Oakland Box Theater In Peril

Dear friends of Oakland Box Theater,


If you have not already heard, the Box has been red-tagged by the City for code compliance violations, and we are now unable to host events till compliance work has been completed.

The present situation is the result of the lack of foresight on our part, and to be clear, the city building department as well as our landlord, Phil Tagami of Uptown Broadway Partners, have been very supportive of our situation, and are working closely with us to remedy it.

The bottom line is, the bottom line: The Box needs to raise at least $100,000 by October 15, 2004 to cover the expenses for permit fees and construction costs, to bring the building up to code. If we cannot make this amount, we will be in default of our agreement with UBP and the city, and will have to call it quits.

But we're far from quitting!

Today we are moving full speed ahead on an all-out fundraising campaign to raise these funds, as well as raise the community's voice of support for the Box.

***HOW YOU CAN HELP***
Please pledge whatever you can (everything helps!) by sending us a tax-deductible donation check (or money order) made payable to Oakland Box Theater. If we are unable to reach our goal of $100,000 we will shred the checks/M.O. or return them to you, as you wish (we'll have a date set for all-day pickup). We also accept VISA (reply here for that).

Please mail your contribution---made out to Oakland Box Theater---to:

Oakland Box Theater Compliance Fund
c/o Laura DuBois
4100-10 Redwood Rd. #106
Oakland, CA 94619

Also: Send the mayor and city council an email or letter informing them of the vital role the Box contributes to our community.

Mayor Jerry Brown's office: officeofthemayor [at] oaklandnet.com District 3 Councilmember Nancy Nadel: nnadel [at] oaklandnet.com District 5 Councilmember, President of the Council, Ignacio De La Fuenteidelafuente [at] oaklandnet.com

With enough support we can make this goal a reality, so the Box can further serve as a hub of conscious artistic expression and community involvement.

PLEASE SPREAD THE WORD!

With blessings and much gratitude,


Joey Yovino-Young
Managing Director
Oakland Box Theater
joey [at] oaklandbox.com