About Us
Make Albany Berkeley Again (MABA) is the home for the campaign to consolidate the City of Albany, California into Berkeley
The basics
What
Make Albany Berkeley Again (MABA) proposes to “consolidate” the City of Albany, California into Berkeley. Originally called Ocean View, Albany was a rural area contiguous to Berkeley. After a 1908 dispute over Berkeley using the landfill area now known as the “Bulb,” Albany incorporated as the City of Ocean View. This occurred in 1909.
Why
The City of Albany suffers from a “structural deficit,” a chronic inability to make ends meet. With few large employers besides the USDA, the Albany Unified School District and the City of Albany itself, Albany has relied on tax revenue. The 2024 closure of Golden Gate Fields narrows the revenue stream. Albany relies heavily on property taxes and property transfer taxes to stay afloat. In an effort to balance the budget, the City is planning to put additional taxes and bonds on an upcoming ballot.
The City of Albany is little more than five square miles and is a full-service charter city. Albany administers the same basic services, like utilities, as several nearby cities of greater scale. Annexation to Berkeley makes geographical sense. Berkeley offers greater diversity and programs supporting affordable housing, transparent government and policing, and so on.
How
MABA will determine the legal process required to annex Albany to Berkeley by consolidation. This will likely start with petitions in Albany and in Berkeley. We are currently working to obtain the information we need to get started.
In the coming months, this website will discuss in greater detail the disadvantages of small towns with few employers, including oversight and reliance on property and property transfer taxes, as well as the benefits of joining forces to create a larger municipality.
Email us at info@makealbanyberkeleyagain.com if you want to help.