Welcome to the Omni Commons
Omni Collective
Overview
A Collective of Collectives in Oakland, California. See Founding Document for governance.
From Latin omni-, "all, every, the whole, of every kind,"
OMNI Oakland Collective is comprised of several Bay Area collectives. Its express purpose is to build consensus among member collectives with the most minimal possible bureaucracy for the administration of a common space and shared resources for the use and stewardship of the greater community.
The point of the OMNI Oakland Collective is NOT to function as any sort of governing body for the groups involved in any general sense. There are no senators. Its only and sole point is to administer the space, pay bills, make group decisions about the shared space, resolve any conflicts between the groups in the space, interface with the state, banks, authorities, etc. Logistics and bureaucracy: That's it.
- What kind of groups? Mainly:
- Non-profit
- Volunteer-led
- Donation-based
- Offer value to the public for free or sliding scale
- What core values do groups share?
- Social, economic & environmental justice
- Solidarity with all oppressed people
- A culture of consent, against rape, violence & exploitation
- The survival & thrival of our communities and neighborhoods
OMNI Oakland Collective Processes and Structure
- Meetings
- Times and Location
- 1st, 2nd and 4th Thursday of the Month at 2141 Broadway
- 6:30pm for newcomers
- 7:00pm for delegates (open to all)
- Times and Location
- Governance
- Structure:
- See our foundational document here: Our Foundational Document
- Articles of Incorporation
- Bylaws
- Structure:
The Collectives
- Sudo Room
- Bay Area Public School
- Timeless, Infinite Light
- Live Space
- HackerSpa
- Counter Culture Labs
- La Commune Cafe and Bookstore
- Oakland Nights Live
- Food Not Bombs
- Creative Empowerment Project
- As-Yet-Unnamed Celluloid Film Processing Lab
The Building
- It's an amazing, almost 22,000 sq ft. building on Shattuck and 48th. It's an old rock club, before that, a Scavenger Worker's Leisure Club (Ligure Club).. that was also in all functional terms a collective, when they built the building.
Space Features
- a huge ballroom / event space about 2/3 the size of GAMH
- an industrial kitchen & walk-in freezer (needs fixing up)
- a massive back room with ability to build out lofts/rooms
- 55'-ish ceilings
- massive basement with windows above street level (currently blacked out)
- a separate room that used to function as a disco (with lighted floor)
- a warren of odd little rooms, a stage, lots of bathrooms
Price/Sq Ft
Distribution of Space
Tentative Distribution of Space (Not final, will likely change!)
- Sudo Room: Half bocce call court room
- BAPS: mobile units - based out of a balcony room in the ballroom, having classes in unused space around the building as needed
- Timless, Infinite Light: 2nd floor, Balcony room above bar, on corner of Shattuck / 48th (NE corner)
- HackerSpa Wellness Center: Cluster of rooms between bar and bocce ball court room
- Counter Culture Labs: Half bocce ball court room
- Food Not Bombs: Shares basement industrial kitchen & food storage area with cafe-bookstore, hopefully serve food too upstairs to the community - either in the cafe, or the ballroom, etc
- La Commune Cafe & Bookstore: Bar area
- Live Space: Disco room in back (NW corner)
- Oakland Nights Live: Uses ballroom area for performances, some storage in the building somewhere
- Celluloid Processing Labs: Part of the basement
- Creative Empowerment Project: Part of basement (screenprinting gear)
- Schedule-able shared spaces around the building
- Ballroom (scheduled mostly as per current Common room)
- Parts of the basement
- Bookstore / Cafe
Use of Space
- How do we envision using the space?
- To collaborate on projects
- To host classes and performances
- To network, meet each other, welcome newcomers
- To store resources for common use (or equitably restricted)
- Will there be commercial activity in the space?
Financial Concerns
- Rental Terms
- Expenses
- Move-in Costs
- Monthly Rent
- Revenue
- From Member Collectives
- From Other Supporters
- Loans
- Donations
- Grants
- Expenses
Legal Concerns
- Permits
- Zoning
- Licensing and Certification
Questions for Collectives
To-Do List
- Finalize proposal
- Build Consensus of Member Collectives
- Review Contract (agreement) and sign
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