Accomplishments

Kevin Jenkins has provided steady, results-driven leadership for Oakland during one of the City’s most pivotal periods. As City Council President and Interim Mayor, he focused on stabilizing City operations, restoring public trust, and delivering measurable progress on public safety, homelessness, fiscal health, and neighborhood quality of life.

 

Strengthening Public Safety & Emergency Response

Under Kevin Jenkins’ leadership, all Oakland fire stations were reopened for the first time in 20 years, restoring full citywide emergency response capacity and ensuring faster, more reliable service for residents across Oakland.
🔗 https://www.ktvu.com/news/ofd-will-have-all-fire-stations-open-first-time-20-years

 

Kevin also prioritized improvements to Oakland’s emergency response systems, helping drive improved 911 call response times citywide and securing funding for long-overdue technology upgrades to modernize the City’s 911 infrastructure.
🔗 https://www.nbcbayarea.com/investigations/oakland-improves-911-response-times/3733040/
🔗 https://oaklandside.org/2023/09/11/oakland-leaders-say-911-system-fixes-are-coming/

 

Public safety outcomes improved during this period, with homicides and major crime trending downward year over year, reflecting a focus on both prevention and effective response.

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Leading Oakland Through High-Profile Moments & Transitions

Kevin successfully led Oakland through the nationally spotlighted NBA All-Star Weekend, earning recognition for strong coordination, public safety planning, and civic pride during a major global event.
🔗 https://www.sfchronicle.com/sports/annkillion/article/oakland-won-nba-all-star-charles-barkley-made-sf-20173542.php

 

As Interim Mayor, Kevin guided Oakland through a critical leadership transition, maintaining stability during a pivotal moment for the City and overseeing a smooth handoff to the Lee Administration to ensure continuity of operations and policy momentum.

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Advancing Humane Homelessness Solutions

Kevin helped lead progress on homelessness by supporting humane, service-connected encampment resolutions, ensuring residents were connected to housing and services while improving public health and safety.

This included the resolution of several of Oakland’s largest encampments:

• East 12th Street Encampment
  🔗 https://oaklandside.org/2025/05/13/east-12th-street-encampment-removed-oakland/

• Mosswood Encampment
  🔗 https://www.sfchronicle.com/bayarea/article/oakland-sweep-homeless-camps-20305031.php

 

Kevin also supported a citywide container-based strategy to stabilize encampment transitions and improve coordination of services.
🔗 https://www.cbsnews.com/sanfrancisco/news/oakland-shipping-containers-to-tackle-encampment-issues/

 

At the regional level, he worked closely with the Governor’s Office and Alameda County to advance a coordinated homelessness strategy, including advocacy for a ballot measure directing 80% of $1.4 billion toward homelessness solutions.

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Fiscal Responsibility & Good Governance

Kevin demonstrated strong fiscal leadership by helping Oakland successfully issue $334 million in bonds, reflecting renewed market confidence and responsible financial management.
🔗 https://www.oaklandca.gov/News-Releases/Oakland-Successfully-Issues-334M-in-Bonds-to-Fund-Capital-Projects

 

He also helped advance a responsible City budget that prioritized public safety and core services while avoiding deep cuts to essential programs.
🔗 https://oaklandside.org/2025/05/05/oakland-budget-would-slash-jobs-avoid-public-safety-cuts-2025/

 

In partnership with Mayor Barbara Lee, SPUR, and the League of Women Voters, Kevin helped lead long-overdue Charter Reform efforts to modernize Oakland’s governance structure and strengthen accountability at City Hall.
🔗 https://www.mayorbarbaralee.com/release/mayor-barbara-lee-initiates-efforts-to-reform-oaklands-charter

 

Delivering for District 6 Neighborhoods

Kevin Jenkins has focused on delivering tangible improvements at the neighborhood level throughout District 6:

• Maxwell Park Traffic Study
  Secured a traffic study to assess safety concerns, calm traffic, and improve pedestrian safety for residents and students traveling to nearby schools.

• Maxwell House Lead Remediation
  Secured $60,000 for lead paint abatement at the Peter Pan Cooperative Nursery School, ensuring a safe learning environment for children ages 2–6 and allowing the historic school to continue serving families in Maxwell Park.

• Arroyo Viejo Park Vehicle Deterrence & Repairs
  Allocated $250,000 for vehicle barriers to prevent unauthorized access that damaged park facilities, along with fencing repairs to restore safe use of the ballfield and strengthen the park as a community hub.

 

Targeted Sideshow Deterrence & Street Safety

Kevin supported targeted engineering solutions to curb dangerous sideshow activity and improve street safety at known hotspots:

• MacArthur Blvd. & 82nd Avenue
  Flex-post bollards installed by OakDOT have led to reported reductions in sideshow frequency and duration, based on community feedback.

• Skyline Blvd. & Redwood Road
  Nearly 40 bollards installed to disrupt sideshow driving patterns at a historically impacted intersection.

• Seminary Ave. & Foothill Blvd.
  Engineered roadway modifications installed to slow vehicle movement and make sideshow activity more difficult.

 

Showing Up for Community

Kevin partnered with the Oakland Housing Authority on a holiday turkey drive, providing direct support to families during the holiday season — reflecting his belief that leadership means showing up not just in policy, but in practice.