Natalie Orenstein reports on housing and homelessness for The Oaklandside. Natalie was a Berkeleyside staff reporter from early 2017 to May 2020. She had previously contributed to the site since 2012, when she started as an intern. Orenstein covered a range of beats for Berkeleyside, focusing primarily on education. Her 2018 three-part series "Beyond the Buses" explored the legacy of Berkeley’s historic voluntary school integration, earning her the Society of Professional Journalists NorCal’s long-form storytelling award and a finalist position in the Education Writers Association National Awards for Education Reporting. Orenstein's reporting has also appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle, the J Weekly, the San Francisco Bay Guardian and elsewhere. Natalie is a proud Berkeley native and only strayed from the Bay Area once, to attend Pomona College.
A lawsuit settlement required payback for property destroyed during encampment sweeps. Hear from unhoused people who’ve gotten funds, and learn how to collect yours.
A North Oakland bike shop owner got a dream assignment: design a custom ride for an NBA star.
Kane touched an enormous number of lives. He drowned last week, the latest of several recent tragedies involving young Berkeleyans.
The West Oakland organization hopes its emergency services can still lead to more homeless people getting a hot meal and housing.
COVID-19 risks have prompted a year-long delay in the point-in-time homeless count, a “crucial data source.”
Alameda County health providers and emergency responders share how it feels to be first in line, and how the community can think about the vaccine’s safety.
Unhoused residents and their supporters want the East Bay Municipal Utility District to expand water access for camps.
The law, which will come back for final approval Dec. 15, requires only electric infrastructure and appliances in newly built homes, restaurant and shop buildings, and offices.
It’s unclear what will happen to the 1,200 people currently housed in the hotels once funding runs out.
Long before she was the vice president-elect, Kamala Harris was a resident of the Berkeley flats and a student at Thousand Oaks.
It’s been a long road for Berkeley’s Youth Spirit Artworks project, which could house 22 homeless youth starting in the fall.
Homeless people whose belongings were confiscated by Caltrans can file a claim under a new settlement. Here’s how.
As many as 60 people from Berkeley will now move indoors from shelters or tents.
Eight teenagers in Oakland and Berkeley talk about how they’ve had to adapt after the shutdown upended their social lives and support systems.
“We’re watching a future disparity in the making,” said one doctor pushing for more transparency.
Advocates hope Alameda County will buy other empty buildings to become housing for unsheltered Oaklanders, too.
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