Howard Terminal CBA.

Guiding Principles

The Howard Terminal community benefits process adopted the following guiding principles:

• To be inclusive: Developing alternative methods for public engagement for racial/ethnic communities; establishing rapport and trust with racial and ethnic groups and individuals who are traditionally not involved in decision-making processes.
• To be transparent: Sharing with community the pros and cons of options, and informing the community about steps actions, changes to or new services.
• To be collaborative: Develop a comprehensive and exhaustive set of recomendations based on extensive engagement by community members and stakeholders who: 1) offer previous community benefits development experience, 2) whose lived experience can inform the development of the Howard Terminal community benefits process, and, 3) stakeholders who have policy and other technical expertise through their professions.
• To have integrity: Have open discussions and garner consensus by respecting what stakeholder peers support or oppose. There will be no “backroom deals”.
• To seek solutions: Identify feasible solutions to problems that may be long-standing, or unique to the Howard Terminal ballpark development.