The Walter A. Haas Jr. Pavilion is an indoor arena on the campus of the University of California in Berkeley . It is the home venue of the Golden Bears men's and women's basketball , women's volleyball , and men's and women's gymnastics teams. The arena is located in the middle of the main sports complex, overlooking Evans Diamond (baseball) and Edwards Stadium (track/soccer).
78-488: The arena was originally opened 91 years ago in 1933 as the Gymnasium for Men or Men's Gym ; it was renamed Harmon Gym in 1959, after Oakland financier A.K.P. Harmon, who donated the funds to build Cal's first indoor athletic facility in 1879. The playing surface, after being known as simply "Room 100" since the arena opened, was renamed Pete Newell Court in 1987 in honor of head coach Pete Newell , who led Cal to
156-407: A 'lease' which turned out to be a mortgage against the 19,000-acre rancho. The lands became Carpentier's when Peralta refused to repay the loan he believed was fraudulently incurred. The Peraltas had no choice but to abandon the homesite they had occupied for two generations." In 1851, three men— Horace Carpentier , Edson Adams, and Andrew Moon—began developing what is now downtown Oakland. In 1852,
234-736: A disproportionate death toll from the COVID-19 pandemic and Delta cron hybrid variant within the San Francisco Bay Area. In 2023, prior to and during the Covid pandemic, Oakland became the first city in American history to lose three professional major league sports teams to other cities within a span of five years. Oakland is in the eastern region of the San Francisco Bay . The United States Census Bureau says
312-664: A game against rival Stanford University on February 23, 2008. The renovation, which cost $ 57.5 million, began after the final home game in March 1997 and was finished for the start of the 1999 season. During the construction, the basketball teams played at both the Kaiser Convention Center and the Oakland Arena in Oakland . On December 22, 2018, the 14th ranked California Bears Women's basketball team faced
390-501: A marsh-lined wildlife haven, Lake Merritt was dredged and bordered with parks from the 1890s to the 1910s. Despite this reduction in habitat, Oakland is home to a number of rare and endangered species, many of which are localized to serpentine soils and bedrock. Lake Merritt is surrounded by residential and business districts, including downtown and Grand Lake . The city of Piedmont , incorporated in Oakland's central foothills after
468-597: A new plant there, Oakland had become known as the " Detroit of the West," referring to the major auto manufacturing center in Michigan. Oakland expanded during the 1920s, as its population expanded with factory workers. Approximately 13,000 homes were built in the 3 years between 1921 and 1924, more than during the 13 years between 1907 and 1920. Many of the large downtown office buildings, apartment buildings, and single-family houses still standing in Oakland were built during
546-753: A population of 440,646 in 2020. A major West Coast port, Oakland is the most populous city in the East Bay, the third most populous city in the Bay Area, and the eighth most populous city in California. It serves as the Bay Area's trade center: the Port of Oakland is the busiest port in Northern California , and the fifth- or sixth-busiest in the United States. A charter city , Oakland
624-455: A recognition of the 50th anniversary of Cal's national title in 1959. On February 28, 2009, ESPN's College Gameday made its first appearance in Berkeley broadcasting live from inside Haas Pavilion for the men's basketball game against the #18 UCLA Bruins . Cal lost despite a large turnout. On January 21, 2009, Comcast Sportsnet Bay Area's Chronicle Live filmed their show inside Haas for
702-551: A resource when its hillside oak and redwood timber were logged to build San Francisco . The fertile flatland soils helped it become a prolific agricultural region. In the 1850s, what became the first campus of the University of California was founded in Oakland, and Oakland was selected as the western terminal of the Transcontinental Railroad in 1869. The following year, Oakland's Lake Merritt became
780-503: A small epidemic of Pneumonic plague which killed a dozen people in Oakland. This started when a man went hunting in Contra Costa Valley and killed a squirrel. After eating the squirrel, he fell ill four days later and another household member contracted the plague. This in turn was passed on either directly or indirectly to about a dozen others. The officials in Oakland acted quickly by issuing death certificates to monitor
858-627: A stream that enters the San Francisco Bay at Emeryville . In 1772, the area that later became Oakland was colonized, along with the rest of California, by Spanish settlers for the king of Spain . In the early 19th century, the Spanish crown granted the East Bay area to Luis María Peralta for his Rancho San Antonio . The grant was confirmed by the successor Mexican republic upon its independence from Spain. Upon his death in 1842, Peralta divided his land among his four sons. Most of Oakland
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#1732787280364936-514: A total of US$ 57 million during the 2001–2011 timeframe to plaintiffs claiming police abuse; this is the largest sum paid by any city in California. On October 10, 2011, protesters and civic activists began " Occupy Oakland " demonstrations at Frank Ogawa Plaza in Downtown Oakland . African-Americans dropped to 28% of Oakland's population in 2010, from nearly half in 1980, due to fast-rising rents and an extreme housing crisis in
1014-462: A vacant three-bedroom house in West Oakland. The group, calling themselves Moms 4 Housing , said their goal was to protest what they said was a large number of vacant houses in Oakland owned by redevelopment companies while the city experienced a housing crisis. Two months later they were evicted from the house by three dozen sheriff's deputies, as hundreds of supporters demonstrated in favor of
1092-440: A variety of adaptations favoring drought resistance across the many species endemic to these areas. Some perennial grasses utilize humid air as a source of up to 66% of their total water intake, making fog another indispensable abiotic factor in this ecosystem. Other drought-resistant strategies include deep root systems, summer dormancy, and enhanced water storage (e.g. bulbs, tubers, taproots, etc.). The California coastal prairie
1170-605: Is commonly defined by its predominant grass species, of which there are two: Deschampsia coastal prairie (located in Point Reyes peninsula) and Danthonia coastal prairie (located in Bolinas Ridge). This ecosystem can also be characterized by topographic features including sea bluffs, uplifted grassy bald hills, hillside slopes, lowland grasslands, and coastal marine terraces. The centuries-long accumulation of organic matter within these coastal regions has culminated in
1248-450: Is considered to be one of the most threatened ecosystems in the state of California, with less than one percent of undisturbed coastal prairie remaining today (mainly in or around Point Reyes National Seashore). It is also the single most urbanized major vegetation type in the US; 24% of coastal prairie habitat in California has been lost to urban sprawl. Among the most defining attributes of
1326-411: Is far enough inland that the fog often burns off by midday, allowing it to have typically sunny California days. The hills tend to have more fog than the flatlands, as the fog drifts down from Berkeley . The U.S. Weather Bureau kept weather records in downtown Oakland from October 4, 1894, to July 31, 1958. During that time, the record high temperature was 104 °F (40 °C) on June 24, 1957, and
1404-417: Is the only beach in Oakland. Oaklanders refer to their city's terrain as "the flatlands" and "the hills" . Until recent waves of gentrification, these terms also symbolized Oakland's deep economic divide, with "the hills" being more affluent communities. About two-thirds of Oakland lies in the flat plain of the East Bay, with one-third rising into the foothills and hills of the East Bay range. Ruptures along
1482-495: Is typified by the temperate and seasonal Mediterranean climate. Summers are usually dry and warm and winters are cool and damp. It has features found in both nearby coastal cities such as San Francisco and inland cities such as San Jose , making it warmer than San Francisco and cooler than San Jose. Its position on San Francisco Bay across from the Bay Bridge means the northern part of the city can have cooling maritime fog . It
1560-518: The Black Panther Party at Merritt College (then located at a former high school on Grove Street, now occupied by Children's Hospital Oakland Research Institute ), which emphasized Black nationalism , advocated armed self-defense against police, and was involved in several incidents that ended in the deaths of police officers and other Black Panther members. Among their social programs were feeding children and providing other services to
1638-639: The College of California , and in 1869, the first campus of the University of California . The university moved just north to Berkeley in the 1870s. During the 1850s, just as gold was discovered in California, Oakland started growing and further developing because land was becoming too expensive in San Francisco . People in China were struggling financially as a result of the First Opium War ,
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#17327872803641716-480: The Jim Crow South carried their racial attitudes, causing tensions to rise among black and white workers competing for better-paying jobs in the Bay Area. The racial harmony Oakland African-Americans had been accustomed to prior to the war evaporated. Also migrating to the area during this time were many Mexican Americans from southwestern states such as New Mexico , Texas , and Colorado . Many worked for
1794-642: The Oakland Hills . East Oakland, which includes the East Oakland Hills, encompasses more than half of Oakland's land area, stretching from Lakeshore Avenue on the east shore of Lake Merritt southeast to the San Leandro border. North Oakland encompasses the neighborhoods between downtown and Berkeley and Emeryville . West Oakland is the area between downtown and the Bay, partially surrounded by
1872-739: The Oakland Museum (established 1970). California coastal prairie California coastal prairie , also known as northern coastal grassland , is a grassland plant community of California and Oregon in the temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands biome . This ecosystem is found along the Pacific Coast , from as far south as Los Angeles in Southern California to southern Oregon. It typically stretches as far inland as 100 km, and occurs at altitudes of 350 m or lower. California's coastal prairies are
1950-566: The Oakland Point , and encompassing the Port of Oakland . In 2011, Oakland was ranked the tenth most walkable city in the United States by Walk Score . Lake Merritt, an urban estuary near downtown, is a mix of fresh and salt water draining in and out from the Oakland Harbor at the San Francisco Bay and one of Oakland's most notable features. It was designated the United States' first official wildlife refuge in 1870. Originally
2028-664: The San Francisco–Oakland Bay Bridge also sustained damage and was closed to traffic for one month. On October 20, 1991, a massive firestorm swept down from the Berkeley /Oakland hills above the Caldecott Tunnel. Twenty-five people were killed, 150 people were injured, and nearly 4,000 homes destroyed. With the loss of life and an estimated economic loss of US$ 1.5 billion, this was the worst urban firestorm in American history, until 2017. During
2106-592: The Second Opium War , and the Taiping Rebellion , so they began migrating to Oakland, many of whom were recruited to work on railroads. However, the Chinese struggled to settle because they were discriminated against by the white community and their living quarters were burned down on several occasions. The city and its environs quickly grew with the railroads, becoming a major rail terminal in
2184-549: The Southern Pacific Railroad , at its major rail yard in West Oakland. Their young men encountered hostility and discrimination by Armed Forces personnel, and tensions broke out in " zoot suit riots " in downtown Oakland in 1943 in the wake of a major disturbance in Los Angeles that year. In 1946, National City Lines (NCL), a General Motors holding company , acquired 64% of Key System stock; during
2262-420: The national championship in 1959 . Proposals for replacing the old gym were bandied about from the 1970s onward, but sentiment was strongly in favor of rebuilding it instead. As a result, the arena was heavily renovated from 1997 to 1999 after a donation of about $ 11 million from Walter A. Haas, Jr. of Levi Strauss & Co. , building a new seating bowl within the existing walls. The new facility retains
2340-484: The 1890s. The various streetcar companies operating in Oakland were acquired by Francis "Borax" Smith and consolidated into what eventually became known as the Key System , the predecessor of today's publicly owned AC Transit . Oakland was one of the worst affected cities in California that was impacted by the San Francisco plague of 1900–1904 . Quarantine measures were set in place at the Oakland ports requiring
2418-490: The 1906 earthquake, is a small independent city surrounded by the city of Oakland. Oakland has a warm-summer Mediterranean climate ( Köppen Csb ) with an average of 260 sunny days per year. In general, the city features warm, dry summers, and cool, wet winters. Based on data gathered by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration , Oakland is ranked No. 1 in climate among U.S. cities. Oakland's climate
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2496-427: The 1920s; they reflect the architectural styles of the time. Russell Clifford Durant established Durant Field at 82nd Avenue and East 14th Street in 1916. The first transcontinental airmail flight finished its journey at Durant Field on August 9, 1920, flown by Army Capt. Eddie Rickenbacker and Navy Lt. Bert Acosta . Durant Field was often called Oakland Airport, though the current Oakland International Airport
2574-477: The 1950s California Supreme Court lawsuit Vallerga v. Dept. Alcoholic Bev. Control, when the bar challenged a state law for the right to serve gay patrons and won in 1959. In 1960, Kaiser Corporation opened its new headquarters; it was the largest skyscraper in Oakland, as well as "the largest office tower west of Chicago " up to that time. In the postwar period, suburban development increased around Oakland, and wealthier residents moved to new housing . Despite
2652-525: The California Coastal Act, which considers these habitat types to be Environmentally Sensitive Habitat Areas (ESHA). Akin to the endangered species act for habitat types on California's coast, ESHA protections disallow any harm to so designated habitats, except where such harm is necessary to otherwise restore the habitat as a whole (e.g., prescribed fire, grazing). Coastal Prairies of California are classified as critically endangered with
2730-495: The California coastal prairie is being lost to shrub and tree encroachment. Before the Spaniards' arrival in California, Native American groups relied on grasslands' ecosystem for resources such as chia seeds, acorns, grass seeds, and game like deer, quail and hares. In order to expand their resource base, they managed the land through fire techniques, which flowered geophytes and boosted the growth of perennial grasses. Burning
2808-481: The California coastal prairie is its Mediterranean climate. This climate type entails hot and dry summers, cold and wet winters, and mild year-round temperatures as a result of close proximity with the Pacific Ocean.The growing season for these prairies takes place during the winter, and is followed by a dormant, low-rainfall period during the summer. These seasonal changes to water availability have thus spurred
2886-601: The Deep South: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, South Carolina, and Texas, as well as Missouri and Tennessee. Henry J. Kaiser 's representatives recruited sharecroppers and tenant farmers from rural areas to work in his shipyards. African Americans were part of the Great Migration by which five million persons left the South, mostly for the West, from 1940 to 1970. White migrants from
2964-806: The Fruitvale District, and included the Josiah Lusk Canning Company, the Oakland Preserving Company (which started the Del Monte brand), and the California Packing Company. President Franklin D. Roosevelt called on defense industries with government contracts to integrate their workforces and provide opportunities for all Americans. Tens of thousands of laborers came from around the country, especially poor whites and blacks from
3042-571: The State Board of Health and the United States Public Health Service were only allotted about $ 60,000 a year to eradicate the disease. During this period Oakland did not have sufficient health facilities, so some of the infected patients were treated at home. The State Board of Health along with Oakland also advised physicians to promptly report any cases of infected patients. Yet, in 1919 it still resulted in
3120-538: The Town of Oakland was incorporated by the state legislature. During this time, Oakland had 75–100 inhabitants, two hotels, a wharf, two warehouses, and only cattle trails. Two years later, on March 25, 1854, Oakland re-incorporated as the City of Oakland. Horace Carpentier was elected the first mayor, though a scandal ended his mayorship in less than a year. In 1853, a preparatory academy was founded in Oakland that soon became
3198-442: The United States' first officially designated wildlife refuge, now a National Historic Landmark . Following the catastrophic 1906 San Francisco earthquake , many San Francisco citizens moved to Oakland, enlarging the population, increasing its housing stock, and improving its infrastructure. It continued to grow in the 20th century with its port, shipyards , and manufacturing industry. In the 21st century, between 2019 and 2023, after
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3276-577: The area defined as the Central Business District in Oakland's 1998 General Plan. Brown's plan and other redevelopment projects were controversial due to potential rent increases and gentrification , which would displace lower-income residents from downtown Oakland into outlying neighborhoods and cities. Due to allegations of misconduct by the Oakland Police Department , the City of Oakland has paid claims for
3354-403: The authorities at the port to inspect the arriving vessels for the presence of infected rats. Quarantine authorities at these ports inspected over a thousand vessels per year for plague and yellow fever. By 1908, over 5,000 people were detained in quarantine. Hunters were sent to poison the affected areas in Oakland and shoot the squirrels, but the eradication work was limited in its range because
3432-411: The automobile industry went through restructuring, many jobs were lost. In addition, labor unrest increased as workers struggled to protect their livelihoods. Oakland was the center of a general strike during the first week of December 1946, one of six cities across the country that had such a strike after World War II. The Mary's First and Last Chance in Oakland was a lesbian bar, once the focus of
3510-819: The bay. On November 27, 1908, Homer took a ferry across the bay in a driving rainstorm and met for lunch with Frank and twenty three other businessmen at the Hotel Metropole at 13th and Jefferson. This gathering became the first meeting of the Tri-City Rotary Club, renamed in 1911 The Rotary Club of Oakland, the third Rotary Club in the world. This group established the tradition of weekly meetings, something most clubs worldwide follow today. In 1917, General Motors opened an automobile factory in East Oakland called Oakland Assembly . It produced Chevrolet cars and then GMC trucks until 1963, when it
3588-635: The biodiversity of these ecosystems. Characteristic species of this community include: The entire coastal prairie biome can be completely restored, even after the plants seem to have disappeared for decades after grazing end, by unearthing their dormant native seeds in the soil, that are still viable underneath the weeds. Between 1992 and 2000, at 300 Byers Lane, La Selva Beach in Santa Cruz County, 70 acres of habitat went from 99% weed-covered to 95% native covered in only eight years, without sowing any seeds. Rare and endangered species found in
3666-628: The city and county refused requests for hundreds of millions of dollars in benefits to the privately owned teams, Oakland lost three teams of the major North American sports leagues within a span of five years. The earliest known inhabitants of the area were the Huchiun natives, who lived there for thousands of years. The Huchiun belonged to a linguistic grouping later called the Ohlone (a Miwok word meaning "western people"). In Oakland, they were concentrated around Lake Merritt and Temescal Creek ,
3744-483: The city's total area is 78.0 square miles (202 km ), including 55.8 square miles (145 km ) of land and 22.2 square miles (57 km ) (28.48 percent) of water. Oakland's highest point is near Grizzly Peak Blvd, east of Berkeley, just over 1,760 feet (540 m) above sea level at about 37°52′43″N 122°13′27″W / 37.8786°N 122.2241°W / 37.8786; -122.2241 . Oakland has 19 miles (31 km) of shoreline, but Radio Beach
3822-430: The coastal prairie include: The coastal prairies remains a unique ecosystem in that it is disturbance-dependent, meaning it relies on disturbances such as fires and grazing to survive. Years of overgrazing as well as the introduction of non-native species have had long-term impacts on Californian coastal prairies, with only 1% of native grassland remaining today. These non-native species are either not suited as feed for
3900-722: The east (up to 30 inches [760 mm]), with nearly all precipitation falling between November and April. Overnight lows are mild. Oakland seldom experiences warm nights with the warmest recorded night of 72 °F (22 °C) in September 1971 and an average of 64 °F (18 °C) for the annual warmest low. The coldest day of the year averages a mild 50 °F (10 °C) and has never been recorded below 36 °F (2 °C). The National Weather Service today has two official weather stations in Oakland: Oakland International Airport and
3978-471: The existing chaparral and shrublands into grasslands was advantageous for such groups in generating the germination of chaparral annuals and therefore food supply for both humans and the mammals in the area. In general, it created open spaces which were favored by animals and opening up land for gathering fruits and seeds. In addition, indigenous groups effectively harvested the annual grasses through digging sticks, which dug for underground bulbs and seeds, and
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#17327872803644056-596: The incorporation of California into the United States after the Mexican–American War . Camarillo claims the family was the victim of targeted racial violence . He writes in Chicanos in California , "They lost everything when squatters cut down their fruit trees, killed their cattle, destroyed their buildings, and even fenced off the roads leading to the rancho. Especially insidious were the actions of attorney Horace Carpentier , who tricked Vicente Peralta into signing
4134-534: The intimate atmosphere of its predecessor, while having almost two times the seating capacity at 11,858 (originally 12,300 and later 11,877). In particular, there are no soundproofing devices. The arena contains The Bench , a courtside section that holds approximately 900 student fans. The amount of student seating doubled from the old arena, up to 2,600 from 1,300. It also holds the Pacific-10 Women's Basketball attendance record of 10,525 people, set during
4212-537: The late 1860s and 1870s. In 1868, the Central Pacific constructed the Oakland Long Wharf at Oakland Point, the site of today's Port of Oakland . A number of horsecar and cable car lines were constructed in Oakland during the latter half of the 19th century. The first electric streetcar set out from Oakland to Berkeley in 1891, and other lines were converted and added over the course of
4290-421: The major increases in the number and proportion of African Americans in the city, in 1966 only 16 of the city's 661 police officers were black. Tensions between the black community and the largely white police force were high, as expectations during the civil rights era increased to gain social justice and equality before the law. Police abuse of blacks was common. Students Huey Newton and Bobby Seale founded
4368-593: The men's basketball game against Oregon , which Cal would win. Chronicle Live Host Greg Papa also called the play-by-play for the game which was televised on Comcast Sportsnet California . Oakland Oakland is a city in the East Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area in the U.S. state of California . It is the county seat and most populous city in Alameda County , with
4446-535: The mid-1990s, Oakland's economy began to recover as it transitioned to new types of jobs. In addition, the city participated in large development and urban renewal projects, concentrated especially in the downtown area, at the Port of Oakland , and at the Oakland International Airport . After his 1999 inauguration, Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown continued his predecessor Elihu Harris' public policy of supporting downtown housing development in
4524-487: The most species -rich grassland types in North America, with up to 26 species present per square meter. They have been described in literature as "previously unrecognized biodiversity hotspots," and are also known to provide an array of essential services—for instance, carbon storage, water filtration, agriculture, and livestock farming. In spite of the numerous benefits associated with maintaining this ecosystem, it
4602-504: The native mammals, or more woody plants have overrun the habitats of native herbs. Most recently, invasive perennial grasses are the greatest threat. These include velvet grass ( Holcus lanatus ), tall fescue ( Festuca arundinacea ), and Harding grass ( Phalaris aquatica ); the impact of these species can be somewhat ameliorated by well-planned livestock grazing, which can reduce these species' cover and allow native species to persist. California's coastal prairies are protected by
4680-564: The nearby San Andreas Fault caused severe earth movement in the San Francisco Bay Area in 1906 and 1989. San Andreas quakes induces creep (movement occurring on earthquake faults) in the Hayward fault, which runs directly through Oakland, Berkeley, San Jose and other Bay Area cities. Oakland has more than 50 distinct neighborhoods. The city's greater divisions include downtown Oakland and its greater Central Business District , Lake Merritt , East Oakland , North Oakland , West Oakland , and
4758-403: The nearby town of Alameda being made an island. In 1906, the city's population doubled with refugees made homeless after the 1906 San Francisco earthquake and fire. In 1908, the lawyer, former miner, and newspaper owner Homer Wood (1880–1976) suggested to his friend Frank Bilger of Blake and Bilger Rock Quarry and Paving Company that he organize a gathering to establish a Rotary Club east of
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#17327872803644836-416: The needy. As in many other American cities during the 1980s, crack cocaine became a serious problem in Oakland. Drug dealing in general, and the dealing of crack cocaine in particular, resulted in elevated rates of violent crime, causing Oakland to consistently be listed as one of America's most crime-ridden cities. In 1980, Oakland's Black population reached its 20th-century peak at approximately 47% of
4914-499: The next several years NCL engaged in the conspiratorial dissolution of Oakland's electric streetcar system. The city's expensive electric streetcar fleet was converted to cheaper diesel buses. The state Legislature created the Alameda and Contra Costa Transit District in 1955, which operates today as AC Transit , the third-largest bus-only transit system in the nation. After the war, as Oakland's shipbuilding industry declined and
4992-429: The number 1 ranked University of Connecticut Huskies Women's basketball team. The Connecticut women's basketball team prevailed 76-66 at Haas Pavilion. The game set attendance records at Haas Pavilion with over 10,000 fans in attendance. The 2009 men's basketball game between Cal and arch rival Stanford on February 14 was part of a special celebration commemorating the 100th season of Golden Bear basketball, as well as
5070-460: The overall city population. The 6.9 M w Loma Prieta earthquake occurred on October 17, 1989. The rupture was related to the San Andreas fault system and affected the entire San Francisco Bay Area with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX ( Violent ). Many structures in Oakland were badly damaged including the double-decker portion of Interstate 880 that collapsed. The eastern span of
5148-560: The production of a rich and dark prairie soil that is commonly referred to as mollisol . As a result, the aforementioned coastal terraces are often used for agricultural purposes, and can be seen in areas such as Santa Cruz and San Luis Obispo. As a disturbance-dependent ecosystem, these coastal prairies are not only adapted to change, but cannot properly thrive without it. Disruptive factors such as wind, fire, salt spray, digging, and grazing help to maintain more open (as well as healthy) grasslands; for example, they are crucial to facilitating
5226-521: The record low temperature was 24 °F (−4 °C) on January 23, 1949. Dry, warm offshore "Diablo" winds (similar to the Santa Ana winds of Southern California) sometimes occur, especially in fall, and raise the fire danger. In 1991, such an episode allowed the catastrophic Oakland Hills fire to spread and consume many homes. Oakland, like much of Northern California, is susceptible to winter rainstorms and Atmospheric rivers . The wettest "rain year"
5304-615: The region. The city inspected warehouses and live/work spaces after a fire broke out in the Ghost Ship warehouse , killing 36 people in 2016. Oakland is the second U.S. city, after Denver , to decriminalize psilocybin mushrooms . In June 2019, the City Council passed the resolution in a unanimous vote ending the investigation and imposition of criminal penalties for use and possession of natural entheogens . In November 2019, two homeless mothers and their children moved into
5382-413: The release of nutrients, stimulating microbial activity, and regulating competition between woody and herbaceous plants. The profile of grazing species inhabiting these prairies has evolved over time in the following manner: Conservation projects within the past couple of decades have involved the conversion of private pastures on coastal prairies into protected land. While these efforts are well-intended,
5460-399: The removal of grazers from this ecosystem rids it of the disturbance it requires, and is therefore thought to be responsible for such metrics as worsening soil quality and declining annual wildflower blooms in these areas. In the absence of frequent fires—especially controlled burns—and many once-prominent grazing and burrowing species that evolved within this ecosystem, much of what is left of
5538-402: The seed basket, which collected seeds, like camas bulbs, and scattered those who weren't ripe in the process. When the Spanish arrived in the 1800s, cattle was introduced for grazing, effectively replacing the native populations of deer and elk. In the process were introduced non-native species which, along with agriculture and the end of indigenous fire management practices, greatly decreasing
5616-439: The spread of plague. At the time of incorporation in 1852, Oakland had consisted of the territory that lay south of today's major intersection of San Pablo Avenue, Broadway, and Fourteenth Street. The city gradually annexed farmlands and settlements to the east and the north. Oakland's rise to industrial prominence, and its subsequent need for a seaport, led to the digging of a shipping and tidal channel in 1902. This resulted in
5694-440: The women. The incident received nationwide coverage. The company that owns the house later said they would sell it to a nonprofit affordable housing group. As of 2019, Oakland's per-capita homeless rate was higher than San Francisco and Berkeley. Between 2014 and 2020, Oakland strengthened its protections for tenants in order to reduce the displacement of its long-time residents. Between January 2020 and March 2022, Oakland suffered
5772-484: Was incorporated on May 4, 1852, in the wake of the state's increasing population due to the California gold rush . Oakland's territory covers what was once a mosaic of California coastal terrace prairie , oak woodland , and north coastal scrub . In the late 18th century, it became part of a large rancho grant in the colony of New Spain , and was known for its plentiful oak tree stands. Its land served as
5850-522: Was from July 1997 to June 1998 with 47.76 inches (1,213.1 mm) and the driest from July 2020 to June 2021 with 8.03 inches (204.0 mm). The most rainfall in one month was 15.35 inches (390 mm) in January 1911. The most rainfall in 24 hours was 4.75 inches (121 mm) on December 31, 2022. Rainfall near the bayfront is only 23 inches (580 mm), but is higher in the Oakland Hills to
5928-470: Was moved to Fremont in southern Alameda County. Also in 1916, the Fageol Motor Company chose East Oakland for their first factory, manufacturing farming tractors from 1918 to 1923. By 1920, Oakland was the home of numerous manufacturing industries, including metals , canneries, bakeries, internal combustion engines , automobiles, and shipbuilding. By 1929, when Chrysler expanded with
6006-469: Was soon established four miles (6.4 km) to the southwest. During World War II, the East Bay Area was home to many war-related industries. Oakland's Moore Dry Dock Company expanded its shipbuilding capabilities and built over 100 ships. Valued at $ 100 million in 1943, Oakland's canning industry was its second-most-valuable war contribution after shipbuilding. The largest canneries were in
6084-498: Was within the shares given to Antonio Maria and Vicente. The portion of the parcel that is now Oakland was called Encinar (misrendered at an early date and carried forward as "encinal") – Spanish for " oak grove " – due to the large oak forest that covered the area, which eventually led to the city's name. According to Stanford University historian Albert Camarillo, the Peralta family struggled to keep their land after
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