"This is a great program. I wish we could make it happen all over the country."

-Edward James Olmos

Academy Award Nominee & 2004 Keynote Speaker for Annual NLC Fundraising Dinner

Our Success

Recently, at two separate town hall meetings, neighbors identified a liquor store/gas station/market used as a center for late night criminal activity and a blighted building as their worst community problems. These problems had existed unresolved for nearly a decade, and although community members had lodged complaints with city officials throughout the years, nothing had been done.

NLC spearheaded the coordination of all the government entities needed to address the problems. The burnt-out, blighted building was partly demolished and rehab work started within weeks. The problem liquor store was taken to an administrative hearing where community members were given a forum to speak out. The result was to limit the hours of operation for the 24-hour store to operating from 6am-11pm.

In another example, a major victory was achieved for an East Oakland neighborhood plagued by chronic drug dealing and nuisance activities on a residential property. The house had been a scourge to the neighborhood for over ten years. Through persistent efforts at the local, state and national level, we ultimately succeeded in forcing the negligent owners to forfeit the property as a permanent solution to chronic drug dealing. The demolition of the property was witnessed by Oakland officials, representatives from the United States Attorney's Office, the FBI, U.S. Marshals and the surrounding neighbors.

  • NLC also brokered a peace between angry neighbors and one-third of Oakland's liquor storeowners. At our town hall meeting, store owners signed a pledge to their neighbors to improve the conditions in and outside of their businesses. Over one hundred Oakland liquor stores agreed to close at midnight and not sell drug paraphernalia.
  • NLC issued a Report Card on the 300+ liquor stores in Oakland titled, "The Good, The Bad & The Ugly." The report outlined a plan of action to address the crime and blight certain liquor stores attract. The City Council accepted it unanimously and, as a result, the community was able, for the first time in Oakland's history, to shut down an historically troublesome liquor store due to citizen complaint. The eleven stores deemed 'ugly' are all in the process being brought into compliance with the 'good neighbor' standards.
  • To address inhumane housing conditions, NLC used California Unfair Business Practice Law to force negligent landlords to make their entire properties habitable. Since 2002, NLC has taken on twenty-two housing code violation matters. A recent settlement victory resulted in complete renovations for 36 units in two dilapidated apartment buildings in a predominantly Latino neighborhood.
  • Finally, since the inception of the program, NLC has prosecuted more than 81 drug-house abatement cases. In the five years prior to NLC's existence, only 21 cases were prosecuted.


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