A popular bakery and once the first headquarters for the Black Panther Party in Oakland is at risk of disappearing.
The small building, It's All Good Bakery, at 5616 Martin Luther King Jr. Way, is a significant piece of the Bay Area's history. And it’s now slated for demolition.
A five-story, mixed-use residential and retail building is currently being proposed to go up at the site, which still has a wall dedicated to the Black Panther Party.
Since 1999, the Dr. Huey P. Newton Foundation has brought people on tours to the bakery to share with them the significance of the site. In response to the building's uncertain future, Fredrika Newton, president and co-founder of the foundation, issued a statement over the weekend.
"For over 20 years, we have worked in partnership with the building's owner, Mr. Kim McClure to uphold our mission by creating space and place to share the site’s important history to the Black Panther Party legacy," the statement said.
While McClure, whose uncle was a panther, is proposing to demolish the building, his plan "will provide an even more expansive space and place to preserve and to tell the history of this important site," the statement continued.
Since the building has already been "modified significantly" since the site was the panther office, the foundation said redevelopment is the "appropriate path forward."
McClure's proposal will also preserve historically and artistically the interior and exterior of the building, which will be present in the new building, the statement said.
As such, the foundation has signed a memorandum of understanding with McClure to ensure that element remains part of the agreement.
The fate of the building is being discussed at a Landmarks Preservation Advisory Board meeting on Monday.
"Community, and myself included, are very concerned about losing this historic property," said City Councilmember Dan Kalb of District 1, who plans to be at the meeting. "I think we need to do what we can to preserve that history, that heritage, in this location."
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