Oakland Life Enrichment Committee Meeting – July 8, 2025: Animal Control, Extended Stay, and More
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Oakland Life Enrichment Committee Meeting – July 8, 2025
The Oakland City Council Life Enrichment Committee convened on Tuesday, July 8, 2025, at 4:00 PM in the City Council Chamber. Chair Carroll Fife presided, with Councilmembers Noel Gallo, Charlene Wang, and Ken Houston (participating remotely via AB2449) present. The meeting lasted until 5:55 PM and covered a consent calendar, three action/discussion items, and an open forum. Key actions included forwarding a professional services agreement for the Oakland Fund for Children and Youth (OFCY) database, approving revisions to the Animal Control Ordinance (with a request for supplemental reports), and receiving an informational report on the Extended Stay America hotel acquisition for unhoused relocation.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of Draft Minutes (June 24, 2025): Approved unanimously (3 ayes, 1 absent – Councilmember Houston joined later).
- Determination of Schedule of Outstanding Committee Items: Accepted as presented; one speaker requested attention to the California Black Freedom Fund and Piedmont Library contract. Approved 4-0.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Item 3 (Cityspan Technologies, Inc.): One speaker questioned the waiver of the local/small local business enterprise requirement, noting the outstanding invoices from FY 2022-2023 and the report's claim that Cityspan exceeded expectations. The speaker also raised concerns about the evaluation methodology using survey data.
- Item 4 (Animal Control Ordinance Revisions): Eleven speakers spoke, most opposing the provision to allow Oakland Animal Services (OAS) to deny owner surrenders based on shelter capacity. Speakers included volunteers and community members:
- Valerie Green (District 4 homeowner, OAS volunteer since 2019) opposed the surrender change, arguing it would lead to more abandonments and called for mandated data collection and increased funding.
- Dawn Pieper (District 1 homeowner, 14-year OAS volunteer) opposed the change, stating owners who surrender have exhausted all options and that OAS must remain an open-admission shelter.
- Kimberly Millington (attorney, OAS volunteer since 2015) opposed the change, stating OAS is already turning away cats despite empty cages, and called for oversight.
- Alexandra Campbell (District 1 resident, attorney, OAS volunteer) noted adoptions and donations at all-time highs (Friends of OAS raised over $250,000) but argued OAS needs more oversight, not less.
- Rachel (District 2 resident, involved in TNR) asked to strike “subject to shelter capacity” and mandate a time frame for surrender, plus fee waivers for low-income residents.
- Multiple speakers (Matt Ally, Mary Bates, Nara Dalbaca) opposed the surrender provision and urged removing it, citing that cats are already being turned away and that the provision would worsen overpopulation.
- Item 5 (Extended Stay America Acquisition): Three speakers:
- Samuel Raimi (California Oakland Union of the Homeless) criticized the city’s housing policies, stating low-income seniors are priced out and that federal programs are not being implemented.
- Jennifer Finley (Zoom) reported OPD evicting vehicle encampments on East 12th with no notice, bypassing the Encampment Management Team, and towing vehicles while people try to retrieve possessions.
- Prescott Chair noted that some unhoused individuals resist shelter, criticized management of shelter programs by Housing Consortium of the East Bay, and mentioned San Jose pushing its homeless to Oakland.
- Open Forum (after agenda items): Three speakers:
- Asada Olabala criticized gentrification in Oakland, comparing it to protests in Mexico City, and argued that the city prioritizes non-citizens over Black residents.
- Samuel Raimi repeated concerns about transitional housing and failures to house the homeless.
- Josh Beth (Zoom) called for bringing back the OAS Community Advisory Board, criticized six-figure salaries for staff who live outside Oakland, and raised issues about speculative house flippers avoiding permits.
Discussion Items
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Item 3: Professional Services Agreement with Cityspan Technologies, Inc. Robin Levinson (Program Planner, Human Services Department) presented the request to authorize a two-year contract (FY 2024-2025: $175,400; FY 2025-2026: $200,000; total $375,400) plus a one-time payment of $64,950 for outstanding invoices from FY 2022-2023, and a waiver of the Local/Small Local Business Enterprise (L/LSBE) requirement. The web-based database supports grants management, grantee reporting, and outcomes tracking for the Oakland Fund for Children and Youth (OFCY). Cityspan has been the provider since 2006. The waiver was needed because an availability analysis was not conducted at the time of award in 2022; a new RFQ will include that step. Councilmember Wang asked about tracking objective outcomes (e.g., grades, suspensions) beyond surveys. Levinson and Mark Minnes (CEO, Cityspan) explained that deeper outcomes require a data-sharing agreement with OUSD, which is in progress. Chair Fife praised staff for doing a lot with limited resources and inquired about the backlog of invoices; Levinson clarified that when she started in March 2023, several evaluations and payments were behind, and this remaining amount is the last outstanding item. The committee approved the staff recommendation and forwarded the item to the July 15 City Council consent agenda (vote: 4 ayes).
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Item 4: Revisions to the Animal Control Ordinance (OMC 6.04) Joe DeVries (Deputy City Administrator, Acting Director of OAS) presented the first full revision of the ordinance since the 1990s. Key changes include:
- (1) Reducing the impound holding period to 72 hours (aligns with state law; 95% of reunions occur in that time).
- (2) Allowing OAS discretion to deny owner surrenders based on shelter capacity (other Bay Area shelters already have this discretion).
- (3) Allowing finders of stray animals to temporarily keep and care for them.
- (4) Mandating spay/neuter for outdoor cats and impounded/at-large dogs (with exceptions for resource-limited owners).
- (5) Authorizing OAS staff to waive fees based on financial need.
- (6) Minor amendments consistent with state law. DeVries noted that OAS spends $775 per animal (2023), far less than other shelters (e.g., Contra Costa $2,070, SF $1,267). He argued that the shelter is in crisis due to budget cuts and that discretion is necessary to manage intake. Dr. Christine Austin (OAS medical director) added that shelter medicine best practices support keeping animals in the community when possible, citing a cat intake increase from 2,000 to 5,000 in recent years. She noted that 168 kittens are currently in foster care. Councilmember Houston asked about out-of-city animals; DeVries confirmed that discretion would help address that. Councilmember Wang asked about ensuring spay/neuter for community cats; Dr. Austin acknowledged resource limitations but stated the goal is to spay/neuter cats returned to the community. After extensive public comment opposing the owner surrender provision, Councilmember Gallo moved to approve staff’s recommendation. Councilmember Wang added a friendly amendment to provide the intake criteria in a supplemental report. Councilmember Houston requested the item be placed on the July 15 City Council non-consent calendar to allow further discussion. The motion carried 4 ayes with the request for supplemental materials (PowerPoint and intake criteria).
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Item 5: Report on Extended Stay America (ESA) Acquisition Tierra (City Administrator’s Office) presented an informational report on the acquisition of the Extended Stay America hotel and the relocation of unhoused individuals from Mosswood Park, East 12th Street, and Martin Luther King Jr. Way encampments. Key details:
- Three censuses were conducted (January, June, and a 120-day follow-up) to identify residents.
- 21 non-congregate rooms remain at ESA; the city is prioritizing 20 individuals from the MLK encampment (13 actively moving, 7 still being contacted).
- A waitlist of approximately 120 individuals exists for Mandela House (interim shelter). Councilmember Wang (District 2, which includes East 12th) raised concerns about residents who were missed by the census; staff confirmed they can be cross-referenced and added to the queue. Chair Fife asked about the timeline for filling the 21 rooms and about connecting with MLK residents who previously spoke at committee. Staff stated they are prioritizing MLK and have contacted nine to ten individuals through community activists. Councilmember Wang also noted that $1.7 million from the Lau family was allocated for East 12th housing and requested an informational report on that. The committee voted unanimously to receive and file the report (4 ayes).
Key Outcomes
- Item 3 (Cityspan): Approved and forwarded to July 15 City Council consent agenda (4-0).
- Item 4 (Animal Control): Approved and forwarded to July 15 City Council non-consent agenda (4-0), with staff directed to provide the PowerPoint presentation and intake criteria as supplemental reports.
- Item 5 (Extended Stay America): Received and filed as an informational report (4-0).
- Open Forum: No action taken; comments recorded for the record.
The meeting adjourned at 5:55 PM.
Meeting Transcript
Good afternoon and welcome to the Life Enrichment Committee meeting of Tuesday, July 8th, 2025. The time is now 4 p.m. and this meeting may come to order. Before taking role, I will provide instructions on how to submit speaker cards for items on this agenda. If you're here with us in chamber and would like to submit a speaker card, please fill one out and turn one into myself or a clerk representative no later than 10 minutes after the start of this meeting or before the item is read into record. Registering to speak via Zoom is now due 24 hours prior to the start of this meeting time. This meeting came to order at 4 p.m. and speaker cards will no longer be accepted 10 minutes after this meeting has begun, making that 410 p.m. We'll now proceed with taking roll. Councilmember Guyo. Present. Councilmember Houston. Absent. Councilmember Wong present. And Chair Pfeiff. Present. Thank you. Noting we have three members present and one absent. Councilmember Houston. And before we begin, Chair, do you have any announcements at this time? We have no announcements at this time. Thank you. Thank you. Reading in item one approval of the draft minutes from the committee meeting of June 24, 2025. Move approval. Second. Thank you. That was a motion made by Councilmember Guyel, secondary by Councilmember Wong to approve the draft minutes from the committee meeting of June 24th, 2025. Councilmember Houston is absent. Councilmember Wong. Aye. And Chair Python. Oh, sorry, one absent Houston. Reading in item two, determination of schedule of outstanding committee items. And we do have one speaker on this item. We'll hear from the speaker. You need to look into what is the CAP, the California Black Freedom Fund. You need to look into the California Black Home Ownership Initiative, what it is, how we can fall into looking into those funds for black African Americans in this city. You read to look at the reparations task force. You have on the uh agenda dealing uh with libraries. You know you don't have a schedule, but you should head schedule the Piedmont Library contract that never has been put in fake place after 15 years. So, madam clerk, if we could take a moment to recognize that council member Houston is online on Zoom right now and will be participating remotely. Um councilmember Houston, if you could give the reason for uh utilizing AB 2449 in today's meeting. Yes, I was uh I came in earlier, but I was going already sent it all in, and it is that the clerk's office should have everything already lined up. It was already approved through the chair, so it's need to be stated on the record as stated by the chair. So I understand from our parliamentarian that we need to call for a vote uh as this committee. This is not something we've had to do in the past, but if we could um Madam City Clerk, call for the vote for the participation of councilmember Houston via Zoom. I I would need to entertain a motion. I'll advance a motion. I second it.
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