• WOBO is run entirely on volunteer power.
• We're efficient and effective and 100% of donations go into public outreach materials and programs to make Oakland more walkable and bikeable.
• Help us do more by making a donation or purchasing a WOBO annual membership (Individual - $35, Household - $50, Individual w/WOBO t-shirt - $50). To contribute or discover member benefits, visit our Donation Page.

WHEN: Tuesday, June 23rd from 6:30-8:30pm
WHERE: B.A.W.T., 2301 Broadway (enter on 23rd)

Are you interested in bringing an event like (San Francisco's) Sunday Streets to Oakland? How about restoring Oakland's Urban Pathways? Then don't miss this month's WOBO Volunteer Meeting!

This Tuesday we'll focus on campaign planning and follow-up work from the WOBO Successful Campaigns Training (June 5th & 6th). Campaign leaders will bring along their campaign plans and we'll use them to lay out next steps, volunteer action items, etc. For an update about each of our new campaigns, please check out last month's newsletter or the campaigns section of the WOBO website. Please bring your thinking cap and collaborative spirit! Oh, and snacks will be served. (Yum!)

Walk Oakland Bike Oakland is proud to annouce that we've secured two grants which will allow us to hire our first Executive Director this fall:

A $15,000 one-year matching grant from the Alliance for Biking and Walking to advocate for bicycle and pedestrian access. This grant will focus on ensuring active resident participation in the planning processes and will push Oakland to implement new bike lanes and a funding plan for other new bicycle and pedestrian facilities while strengthening WOBO's foundation for long-term success.

A $10,000/year (for two years) matching grant from Trek Bicycles will add momentum to the Bike Broadway campaign and support WOBO's other bicycle-oriented campaigns.

The WOBO Board of Directors is developing a job description for the Executive Director position and we'll post it on the website and in the newsletter when we're ready to hire (likely August or September). This is represents a big step up for our growing advocacy efforts. We now have the challenge of raising matching funds for these two awesome grants. Your support can help make that happen. Please consider donating to WOBO.

The TransForm Car-Free Challenge is a month-long event where individuals (like you and me) sign on to send a collective message to important decision-makers – encouraging them to get on board with smart land use planning by ensuring that walking and biking issues take center stage. Individual challengers use this event to set personal mileage goals with an emphasis on minimizing the number of driving miles during the month of June. The only requirement is that you pledge $65 or get 10 donations of $5 each.

When you sign up for the challenge and join the WOBO team, half the funds you raise go to WOBO. If you don't want to participate in the challenge directly, you might consider sponsoring a challenger on the WOBO team. If neither really gets your juices flowing, check out the blog entries of participating challengers for inspiration and motivation. For more information on the Car-Free Challenge, click here.

Cities across the nation are stopping traffic to create car-free parkways that pedestrians, bicyclists, and families can enjoy. "Sunday Streets" events close streets to cars for a few hours, offering great benefits for the whole community:

• Safe public spaces for all to enjoy
• Opportunities for healthy, active recreation
• Free entertainment for people of all ages
• A chance to celebrate our neighborhoods
• Support for local, independent businesses

Oakland's neighborhoods and history are connected by an extensive network of pedestrian paths and stairways. Are these paths a thing of the past, or perhaps a future guide to improving pedestrian connections to schools, commercial districts and public transportation? A group is forming to answer that question and is seeking your enthusiasm and ideas for the summer of 2009 and beyond!

The Oakland Urban Paths is a group of dedicated walkers, planners, historians and fundraisers hoping to raise awareness of the paths' history and importance through a variety of activities (in partnership with the City of Oakland and WOBO). The network has a historical basis, connecting residential areas to commercial districts, schools and old Keyline Trolley routes, but is also an important part of how pedestrians get around our city today.

Got a favorite pathway you want to see improved? Live near a pathway and want to host a brunch for an Oakland walking group? Wonder if it's possible to get pathways to show up on Google maps? These are the kind of things we're talking about. Bring your thoughts and questions to Tuesday's WOBO Volunteer Meeting and learn more about the Oakland Urban Paths and how to get involved.

The Development Committee works to raise funds for WOBO's work. We're trying to expand our small (2 person!) team and would love having folks join us to work on some of the following projects:

• Creating and implementing a fund development plan
• Grant writing, research, and support for foundation cultivation; track grants and grant proposals and write grants and reports
• Database management and website projects relating to fund development
• Planning and executing member cultivation events
• Phone, email and mail solicitation of potential corporate donors and event sponsors

It's summertime, so there are lots of activities to keep you busy on foot or bike. Last Thursday night's Uptown Unveiled was a huge success and a great reminder of how wonderful it is to be able to travel to (and sometimes around at) area events. Here are some others happenings you might consider walking or biking to:

• Jack London Square's Summer Events - including live music, films and dancing (with free dance lessons)
• The Second Annual Temescal Street Cinema - featuring locally made films, live music and popcorn (all free)
• I Like My Bike Night at Ashkenaz - (once monthly) join the bike cruise from Sproul Plaza to Ashkenaz where you can enjoy live music plus bike parking and discounted admission (if you've got your bike)

The City recently installed over 360 bike racks in Oakland's commercial districts, and they still have a few left they're looking to find homes for. Submit your bike rack location requests to the City using this online form.

Note that racks can only be installed on City-owned right-of-way (mostly sidewalks) in commercial districts and cannot be installed in AC Transit red zones, too close to light poles and other obstructions, etc. Check out the City's rack placement guidelines here. Questions? Contact the City's Bicycle & Pedestrian Facilities Coordinator at (510) 238-3983 or by emailing bikeped@oaklandnet.com.

Journey to the End of the Night: Oakland - Saturday, June 20th

Journey to the End of the Night was born by the Bay in 2006, run again here in 2007, and now returns to the area with an epic pursuit through Oakland, finishing by the side of Lake Merritt. As always: no skates, no bikes, no cars, no segways, just your feet, AC Transit, and BART. The game begins at 7pm at the Mosswood Park amphitheatre.

Broadway District Specific Plan Community Stakeholder Meeting - Thursday, June 25th

Did you know that the City of Oakland is planning to redevelop Auto Row into a multi-use retail corridor? Help WOBO ensure that the Broadway Retail Corridor redevelopment is bike and pedestrian-friendly. More info about the redevelopment of Broadway's Auto Row at www.business2oakland.com/brcp.

From 5:30 - 7:30pm, Valdez Plaza Community Room 280 28th St, at Valdez (near the Oakland Whole Foods). Light dinner will be served, so please RSVP to kjferris@oaklandnet.com.

Decision Day: Double the Number of Bike Lanes in San Francisco - Friday, June 26th

From the SFBC: This is it, Decision Day - June 26th is the big day we've been working towards. At this meeting, the MTA Board will vote on adoption of the Bike Plan and approval of 45 Bike Network improvement projects. Once complete, the City will ask the Superior Court to lift the injunction that has prevented any physical bike improvements in the city for over 1,000 days. RSVP to let us know you can be there to speak up for miles of new bike lanes and a new commitment to better bicycling in San Francisco! 9am, San Francisco City Hall, Room 400.

Oakland Critical Mass - Friday, July 3rd

While this ride is not organized nor endorsed by WOBO, we have a keen interest in happy bicycling every day in Oakland. To that end, we encourage all participants to ride courteously and respectfully. Meets the first Friday of every month, 6pm at Frank Ogawa Plaza. For more info, see the Critical Mass website.

OakTown MeetUp - Wednesday, July 8th

This event will highlight numerous non-profits and volunteer based organizations in Oakland that need your help. Meet representatives from each organization (WOBO included) and learn about the type of help they need. Interested parties will have the opportunity to sign up to volunteer with these organizations on-site. This is a great opportunity to find out about the ways to perform civic service in Oakland, and a unique chance to network with community service minded individuals and organizations. We are a stronger city when we get to know each other.

From 5pm 'til 7:30pm at Levende East (827 Washington St).

2nd Annual Bike 4 Life - Saturday, July 25th

Healin' From Killin', a Bike Ride For Peace - from Lake Merritt to DeFremery Park (aka Lil' Bobby Hutton Park). Led by SCRAPER BIKES!

Ride starts at 2pm from Lakeside Park, 468 Perkins St. Party begins at 3pm at DeFremery Park, 1651 Adeline St. Featuring food, prizes, skateboard exhibition, turf dancing, and performances by the Trunk Boiz, Queen Deelah and special guests!

Whether you're walking or cycling, it's important to be visible to motorists at night. Lights and safety vests are excellent ways to accomplish that, but I've discovered a couple of solutions that are both offbeat and effective at helping cyclists be seen. The Puma Glow Rider is a folding bike by Puma which actually glows in the dark! It comes in two luminescent colors, but with a price tag of over $1,500, it's a bit pricey. However, if you're up for a little do-it-yourself project, you can make your bike a Bright Bike by covering it with Scotchlight 680 retroreflective vinyl. Check it out: