• Work It with WOBO! Bike to Work Day 2012
• Preview Parklet Pops Up in Uptown
• May 8: Speak Up for New Bike Lanes on Broadway
• Sustainable, Affordable Neighborhoods Bike Tour
• East Bay Bus Rapid Transit: Critical Vote on April 25
• Tech-savvy and Word-smithy Volunteers Needed
• Get Involved with WOBO

This week’s SF Bay Guardian poses the question: “Is Oakland Cooler Than San Francisco?” While we don’t think there’s anything wrong with the “West Bay,” if they’re going to ask, we’ll answer.  YES!

We love Oakland and we thank you for supporting WOBO in making our city even better by improving walking and biking in our neighborhoods.

If you haven’t already, become a WOBO member today! Your donation will help make Oakland a better place to bike and walk.

Work It with WOBO! Bike to Work Day 2012

Preview Parklet Pops Up in Uptown

Who says Marathons are just for runners? At the March 24th Oakland Running Fest, Farley’s East and WOBO volunteers showed that pedestrians have places to race towards as well. We set up a one-space Parklet for a day in front of Farley’s East in Uptown to engage neighbors about the planned Oakland Parklet sites.  Check out photos on our Flickr page and keep your eyes peeled, another temporary Parklet may pop up at a parklet host near you!

If you’d like to ensure the success of the seven pilot Parklets, please contact Shannon Tracey at shannon@wobo.org or come to our next volunteer meeting on Tuesday, April 24 at 7:30 p.m.

May 8: Speak Up for New Bike Lanes on Broadway 

Proposed bike lanes on East 12th St (14th Ave to Fruitvale) and Broadway (College to 40th St) will be considered by the Oakland Public Works committee on May 8th! WOBO members like you have been working for years to get these projects built, and they are cornerstones of our Bikeways campaign. Once these new bike lanes are installed, along with planned lanes on 10th St, Oaklanders will be able to ride from College & Broadway all the way to Fruitvale BART on a mostly complete bike route! Thanks for your help in getting us to this point. But we are not finished! We have to seal the deal on May 8 to ensure the Broadway and E 12th lanes are approved — and then get the next round of priority projects rolling.  Help make Oakland THE bicycle lovin’ city we know it can be.

Contact liza@wobo.org if you want to get involved and help move us forward on our bikeways campaign!

Sustainable, Affordable Neighborhoods Bike Tour

Learn about Oakland’s affordable housing by bicycle!  This leisurely 12-mile ride will include highlights such as :

• Reuse of a former industrial site for live-work lofts for small business owners
• The result of a 5-year organizing effort to include housing affordable to lower-income workers in Uptown
• An old YMCA building providing supportive housing for formerly homeless adults
• The city’s earliest public housing renovated for the 21st century
• Green building, child care, clinics, neighborhood-serving retail, and much more!

All within elegantly and creatively designed buildings integrated into neighborhoods throughout the city, providing safe, service-enriched, affordable homes for low income seniors, families, and residents with special needs. The route is mostly flat, and mostly avoids major roads with car traffic. Please wear a helmet and bring water. Tour will include 2 stops for tours and snacks. Plan for 3 hours. Ride ends at Fox Courts in Uptown.

When: Sunday, May 20; 10 AM – 1 PM
Where: Meet up at Oakland Museum entrance, 1000 Oak Street
Contact: gloria@ebho.org to RSVP.

Sponsored by East Bay Housing Organizations (EBHO) and WOBO as part of Affordable Housing Week.

East Bay Bus Rapid Transit: Critical Vote on April 25

This is it! If you want BRT in Oakland – along with all the bicycle and pedestrian improvements it will provide – this is going to be the single most important opportunity for you say so. The opposition to BRT is still fierce, so don’t assume that this will pass without your help! Your attendance, and your voice will be critical in the outcome of this vote. For more information on BRT, please visit TransForm’s website.

Tech-savvy and Word-smithy Volunteers Needed

Do You Google (App)? WOBO is officially grooving with Google to support our business and operations. We’re looking for someone to help migrate our various applications over to Google Apps ASAP. Please contact info@wobo.org.

Are you a newsletter guru? If you’re loving the monthly updates, or you have ideas for making WOBO newsletters better than ever, join our Newsletter team!  We’re looking for someone with copy editing skills, digging your heels in for 2 to 3 hours each month to gather content and copyedit.  Are you “The One?”  Let us know right away!  info@wobo.org.

Want to Get More Involved With WOBO? 

WOBO is always looking for more folks to get involved with our volunteer-powered projects! Here’s how you can help:

• Like WOBO on Facebook, follow us on Twitter, or join our Flickr group.
• Drop us a line by email (or any social media) – we want to hear from you!
• Can you volunteer in any of the following areas?
  • Oakland Bikeways Campaign – liza@wobo.org
  • Parklets for People – shannon@wobo.org
  • Outreach/Events Staffing – jesse@wobo.org
  • Fundraising – jesse@wobo.org
  • Campaigns/Grassroots Organizing – liza@wobo.org
  • Membership – jesse@wobo.org
  • Web Content/Development – jesse@wobo.org
  • Graphic design (t-shirts, flyers, etc.) – jesse@wobo.org
  • Coordinating Volunteers/Interns – jesse@wobo.org