{"id":157948,"date":"2026-01-31T12:04:39","date_gmt":"2026-01-31T12:04:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/157948\/"},"modified":"2026-01-31T12:04:39","modified_gmt":"2026-01-31T12:04:39","slug":"decline-of-oaklands-crown-jewel-jack-london-square-due-to-poor-management-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/157948\/","title":{"rendered":"Decline of Oakland’s crown jewel Jack London Square due to poor management"},"content":{"rendered":"

Jack London Square should be Oakland\u2019s crown jewel: a waterfront district where people come to walk, eat, gather and feel the city\u2019s energy. It has the views, the history, the ferry access and a setting most cities would envy.<\/p>\n

And yet it\u2019s slipping \u2014 badly. Jack London Square is declining because it\u2019s being managed without urgency and allowed to drift into neglect.<\/p>\n

As the manager of Scott\u2019s Seafood Grill & Bar, I\u2019ve watched it happen in slow motion. Our business has experienced recessions, booms and everything in between. We stay because we believe in Oakland and because we believe the square should be a destination.<\/p>\n

\"DeterioratedDeteriorated tables stand on a vacant restaurant patio at Jack London Square in Oakland on Wednesday.\u00a0Ray Chavez — Bay Area News Group<\/p>\n

Instead, we\u2019ve seen vacancies, churn and business closures \u2014 and long stretches where the square feels half-open and overlooked. Today, the square\u2019s ground-floor space is more than 50% vacant.<\/p>\n

The dining scene that once made Jack London Square a draw has been hollowed out, one closure at a time. A dark storefront is a reason not to come. Fewer visitors mean the remaining businesses struggle. Then more closures follow.<\/p>\n

That is what happens when you put a destination on autopilot. But the decline is not inevitable. It\u2019s the result of choices \u2014 or, more accurately, the result of avoiding choices by the Port of Oakland and its property manager, CIM Group.<\/p>\n

The square\u2019s future will be shaped by decisions: what gets prioritized, who gets recruited, what gets fixed, what gets ignored. That takes leadership and investment.<\/p>\n

Other waterfront districts understand that. Look at San Francisco\u2019s Fisherman\u2019s Wharf. It has faced challenges, too. The difference is accountability: deliberate tenant recruitment, constant marketing, year-round events and public spaces that feel clean and welcoming.<\/p>\n

\"VisitorsVisitors stroll through a quiet Jack London Square in Oakland on Wednesday.\u00a0Ray Chavez\/Bay Area News Group<\/p>\n

Oakland deserves the same. For a thriving square, you don\u2019t just \u201cfill space.\u201d You build an ecosystem: restaurants, local retail, arts and culture, family-friendly activity, waterfront events, and public spaces that feel safe and inviting. And you support the businesses that are already carrying the district \u2014 before you recruit the next ones.<\/p>\n

The Port of Oakland and CIM Group should commit to a 12-month plan with measurable results \u2014 cleanliness and safety standards, lighting and amenity upgrades, targeted tenant recruitment, waterfront programming and a real marketing strategy \u2014 paired with a timeline, benchmarks and quarterly public reporting on progress.<\/p>\n

Fifty years in business teaches you something: places don\u2019t stay great because they used to be great. They stay great because leaders choose to build them \u2014 and are willing to be accountable for the outcome.<\/p>\n

Raymond Gallagher is the owner of Scott\u2019s Seafood Grill & Bar.<\/p>\n

\u00a0<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"Jack London Square should be Oakland\u2019s crown jewel: a waterfront district where people come to walk, eat, gather…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":157949,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[34],"tags":[389,184,387,7,332,181,143,145,144],"class_list":["post-157948","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-oakland","tag-alameda-county","tag-bay-area","tag-business","tag-california","tag-east-bay","tag-latest-headlines","tag-oakland","tag-oakland-headlines","tag-oakland-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157948","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=157948"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/157948\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/157949"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=157948"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=157948"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ca\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=157948"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}