January 2022 edition • Issue No. 11
Produced by the Maxwell Park Neighborhood Council (MPNC)
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Happy New Year, Maxwell Park neighbors!
Wishing all of you a healthy, happy and fulfilling 2022!
For many of us, the new year brings renewed commitments, self-reflection, and new goals, aka new year resolutions. One less pressure-packed resolution could be to consider joining efforts to help make our community a better place to live...such as taking steps to keep your family and neighbors safe in emergencies or participating in a community cleanup once a month. Please see details below about joining one of the twice monthly cleanups and how to get involved in neighborhood emergency preparedness. Little efforts on each of our parts make our Maxwell Park neighborhood an even more vibrant and safe community!
In this issue we share:
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Join the next Maxwell Park Neighborhood Council community meeting:
Wednesday, January 12, 7-8:30 p.m. on Zoom
Guest speaker: Naomi Weinstein, Maxwell Park Emergency Preparedness Lead and Doug Mosher, Oakland Community Preparedness Program
Topic: Emergency Preparedness in Maxwell Park, how neighbors can be actively prepared
Register by clicking the button below or at www.maxwellparknc.org
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Mills College campus is currently open to the public for strolling from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m.
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Photos by: Barbara Hartford and Nancy Karigaca
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Please share this newsletter with a neighbor, who can subscribe here. If you have any neighborhood-related concerns or want to get involved as a community volunteer, please reach out to the MPNC.
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Preparedness is Power
Preparing for a major emergency on a local level helps your community deal with an emergency better. And it can connect neighbors around a common cause. Let's prepare and connect together!
The MPNC is developing the Maxwell Park Emergency Response Team (MPERT) to consist of ten sub-neighborhoods, or sectors. The goal of the sectors is to make Maxwell Park better connected and better prepared to respond to a major emergency. Each sector -- including about 150 households -- will have a captain who will share information between households and the MPNC throughout the year. We are seeking neighbors to participate as sector captains and on the teams, which will include one or more GRMS radio operators and CERT trained volunteers. We need you on a sector team! Email your interest, please.
Plus, here are a few ways that you can make your family, and your neighborhood, more prepared. A large time commitment is not needed. Choose one or all of these actions.
- Always care for yourself and your family first. Make a plan for your family and assemble emergency supplies. MPERT can help you get started.
- Add your contact info to the MPERT contact list. Text, call, or email Naomi Weinstein (510-917-9994).
- Sign up for Alameda County Emergency Alerts (AC alerts) which come to your email, or a mobile app.
- Consider getting an amateur General Mobile Radio Service (GMRS) license and a GMRS radio: info@genoak.org
510-575-0916 www.genoak.org/contact www.oaklandfiresafecouncil.org
- Sign up for CERT emergency response training
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To be part of the community emergency response, add your contact information to the Maxwell Park Emergency Response Team contact list. Email, text or call (510-917-9994) today.
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Baked Goods on Belvedere
Cinnamon rolls. Chocolate croissants. Brown butter glazed doughnuts. These are a few of the small batch, handmade pastries you'll find at Green House Bakery on the outskirts of Maxwell Park. Created by baker Rachel Caygill, Green House is a cottage bakery -- with a CA cottage food operation permit -- behind a red door on the ground floor of her family's home on Belvedere Street. Some of you may remember Green House Bakery at the last Maxwell Park Day in the Park event in 2019.
As a local business owner, Caygill said connecting with community is important. "I enjoy being a part of the neighborhood," she said. This newsletter's editor and photographer recently enjoyed meeting Caygill and got to sample her freshly baked salty chocolate chip cookie. Perfection. Caygill is inspired by seasonal ingredients and very local produce -- from her own passion fruit tree and her neighbors’ gardens. Passion fruit cream pie is currently on the menu!
The savory and sweet goodness is offered as pre-order pastry boxes and walk-up sales on two Saturdays each month, plus Caygill creates special cake orders. For ordering schedules and menus, follow Green House Bakery on Instagram and sign up for the mailing list at www.greenhousebakeryoakland.com, and read more in a recent issue of the Nosh.
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Green House Bakery, inside and outside with baker Rachel Caygill (photos by: Barbara Hartford)
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Keep our Community Clean!
Mark your calendars for the January 8 and 22 community cleanups. These cleanups, led by the 25X and 28X (Maxwell Park) Neighborhood Councils and supported by Councilmember Loren Taylor, take place on the second and fourth Saturdays of each month, 8:30-10:30 a.m. Meet at the Walgreens on High St. for a check-in and supply pickup. This group is also working on beautification of High Street, including coordination with CalTrans and applying for a grant from the City's Paint the Town for a possible mural. For more information, email or contact the City of Oakland Neighborhood Services Coordinator, Judith Christopher (510-593-5592).
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ECO Tip: Electric Vehicles
from our neighborhood environmentalist
Here are some reasons why I still love my 2011 Electric Vehicle (EV).
- Nobody can steal my catalytic converter because there is none.
- I don’t stop at gas stations because I charge at home.
- I save money because electricity is cheaper than gas (per mile) because electric motors are 95% efficient but gas engines are only 15% efficient.
- The EV motor is so quiet and has no vibrations unlike a gas engine.
- My original batteries have lasted over 10 years so far with 75% capacity left.
- Long ago I programmed the car to charge at night and it is ready each morning.
- Driving my EV helps reduce Earth's carbon crisis.
Tax tip: Full EV rebates require an equal amount of taxes owed. If you're short, you can convert some IRA money into a Roth IRA (a taxable event) for a full EV rebate. Talk to a tax person. Rebate size depends on car model and location of purchase.
Have questions about rebates or what vehicle is best for you? Contact an EV Support Program: support@pluginamerica.org or call 877-384-3571.
There are some EVs in our Hood, join the climate healers if you would.
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Tennis on Sundays, Anyone?
On Sunday mornings, Brookdale Park is the site of Sunday Tennis, a free grassroots, come one, come all, tennis clinic for those who wish to learn to play tennis or improve their game, and for those who haven’t picked up a tennis racquet since high school. Top notch instructors volunteer their time to teach tennis fundamentals to youth from 6-17 years and adults of all ages. No one is ever turned away. Adult instruction begins at 9:15 a.m., youth instruction begins at 10:30 a.m.
Sunday Tennis at Brookdale Park was started in 2020 out of good intent and a sense of adventure by several non-profits: WELO (We Lead Ours), Rally 4 Reading, and Oakland Tennis Council. Some volunteers have led well-known Bay Area programs, some have worked with well-known tennis players across the country, and others are in the middle of their tennis careers.
The volunteers say their hearts jump when they see a young person -- after much frustration but eternal fortitude -- hit a forehand or backhand volley over and not into the net. The adult participants enjoy watching kids learn the game and get so much joy when their fellow amateurs cheer each other on to the next swing of the racquet.
To join Sunday Tennis, please RSVP to Dwayne Aikens: mrdaikensjr@weleadours.org.
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Bulky Item Disposal Tips
- Residents in Multi-Family Dwellings (buildings more than four residential units) can now schedule a curbside appointment once a year directly with WMAC instead of requesting appointments through their landlords as they formerly had to.
- Residents in Single-Family Dwellings (buildings with up to four residential units) can schedule an appointment for bulky items collection at the curbside, increased from once per year to twice per year.
- Residents can now set out 4 cubic yards of items, plus recyclable items including mattresses, tires, TVs and computers, up from 3 cubic yards for Single-Family and 1.5 cubic yards for Multi-Family.
Questions? Contact Judith Christopher | Neighborhood Services Coordinator
(510) 593-5592 | JChristopher@oaklandca.gov
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What would you like to see?
Any suggestions for the newsletter? Would you like to contribute? We want it to be a helpful resource for building community and keeping you informed of what’s happening in Maxwell Park. Community involvement can build a better quality of life for us all. Please share with us at maxwellparknewsletter@gmail.com.
The MPNC is dedicated to improving the quality of life and safety in Maxwell Park (Police Beat 28X). The MPNC consists of a Board of Directors and a number of Neighborhood Action Teams that address neighborhood concerns such as blight, traffic, and emergency preparedness. As an authorized City of Oakland Neighborhood Crime Prevention Council, we work cooperatively with the City Council and Police Department on priority safety issues. New participants are always welcome!
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Please share this newsletter with a neighbor. If you were forwarded this email, you can subscribe to the newsletter here.
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