A downtown business owner’s fight to try to stop a 40-story residential tower from being built next to his nightclub came to an abrupt and surprising halt earlier this week when Geoffrey Pete announced he was withdrawing his appeal.
Pete had concerns that the tower project being advanced by the developer Tidewater Capital would harm his entertainment and music venue, Geoffrey’s Inner Circle. In 2023, Oakland’s Planning Commission overrode community objections to the project. Pete appealed to the City Council, the city’s final decision maker regarding major developments.
The council was supposed to resolve the matter last December during the fifth and final hearing on Pete’s appeal. But in an unexpected turn, the council cast a split vote, neither rejecting nor greenlighting Tidewater’s project. Mayor Sheng Thao was scheduled to cast the tie-breaking vote on Tuesday, but Pete announced at the City Council meeting that he was withdrawing his appeal after coming to an “agreement” with the city.
Pete didn’t describe the agreement, but he appeared to be referring to stricter conditions that councilmembers imposed on Tidewater’s residential project, including noise mitigation measures and a requirement that the developer hold a community meeting on its draft construction management plan.
“There’s a plethora of items that will be addressed, and if they’re not addressed, we will respond accordingly,” Pete told The Oaklandside.
Kyle Winkler, Tidewater’s construction director, told The Oaklandside that the final approval of the project is a welcome outcome.
“We are pleased to have reached this milestone,” Winkler said.
During Tuesday’s meeting, Pete also thanked supporters for championing his cause with city officials. Dozens of residents have turned out at previous meetings to raise their concerns about any harm befalling Pete’s establishment, which is widely considered to be a Black cultural landmark in Oakland.
Many of Pete’s supporters have also tied the conflict between Tidewater and Geoffrey’s Inner Circle to what they say is a larger problem: Black-owned businesses and organizations being squeezed out of Oakland, and especially the 14th Street corridor. The corridor is part of a cultural district known as the Black Arts Movement and Business District. Councilmember Lynette McElhaney introduced legislation in 2016 to create the district, recognizing and supporting Black businesses and cultural organizations in the corridor. But essentially, the district exists in name only.
“I think it was a noble effort,” said Councilmember Carroll Fife during Tuesday’s meeting. “But it didn’t give the city of Oakland the tools necessary to really enforce what it means to be a cultural district.”
Fife, whose City Council district includes the Black Arts Movement Business District, is bringing forward a resolution next month that she says will strengthen it. Fife’s proposal, which she described during the meeting, would direct the city to implement street improvements along the 14th Street corridor, including banners that honor Black cultural leaders and institutions. The resolution would also have the city use available funds—and seek new sources of revenue, such as grants—to support art, music, comedy, and other cultural institutions in the district. This assistance might take the form of building improvements and transforming spaces for events.
Fife said she also wants the city to work with the departments of Planning and Building and Economic and Workforce Development to adopt policies and plans that “further strengthen the district and ensure long-term vitality, support, and prevent conflicts” for businesses and organizations on 14th Street.
Fife, who declined to comment for this article, previously told The Oaklandside that she’s interested in standardizing how Oakland creates and funds cultural districts in Oakland. In just the past few months the Oakland City Council established two new cultural districts: The Latinx Cultural Arts District and the Lakeshore LGBTQ Cultural District.
Fife said one potential strategy is to rely on enhanced infrastructure financing districts, which set aside a portion of future increases in property tax revenue to pay for specific services. The city was exploring this as a model for funding affordable housing in East and West Oakland, and the Athletics’ wanted to use an infrastructure district to fund the now-defunct Howard Terminal ballpark complex.
Fife also wants to provide better technical assistance and legal support for businesses, noting that many of them struggle with navigating city departments or understanding their rights under the law. She cited the example of Uncle Willie’s BBQ, a restaurant on 14th Street near City Hall that closed during the pandemic. Uncle Willie’s owners blame their demise on a neighboring Marriott Hotel that allegedly rained debris down on their building during construction.
“Sometimes we do things in Oakland because they sound good and they look good, but if we really want something to have impacts, and generational impacts, it takes a little bit to make it happen,” Fife said.
