How Square Lease Could Accelerate Big Tech’s Presence in Oakland
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Danielle Bell
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media@greenlining.org danielle.bell@greenlining.orgSan Francisco Business Times
By Fiona Kelliher
After the record-breaking lease of Uptown Station by financial services company Square, members of the Oakland office industry are awaiting the next big company to expand to the East Bay city from pricey San Francisco…
For the city of Oakland, Square’s lease – and the potential influx of more office tenants – could bring community benefits like workforce development and philanthropic donations. But it also heightens long-held fears about gentrification already sweeping through the city’s neighborhoods.
As a new major employer moving into Oakland, Square should make an effort to integrate into the local community, said Orson Aguilar, who leads the Greenlining Institute, an Oakland nonprofit focused on social and economic equity. That could mean hiring as many Oakland residents as possible, setting up internships and apprenticeship programs specifically geared toward local students and seeking out Oakland-based suppliers for their office needs.
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