CED Committee
September 22, 2026
RECOMMENDATION
AGENDA REPORT
Staff Recommends That The City Council Receive An Informational Report On The Implementation Status Of The 2025 – 2029 Economic Development Action Plan, Focused On Fiscal Year 2025/26
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
The 2025 – 2029 Economic Development Action Plan (EDAP) was received by the City Council as an Informational Report in October 2025. The EDAP is a strategic, equity-centered framework to guide the City of Oakland (City) efforts to stabilize and expand economic activity in the coming years. It is supportive of other City-wide adopted policies, including the General Plan, the Downtown Oakland Specific Plan, and the Equitable Climate Action Plan. At its core, the EDAP seeks to close persistent racial and economic gaps in employment, income, business ownership, and access to resources and to increase revenue to support City services. It focuses on building an inclusive, thriving economy where all Oaklanders can access opportunity and benefit from the City’s growth.
This annual informational report is being provided to share the progress made towards each of the five strategic goals of the EDAP:
1. Attract and Grow Key Industries
Target high-impact and high-growth industries, including healthcare, construction, transportation and logistics, and creative sectors, as well as subsectors that advance Oakland’s climate goals, and position Oakland as a competitive, innovation-driven economy.
2. Sustain and Support Businesses
Deliver tools, technical assistance, and targeted resources to help Oakland’s businesses survive, adapt, and succeed.
TO: Elizabeth Lake FROM: Ashleigh Kanat, Director
Interim City Administrator Economic & Workforce
Development Department
SUBJECT: Economic Development Action Plan
Implementation Status Update
DATE: August 24, 2026
City Administrator Approval Date:
Elizabeth Lake (Sep 10, 2026 14:28:38 PDT)
Sep 10, 2026
Elizabeth Lake, Interim City Administrator
Subject: EDAP Implementation Status Update
Date: August 24, 2026 Page 2
CED Committee
September 22, 2026
3. Build Oakland’s Workforce
Strengthen partnerships with major employers and develop relevant and adaptable workforce pathways that connect residents to thriving-wage jobs and advance equitable employment opportunities, particularly in communities that have been historically under- resourced.
4. Invest in Places
Focus on improving the places that support Oakland’s economy by facilitating investment in key business corridors and under-resourced neighborhoods, ensuring that the built environment supports economic activity and sustained community well-being.
5. Support Oakland’s Artistic, Cultural, and Social Activities Support artists, cultural institutions, and community events that drive economic vibrancy, attract residents and visitors, and reinforce Oakland’s unique identity.
Attachment A is a presentation slide deck outlining key actions completed by Economic and Workforce Development Department (EWDD) over the last fiscal year (FY 2025/26), organized by EDAP Goal and Action. Attachment B is a presentation slide deck summarizing key economic data, an update of the data included in the EDAP.
BACKGROUND / LEGISLATIVE HISTORY
The City’s first Economic Development Strategy in more than 20 years was adopted by the City Council in November of 2017 via Resolution No. 86984 CMS. The Strategy was designed to guide policy, regulation, and partnerships for the years 2018-2020.
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, the moment required an urgent shift in focus, and EWDD prepared the 2021 Economic Recovery Plan. The Economic Recovery Plan guided the Department’s work for several years.
On March 12, 2024, EWDD presented a status update on the Economic Recovery Plan to the Community and Economic Development (CED) Committee, shared new baseline economic data, and introduced that EWDD would be preparing a new Five-Year Economic Development Action Plan.
On September 24, 2024, EWDD provided a follow-up status update on the in-progress EDAP to CED, presented detailed Council District-level data, and shared more information about the EDAP stakeholder engagement strategy.
The 2025 – 2029 Economic Development Action Plan was presented to the CED Committee at a Special Meeting on September 30, 2025, at which it was received and forwarded to the October 7, 2025 City Council meeting, where the EDAP was received and filed.
ANALYSIS AND POLICY ALTERNATIVES
This report provides a summary of progress made over the last year against each of the five strategic goals presented in the EDAP. Each goal is underpinned by data and is being Elizabeth Lake, Interim City Administrator
Subject: EDAP Implementation Status Update
Date: August 24, 2026 Page 3
CED Committee
September 22, 2026
implemented in accordance with a series of actions and sub-actions. A full description of the actions and sub-actions, as well as key data and metrics, are detailed in the EDAP.
A brief overview of the progress is below, with more complete detail contained in the presentation included as Attachment A.
1. Attract and Grow Key Industries
Oakland’s central position within the larger regional economy, coupled with its diverse talent base and a robust transportation network, creates strong potential to attract and grow employers in key industries. Goal #1 targets high-impact and high-growth sectors, including the healthcare industry, transportation and logistics, creative industries, and sectors that advance Oakland’s climate goals, while positioning Oakland as a competitive, innovation-driven economy that centers the economic well-being of all its residents. Targeted development of multiple sectors can diversify the City’s economic base, expand access to quality employment, and enhance the City’s long-term fiscal stability. Progress towards Goal #1 creates the economic foundation and resources needed to advance the City’s other four goals.
This goal tracks the number of businesses by sector and the number of employees by sector. In terms of number of businesses, the top three sectors in 2025 are the following:
• Real Estate and Rental and Leasing (4,094 businesses in 2025 down from 4,749 businesses in 2023),
• Construction (3,268 businesses in 2025 up from 2,371 businesses in 2023), and
• Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services (3,745 businesses in 2025 up from 2,211 businesses in 2023).
In terms of employment, the top three sectors in 2025 are:
• Health Care and Social Assistance (46,121 employees in 2025 compared with 44,029 employees in 2023),
• Transportation and Warehousing (18,951 employees in 2025, down from 20,015 employees in 2023), and
• Educational Services (15,301 employees in 2025, up from 14,901 in 2023).
Oakland’s Professional, Scientific and Technical Services sector has broad reach and includes portions of several subsectors including innovation in climate technologies, AI and robotics, food production, and design. While the number of businesses in the Professional, Scientific, and Technical Services sector increased nearly 70% between 2023 and 2025, the number of employees in this sector slipped to the 4 th largest
employment sector in 2025 (15,007 employees in 2025, down from 15,630 employees in 2023).
While the sector-level data is mixed, the overall number of employers in Oakland increased in 2025 to 24,308, while the number of employees fell to 184,500. Several of Oakland’s high-impact sectors, including healthcare and education posted growth in terms of number of jobs, while others, like transportation and warehousing and construction, did not.
Elizabeth Lake, Interim City Administrator
Subject: EDAP Implementation Status Update
Date: August 24, 2026 Page 4
CED Committee
September 22, 2026
Building Oakland’s Workforce, while ensuring equitable opportunity and outcome for Oaklanders, is the equity focus of Goal #1. The EDAP seeks to identify and grow high- wage industries in Oakland and overlay workforce training programs, as identified in Goal #3, Build Oakland’s Workforce, in support of this Goal. The most recent Census data tells a mixed story. The 2024 five-year American Community Survey Census data indicates that labor force participation is higher for every racial/ethnic cohort in 2024 compared with 2023, even as unemployment is trending higher across the same cohorts. This can be a positive sign that people who have not been participating in the labor force (i.e., not working and not actively seeking work) are now engaging with finding work, but this is a trend to monitor.
2. Sustain and Support Businesses
Oakland’s economy is anchored by its small businesses, particularly small and locally- owned enterprises, many of which are owned by women and people of color according to self-reported business license data. These businesses play a critical role in generating employment, maintaining neighborhood character, and circulating capital within the local economy. Strengthening support systems for these businesses can improve resilience, reduce displacement, and advance inclusive economic development outcomes.
Implementation of this goal relies on self-reported business license data on the number of employees, annual revenue, and other information to track the state of Oakland’s businesses and focus EWDD’s efforts. The City issued approximately 58,000 business licenses in 2025 (up from 53,000 business licenses in 2024),1 indicative of both improved follow-up on behalf of the City’s Finance Department and strengthening market conditions. Oakland’s economy is anchored by small businesses. Based on self-reported data provided as part of the annual business license renewal process, more than 90% of Oakland businesses report having fewer than ten employees, and most generate less than $250,000 in annual revenue. Oakland’s entrepreneurial character is well established: in 2023, the City ranked 11th nationally for self-employment overall and 5th for women’s self-employment.
Persistent disparities in business ownership and access to capital constrain business survival and growth, especially in under-resourced neighborhoods where small businesses play a central role in community stability and wealth generation. To address these disparities, the City’s business support strategies include prioritizing interventions that reach historically underserved entrepreneurs and business corridors. This includes targeted outreach, expanded access to culturally competent technical assistance, and partnerships with community-based lenders and support organizations. More than 300 Neighborhood Business Assistance appointments were held in the past year, in support of businesses in every Council District. As a result of these conditions and the natural business cycle that is art of commercial activity, we expect to see some businesses closures (often referred to as turnover or churn) and many to remain part of our vibrant economy.
3. Build Oakland’s Workforce
A strong local economy depends on a skilled, inclusive, and adaptable workforce to promote economic mobility. Persistent disparities in employment and income limit
1 Total business licenses includes residential landlords.
Elizabeth Lake, Interim City Administrator
Subject: EDAP Implementation Status Update
Date: August 24, 2026 Page 5
CED Committee
September 22, 2026
economic mobility for many Oakland residents and constrain the City’s economic potential. Building a more inclusive workforce system that connects individuals to thriving-wage jobs and in-demand skills is essential to addressing these gaps and meeting the evolving needs of local businesses and employers.
Oakland’s employment base continues to recover and expand following the disruptions of the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2025, the number of employers in Oakland exceeded 24,300, and supporting nearly 185,000 jobs, compared with a 2021 employment low of 181,000. While the number of employers is up from 23,000 in 2023, the number of jobs is down from 193,000. One metric that the EDAP uses to track workforce opportunities, is the change in employment by sector over time. Job growth since 2010 has been steady across a mix of traditional and emerging industries. Notably, the highest growth occurred in the higher-wage knowledge-based information sector. Meanwhile, consistent growth in health care, arts, entertainment, and recreation, and accommodation and food services, reflects the City’s ongoing recovery in creative and service-based industries.
The sectors that have grown the most in terms of employment since 2010 are Information (66% growth between 2010 and 2025), Health Care and Social Assistance (54% growth), and Public Administration (39% growth).
Despite overall gains in employment, deep disparities persist in Oakland’s labor market.
Communities of color, particularly Black, Latinx, and Indigenous residents, continue to face higher unemployment, lower wages, and limited access to the support systems that enable career advancement. Oakland’s workforce system responds to these disparities by centering equity in its program design and delivery. By targeting resources where they are needed most, the City aims to advance equity in employment outcomes for Oakland residents.
4. Invest in Places
Place-based strategies focused on catalytic new development and physical improvements, aligned with community needs, can help attract new businesses and additional investment in Oakland’s business corridors. Successful implementation of this Goal offers the added benefits of encouraging activation of public spaces, deepening cultural connections, and supporting equitable growth, without displacing long-standing residents or institutions.
EWDD monitors commercial rent and vacancy rates for three primary real estate classes - retail, office, and industrial - as one way of assessing the health of Oakland’s real estate market:
• Retail rents in Downtown Oakland held steady year-over-year and are competitive with the Citywide average of $30.33 per square foot, but they are lower than retail rents across the East Bay region. Retail vacancy increased in 2025 year-over-year across all markets.
• Office rents in Oakland began to stabilize in 2025 for the first time since the COVID- 19 pandemic in 2020, and Downtown Oakland rents remain higher than the Citywide and East Bay averages, even though vacancy rates in Downtown are elevated. • Industrial rents for both Oakland and the East Bay were stable in the past year after steadily increasing for the past decade. While recent prices have reduced slightly, Elizabeth Lake, Interim City Administrator
Subject: EDAP Implementation Status Update
Date: August 24, 2026 Page 6
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September 22, 2026
the trend also shows consistently higher rents in Oakland than the East Bay between 2010 and 2025. Vacancy rates are lower in Oakland than in the East Bay as a whole.
Oakland’s economic geography reflects a legacy of racialized policies, including redlining, urban renewal, and decades of disinvestment that have disproportionately harmed Black, Asian, Indigenous, Latinx, and other communities of color. An equitable strategy requires prioritizing investments in communities most affected by these historic harms. EWDD monitors and prioritizes interventions in geographic areas where vacancy, crime, and 311 complaints are comparatively higher than other areas of the City. In all six police areas, reported crimes were down year-over-year and relative to the five-year average. In particular, EWDD tracks commercial burglaries which were down in 2025 relative to 2024 and relative to the five-year average in all six police areas. Perceptions around improving public safety are critical to a business’ ability to operate and attract employees and customers.
5. Support Oakland’s Social, Artistic, and Cultural Activities Centering cultural equity as a core strategy allows Oakland to strengthen its distinct identity while positioning itself as a national model for inclusive, community-rooted cultural and economic development. As outlined in Oakland’s cultural plan, Belonging in Oakland: A Cultural Development Plan, the City’s artists, cultural practitioners, and civic and cultural institutions are foundational to Oakland’s identity, economic vitality, and neighborhood resilience. By investing in and supporting artistic and cultural activity and events, Oakland can uplift its diverse cultural heritage, grow the capacity of its arts and culture organizations, and activate spaces that foster belonging.
To track the importance of the creative sectors in Oakland’s economy, EWDD tracks employment among other metrics. Oakland’s creative sectors have shown strength over the long term. From 2010 to 2025, Arts, Entertainment, and Recreation employment increased by 36%, and jobs in Accommodation and Food Services rose by 19% during that same period. Regional forecasts anticipate a 57% increase in arts and recreation jobs by 2030, potentially adding over 14,000 new positions.
Oakland’s cultural landscape is inseparable from its racial and ethnic diversity.
Generations of Black, Latinx, Asian, Indigenous, and immigrant communities have created and sustained the City’s most iconic cultural institutions, festivals, and movements. Protecting cultural expression is central to advancing equity. To ensure inclusive growth, Oakland must preserve affordable space for artists and culture keepers rooted in historically underrepresented communities, many of whom are at risk of displacement. Prioritizing access to funding, permitting, and public venues, alongside neighborhood-based cultural programming, ensures that all residents see themselves reflected in Oakland’s creative future.
The Cultural Affairs Division reports that out of the 26 organizational assistance grants supported by the East Bay Community Foundation’s pooled fund, there were 287,000+ participants across programs and events and 166,000 attendees at performances, exhibitions, and community gatherings. The data shows a 73% Oakland-based audience, with 9,000+ free activities and 15,000+ low-cost activities supporting deep reach into historically-marginalized communities.
Elizabeth Lake, Interim City Administrator
Subject: EDAP Implementation Status Update
Date: August 24, 2026 Page 7
CED Committee
September 22, 2026
RELATED PLANNING EFFORTS
The focus of this informational report is to inform Council of the Economic Development Action Plan, which was prepared in alignment with the General Plan, the Downtown Oakland Specific Plan, other Specific Plans, Oakland’s Cultural Plan, and the Equitable Climate Action Plan.
FISCAL IMPACT
This item is for informational purposes only and does not have a direct fiscal impact or cost.
However, the EDAP reflects an understanding of the virtuous cycle of economic development:
when the economy grows and when businesses succeed, they create jobs and generate revenue. That revenue enables the City to invest in critical services and infrastructure, which in turn enhances Oakland’s appeal as a place to live, work, and invest. A stronger economy strengthens the City's fiscal health and capacity to serve its residents.
PUBLIC OUTREACH / INTEREST
The five goals of the EDAP were developed through a combination of regular and ongoing stakeholder engagement and focused work sessions. Since the EDAP was received by Council in October 2025, EWDD has continued to engage regularly with the chambers of commerce, business improvement districts (BIDs), merchant associations, Oakland’s Workforce Development Board, and community and professional organizations to surface the most pressing economic challenges and opportunities facing Oakland’s business and workforce communities.
All told, EWDD is engaged in 21 business corridors across the City. Community stakeholders regularly express a need for clean and safe streets in which to operate their businesses. EWDD continues to steward inquiries and feedback from community stakeholders to advance the economic and community development strategies and will continue to convene stakeholders as part of EWDD’s commitment to ongoing community engagement.
COORDINATION
EWDD coordinated with several City departments during the preparation of the EDAP, including the Office of the Mayor, City Administrator’s Office (including the Sustainability & Resilience Division), Planning and Building, and the Department of Race and Equity.
Since the EDAP was received by the City Council in October 2025, EWDD continues to work closely with PBD, HCD, HSD, Office of Homelessness Solutions, OPW, OakDOT, OFD, OPD, OPRYD, DRE, Finance, and OPL. EWDD is in regular coordination with the City Administrator’s Office and the Mayor’s Office.
Elizabeth Lake, Interim City Administrator
Subject: EDAP Implementation Status Update
Date: August 24, 2026 Page 8
CED Committee
September 22, 2026
RACE AND EQUITY
The EDAP emphasizes building an inclusive, thriving economy where all Oaklanders can access opportunity and benefit from the City’s growth. To achieve its goals, the plan emphasizes implementation over five years (2025 – 2029). Recent urban policy and economic reports confirm that expanding job access, fostering business opportunities, and establishing community supports directly drive down crime, homelessness, and displacement. When cities invest in economic mobility and workforce stability, they address the foundational financial stresses that lead to housing insecurity and survival-driven crime. 2 The EDAP uses indicators to
guide continuous learning and improvement in its implementation and by focusing on historically under-resourced communities, the plan works to reverse generations of disinvestment and exclusion to build a city where everyone can share in prosperity.
ACTION REQUESTED OF THE CITY COUNCIL
Staff Recommends That The City Council Receive An Informational Report On The Implementation Status Of The 2025 – 2029 Economic Development Action Plan, Focused On Fiscal Year 2025/26.
For questions regarding this report, please contact ASHLEIGH KANAT, DIRECTOR, at 510.238.4973.
Respectfully submitted,
Ashleigh Kanat (Sep 10, 2026 11:53:13 PDT)
ASHLEIGH KANAT
Director
Economic & Workforce Development Department
Attachments (2):
Attachment A: FY 25/26 EDAP Implementation Status Presentation Attachment B: 2025 Citywide Economic Assessment
2 “The Link Between Job Displacement, Crime, and Access to Credit in Colombia: CID Faculty Research Insights,” Raul Duarte, Harvard Center for International Development, June 5, 2025.