Alameda County must refund $1.4 million in park in-lieu fees after proceeds sat unused for 5 years

Large apartment building owners could receive a refund of up to $300,000, new homeowners are in line for $11,000

☕️MORNING BUZZ

—It seems everyone is giving money back these days.

In today’s newsletter, a major bureaucratic blunder is leading Alameda County refunding $1.4 million in fees paid by developers and new homeowners for building and improving parks in the unincorporated areas.

Whose fault is it? The Alameda County Planning Department or the Hayward Area Recreation and Parks District (HARD)? Judge for yourself.

As it stands, nobody is being held accountable for the snafu that revealed itself to the Planning Department in 2023.

“It’s just kind of embarrassing to have to tax people for multiple years and then apologize to them because the county and the parks couldn’t figure out how to actually spend their tax dollars on something very popular and important,” a member of the Alameda County Planning Commission said in September.

—Meanwhile, Oakland mayoral candidate Barbara Lee is also returning money. After her main opponent Loren Taylor called for her to return contributions received from the Duongs, the Oakland recyclers indicted for bribery last month, Lee acquiesced on Monday.

But a few thousand dollars out of Lee’s campaign is nothing compared to the large contribution made by SEIU Local 1021 on Monday to the independent expenditure committee backing Lee’s mayoral campaign.

—More inside:

• Pleasanton is thinking about annexing two proposed large-scale housing developments in unincorporated east county.

• Newark moves to reaffirm its own version of sanctuary city status

• Lee gives back some Duong money

• Thao recaller is deploying a strategy used in the DA appointment process in Oakland’s special election.

• Lee’s IE is growing quickly. Plus, campaign finance data for Monday.

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