NBA All-Star weekend prompts Oakland to clean up problem areas
With the NBA All-Star weekend just a few days away, the cities of San Francisco and Oakland are getting ready for the festivities.
In Oakland, the city has been working with community groups to clean up the Hegenberger corridor near the Coliseum, plus the Oakland Police Department is stepping up security in the area.
Driving along the Hegenberger corridor in East Oakland near the Coliseum, it's obvious there is an effort underway to put the city's best foot forward.
"When I am driving, I do see that the streets are kind of clearer, even with the, they had a whole bunch of trailers and stuff like that, like I can see that they are making a difference," said Michelle Beacham.
She was born and raised in Oakland and still lives in the east part of town. She also works at an office only a few blocks from the Coliseum.
She said she's frustrated it took the NBA All-Star weekend for the city to address some of the issues residents have been complaining about for years.
"You guys want to clean it up because people are coming here now for an event to bring money, but what about us, the people who live here every single day? Those people are going to be here for the weekend then go home while we're stuck with it. It's going to go back to how it was," she said.
The city, along with community partners like AASEG, the ownership group trying to buy the Coliseum property, as well as PG&E and some local motorcycle clubs have organized clean-ups to pick up trash in the area. The city has also fixed dozens of broken streetlights in the area and the Oakland Police Department will have a greater presence in the area.
"That is one of the strategies we want to put in place is to have enough officers out there so people not only feel safe, but they see the presence of law enforcement and know they can't come in and commit frivolous crime in the city throughout these events," said Deputy Chief Casey Johnson of OPD.
Oakland Police along with the Alameda County Sheriffs, BART PD and CHP will have additional staff in the Coliseum area as well as downtown as well as areas historically known for sideshow gatherings.
"There will be traffic enforcement in areas where we see bad actors. People, we're not going to be specific for sideshows, but we will be specific for people who are speeding or running stop signs or engaging in a sideshow," said Assistant Chief James Beere.
Residents like Michelle say they just wish this kind of engagement could happen year-round and not just during special events.
"People are scared to come here, like Oakland has such a bad reputation now and we are such a beautiful city and it's just unfortunate," she said.
Community groups are hosting another cleanup session along the corridor Thursday morning from 9 to noon ahead of the celebrity game on Friday, and the HBCU Classic on Saturday.
