CITY OF OAKLAND
CITY HALL • 1 FRANK H. OGAWA PLAZA • OAKLAND, CALIFORNIA • 94612
MEMORANDUM
DATE May 14, 2026
TO: City Council and Members of the Public
FROM: Councilmember Carroll Fife, District 3
SUBJECT: Amortization To Relocate Industrial Recycling Facilities
Dear Council Colleagues and Community,
The West Oakland community has been subject to disproportionate exposure to polluting industries, resulting in environmental degradation and devastating health impacts on residents, including higher rates of asthma, cardiovascular disease, and a decline in life expectancy.
In 2012, the City revised its Redevelopment Plan for the Oakland Army Base to include relocation of California Waste Solutions, Inc. (“CWS”) and Custom Alloy Scrap Sales, Inc. (“CASS”) from the West Oakland neighborhood to the North Gateway Area on the former Oakland Army Base as a key community benefit. Despite a decade long effort, which is detailed in the accompanying resolution, the planned relocations have not happened , and as of December 2022 all City agreements with CWS and CASS have lapsed.
Relocating heavy industry from residential neighborhoods is a long-standing community and City objective as noted in the West Oakland Specific Plan and the adopted Environmental Justice (EJ) Element of the 2045 General Plan. The adopted EJ Element, identifies amortization as a process to allow “the City to identify and prioritize nonconforming land uses (which could include existing polluting industries, truck -intensive uses, autobody uses, recycling uses, etc.) to phase out over time prioritizing areas within 1,000 feet of primarily residential impacted areas.”
In line with these planning documents , the proposed resolution directs the City Administrator to 1) develop an amortization program through City legislation, including making any necessary findings, developing a specific timeline for amortization, and creating a list of alternative sites to relocate industrial recycling facilities operated by CWS and CASS, and 2) proceed to Planning Commission with amortization legislation no later than December 31, 2026.
Sincerely,
Councilmember Carroll Fife, District 3