Congresswoman Simon Celebrates $2,000,000 Grant to Reconnect Oakland’s Chinatown and Improve Safety for Residents

Washington, D.C. – Today, Congresswoman Lateefah Simon (D-CA-12) announced  $2,000,000 in federal funding to reconnect Oakland’s Chinatown community to the waterfront by maintaining and enhancing pathways under Interstate 880 (I-880). I-880 has long split Chinatown from the waterfront neighborhood, limiting residents’ ability to access opportunities or simply travel safely between destinations. The grant will fund enhancements to the I-880 underpasses that currently separate Chinatown, increasing safety measures, expanding accessible walkways and bike paths, and ensuring the long-term health of the Chinatown community. 

 

“For too long, the I-880 has divided and harmed Oakland’s vibrant Chinatown community. As someone who is legally blind and is transit dependent, I know personally how accessible and safe transit options are the difference between surviving and thriving.” Congresswoman Simon said, “This project will help bridge the gap between Chinatown and other portions of Oakland and begin to rectify harmful infrastructure decisions that have divided the neighborhood and foster community building with historically disadvantaged families. I am excited that we have secured this funding for Oakland, and I am thankful to my predecessor Congresswoman Barbara Lee, for her advocacy of this project. 

 

“Freeways have long sent cars whizzing by Chinatown, cutting the neighborhood off from current and future economic activity along the waterfront. This grant amplifies the influence of community voices and redirects future planning efforts to focus on reknitting our neighborhoods, enabling families to walk safely to and from the natural and cultural assets of Oakland, and driving foot traffic back into our small businesses” said East Bay Asian Local Development Corporation CEO Janelle Chan. “We are thankful to our friends and allies in DC and look forward to working with our local public and community partners to meet not only the needs of Chinatown, but our aspirations for Oakland.”

 

Representative Simon and Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff secured this grant through the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Reconnecting Communities Pilot grant program, created by the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law, which was signed into law by President Biden in 2021. This grant program aims to restore communities impacted by transportation infrastructure, such as highways, and rectify past infrastructure choices that have harmed - rather than enhanced - communities. In the 118th Congress, Representative Barbara Lee and Senators Alex Padilla and Laphonza Butler advocated for the Oakland Chinatown I-880 Underpass Activation Project.