Bridge too far?

The polls haven.t been favorable to Barbara Lee's U.S. Senate chances, but she remains popular among Democratic activists

A rendering of the proposed bike/pedestrian bridge linking Alameda to Jack London Square. Ignore that ballpark on the left.

CITY NEWS

ALAMEDA/OAKLAND

—BRIDGING THE GAP—Alameda and Oakland leaders both support a proposed 600-foot bike and pedestrian bridge that would connect the island to Jack London Square.

—The estuary span could eliminate about 40,000 car rides during any given week, but there’s been quite a bit of chatter about the cost of bridge, estimated at this time to be just under $200 million. An additional $3.5 million is the estimated cost for annual upkeep.

—The Alameda City Council will receive an update on the Oakland/Alameda Estuary Bridge tonight.

—Keep an eye on a pilot program approved by the Alameda City Council earlier this year for a small ferry boat to shuttle people across the estuary to Oakland as a possible replacement going forward if the estuary bridge begins to lose support in one or both cities.

ALAMEDA

—LOTS OF PLANNING TO DO—Forty-seven Alamedans applied for two seats on the city’s Planning Board, including my neighbor!

FREMONT

—VICE MAYOR-GO-ROUND—Based on Fremont’s convoluted process for naming vice mayor’s (they serve eight months, not a year), Councilmember Yang Shao is expected to be named to the ceremonial position tonight. The appointment runs through July 2024.

ELECTION 2024

U.S. SENATE

—ALMOST VICTORY—The good news for Barbara Lee at last weekend’s California Democratic Party convention: She received the most votes for endorsement in the crowded Democratic field for U.S. Senate.

—The bad news: The tally was not enough to win the party’s valuable endorsement.

—Just a reminder, California voters will be asked two questions in March:

—Who will serve out the remainder of Sen. Dianne Feinstein’s current term, through the end of this year; and which candidate will serve for the next six-year term through 2030?

—In both cases, Lee received the most support from California Democratic caucus-goers.

SHORT-TERM

• BARBARA LEE 963 votes, 41.47%

• ADAM SCHIFF 933 votes, 40.18%

• KATIE PORTER 373 votes, 16.06%

• LEXI REESE 3 votes. 0.13%

• NO ENDORSEMENT 50 votes, 2.15%

FULL-TERM

• BARBARA LEE 958 votes, 41.26%

• ADAM SCHIFF 927 votes, 39.92%

• KATIE PORTER 361 votes, 15.59%

• LEXI REESE 2 votes. 0.09%

• NO ENDORSEMENT 67 votes, 2.89%

—Lee’s U.S. Senate campaign trumpeted the endorsement votes as a win in a fundraising email to supporters on Monday.

—Good news aside, it remains to be seen if all California voters are as supportive of Lee’s campaign as we head into the final 100 days of the primary season.

—Polling has consistently suggested Lee is not making much ground in a field with two other frontrunners with access to much more money.

OAKLAND USD SPECIAL ELECTION

—CERTIFIED FINAL—The Alameda County Registrar of Voters certified the results in the Oakland school board special election in District 5 on Friday.

—Fingers crossed that the registrar certified the right winner!

—Former school principal Jorge Lerma won the seat with just 2,024 votes over Sasha Ritzie-Hernandez. Final voter turnout for the Nov. 7 special election was 14.09 percent, which was expected for an odd-year race.

—WELCOME TO THE DANCE—Former Oakland mayoral candidate Loren Taylor has kept up his public profile since last fall’s contentious election.

—Taylor’s next move will be running for a seat on the Alameda County Democratic Central Committee in the 18th District next March. Taylor filed last week.

PODCAST

—Also listen to part one of our conversation with Catharine Baker:

East Bay Insiders Podcast: Ep. 74 - Last of the East Bay Republicans