KOREATOWN OAKLAND
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Mission Statement
Oakland First Fridays is a monthly arts and culture event that is located on Telegraph Avenue and West Grand in the City of Oakland’s Kono District. The festival is in its 11 th year and is has an attendance of between 15 to 30 thousand people each month.
About This Cause
The Oakland Property Business Improvement District Ordinance was approved by the Oakland City Council in 1999. This ordinance allows for the development of community benefit districts (CBDs) to supplement city services within the designated area to increase the economic development of the area (“KONO”2016. In July of 2007, the property owners in the district voted for a special assessment tax to fund the CBD association in order to revitalize the commercial area. They wanted to collaborate to bring resources and attraction to the area which had suffered an economic decline. The mission of KONO CBD is the following: “to support efforts of the Korea Town/Northgate Community Benefit District to revitalize the commercial district through beautification of public areas, promotion of public safety, organization of educational and cultural events, and stimulation of community improvement. (KONO Bylaws, 2011)” They decided to call the district Koreatown Northgate CBD to represent the business owners and the neighborhood zone. The aim was to revitalize the community so it would emerge into “a lively commercial district that capitalizes on the area’s ethnic and cultural diversity. It will serve as a center of the Korean American business community in the greater Bay Area, with restaurants and shops, a creative arts community, and a unique mix of other businesses and services run by and serving people of many different backgrounds.”With many of the residents and merchants being artists, KONO has promoted the arts in the district for years. KONO has a high concentration of galleries and is the art hub of Oakland. The four major development projects include Security and Operations, Marketing and Identity, Economic Development, and Oakland First Fridays . The First Friday festivals draw in 30,000 attendees per event and generate revenue for local businesses. Every month, Oakland First Fridays provides thousands of people from across the Bay Area and beyond with encounters and experiences with local art forms, inspiration, food, music, and the energy of the electric city of Oakland, California. An economic impact report shows that Oakland First Fridays has a major, positive economic influence in the KONO community. In order to cover event expenses while keeping the event free and open to the public and the artisan vendor fees low, they depend on individual donations from the community and sponsors. Donations and sponsorships are the foundation of preserving Oakland First Fridays is an all-inclusive, safe and vital community-driven platform. With your donation and/or sponsorship, and volunteers, local entrepreneurs will be able to continue getting their creative product off the ground. In addition, attendees will have access to more amenities such as, accessible restrooms, event security, and unique, local craft and fair to sample. Keeping to this mission is hard. Almost an entirely volunteer run organization, it takes a massive collaborative effort between the volunteers and the Oakland First Friday team to keep this event thriving each month. We need your support to keep this event going!