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CBS News
3 days ago
- Business
- CBS News
Downtown Oakland remains a "ghost town" on day of city's return-to-office mandate
For most people, the pandemic shutdown ended years ago, but in Oakland, it officially ended on Monday. After several delays, the city of Oakland finally set June 2 as the deadline for city employees working remotely to return to the office. The mandate is supposed to help improve city operations while bringing life back to the downtown area, but it got off to a slow start. Oakland City Center is a food venue across the street from City Hall. Jennifer Gemmel, a State worker, eats there nearly every day. On Monday, she sat alone at a table, looking out onto a plaza of empty tables and shuttered restaurants. But she remembered what it was like before the pandemic. "It was packed. I mean, it was hard to find a place to sit," she said. "You know, Fountain Cafe was open, and Jamba Juice, La Salsa, Max's. I mean, it's just a ghost town now." It's hard to believe what the lunch hour now looks like just across the street from where the city is operated. But the truth is, there aren't many people working in the offices anyway, and haven't been for years. So, in late May, City Administrator Jestin Johnson sent a reminder about June 2, saying, "effective on that date, the City of Oakland will require that all City employees report to the office or workplace a minimum of three work days per work week." It's only three days a week, but there didn't seem to be much response, with one of the employee unions, Local 21, saying that the matter has still not been fully negotiated. In a letter, the union told its members, "If you have a current telecommuting agreement that you would like to keep, fill out the new telecommuting form with the same schedule." "I mean, I think people just don't want to come into the office if they don't have to," said Gemmel at City Center. "People don't want to come to downtown Oakland if they don't have to." But that doesn't do much to revitalize downtown. The city did not respond to a request about the number of remote workers who may have returned to the office on Monday. "Yeah, it's pretty serious," said Sandra Alvarez, who works at the Sandwicheez restaurant at City Center. "It was pretty slow today. We expected everybody to come back to work. It's probably 60 percent less people than there usually are around here. The plaza's empty. You know, everybody's closing down around here. Starbucks closed down too. Starbucks used to do, like, 15,000 a day. They couldn't even keep up business here. There's no sales anymore." But at the Marhabah Cafe, owner Mohamad Hamzeh said he's only making it because his is one of the only places left open. But in years past, he never would have had time to stop to talk to a reporter at lunch time. "Before we were, like, super busy. We don't have time to talk to anybody," he said. "We were like, hustle, hustle, hustle. But now just, like, relaxing. We're just trying to make it day by day." Hamzeh said he is willing to stick it out for one more year, mainly because he loves his city. But he said no one can survive the current situation for long. "Unfortunately, that's what it is right now. That's what happened after the pandemic. And we're waiting for people to come back to the office so we can keep going," Hamzeh said.
Yahoo
28-02-2025
- General
- Yahoo
St. Paul City Council proclaims Mike Smith Day for retiring fire captain, longtime firefighter union president
The longest-serving president of the St. Paul firefighters' union retired Thursday, the day after the city council recognized him. They unanimously voted to declare Wednesday as Mike Smith Day. Smith joined the St. Paul Fire Department in 1998 after he was a firefighter for a decade at the Parkside Fire Department in Maplewood. He was elected to the International Association of Fire Fighters Local 21 board in 2000 and as president in 2009. He was reelected six consecutive times, serving as president for 15 years — the longest in the 107-year history of Local 21, according to the city council proclamation. Smith was a fire department captain, working on Rescue Squad 1 for the last 12 years at Station 4 on Payne Avenue off East Seventh Street. At Wednesday's city council meeting, as he stood with fellow firefighters and department leaders, he said his time at the St. Paul Fire Department was 'a dream job.' Fire Chief Butch Inks noted that he and Smith worked together for progress. 'We didn't always agree on everything, but we always … committed to staying at the table,' he said. Beyond his union leadership, Inks said Smith is 'one of the best firefighters this department's ever seen.' At a fire, 'he's going to go in, he's going to sacrifice himself' and make sure the fire is out, the chief said. As Local 21 president, Smith oversaw negotiations for a 34 percent total increase in base firefighter wages, the proclamation said. The union expanded by more than 60 new members, the largest in Local 21 in 100 years. And Smith received the 2024 Local Leadership Award from the international union. Smith was instrumental in pushing for state line-of-duty death benefits for the family of St. Paul Fire Capt. Mike Paidar, 53. His 2020 death from occupational cancer was the first recognized by the state as occurring in the line of duty. Smith didn't run for re-election in December, due to his upcoming retirement, and Fire Equipment Operator-Paramedic Kyle Thornberg was elected as the union's new president. Crime & Public Safety | As longtime St. Paul police officer battles stage 4 cancer, community rallies around him Crime & Public Safety | St. Paul boy, 11, accidentally shoots himself while recording cellphone video Crime & Public Safety | St. Paul firefighters find man dead after extinguishing garage fire in North End Crime & Public Safety | Washington County man found dead in Hastings identified as missing person William 'Ike' Eickholt Crime & Public Safety | Funeral service set for Woodbury teen killed in car accident
