On Tuesday, Oakland Mayor Barbara Lee delivered her first State of the City address amid a host of problems usually only seen in much larger cities. But out on the streets, the residents seemed to understand that and took it into consideration as they delivered their own assessment of the state of “The Town.”
Oakland’s diversity was on full display in the Grand Lake area. That’s where resident Rich Manley was enjoying a quiet cup of coffee, and he wasted no time relating the state of the city to the national situation.
“Putting it in perspective of the greater political environment in our country right now, I’d say I’m happy to live in California and in Oakland,” he said…