My 8 Point Plan to Transform Oakland into a World Destination for the Arts-August 1, 2012

By Alex Miller-Cole

If we are serious about Oakland's economic development, it is imperative that we begin by leveraging all our existing assets. The Oakland Industrial Arts community has been neglected and overlooked as a significant catalyst for economic development. The City of Oakland must adopt a comprehensive plan to incentivize, promote, and protect the Arts community. I know we can become the next world destination for the Arts.

1. Declare a portion of our community as the City's official Arts District.
2. Create the first D3-Arts Taskforce to help bring resources,ideas and strategic planning.
3. Empower our local Artists by appointing them to Boards and Commissions so that they are the ones who drive the conversation.
4. Create bridges to link our emerging artisanal movements to leverage each other's momentum towards a unified goal.
5. Enact tax incentives and other policies to benefit residing artist and not only those who might move in.
6. Leverage Bay Area events to help us re-invigorate our existing festivals and events while maintaining an open mind to create new ones.
7. Support and expand our technical training and art programs so that our community is the logical workforce that will benefit from these new jobs.
8. Create and fund D3-Bank. The first ever district-wide not-for-profit community funding tool, which will facilitate funding for all District-3 needs.