Council Confirms Interim Administrator, Places Foreclosure Tax on Ballot

Oakland's City Council navigated a packed, out-of-order agenda Tuesday night that touched every pressure point in city governance — from a contested leadership appointment needed to protect $200 million in bond financing, to an emotional reckoning over whether the city has anywhere to send people displaced by encampment closures. The council also placed a new foreclosure tax on the November ballot, heard dire warnings from AC Transit, and strengthened sanctuary city protections.

• Elizabeth Lake confirmed as interim City Administrator in a 6-2 vote to ensure signing authority for $200M in short-term bond financing
• Foreclosure transfer tax loophole closure headed to November 2026 ballot, estimated to raise $4–13M annually from banks and private equity
• AC Transit warns of $200M, four-year deficit with potential 16% service cuts and 300 job losses without a regional ballot measure
• 34 speakers weigh in on General Plan update, with Port-aligned industrial interests clashing with housing and environmental advocates over Oakland's long-term land use
• Six-month pilot street closures approved near International Blvd. to combat sex trafficking using environmental design
• City of Refuge sanctuary ordinance advances with amendments recognizing historic harms to Black residents
• Only 5 of 46 city properties deemed feasible for shelter or safe parking as encampment policy launches with a $1.2M budget gap

The council confirmed Elizabeth Lake as interim City Administrator on a 6-2 vote — a move Mayor Barbara Lee framed as essential to protect hundreds of millions of dollars in imminent financing.