OAKLAND — Mayor Barbara Lee’s campaign promise of bringing optimism back to Oakland may have been all that residents needed to hear from the former congresswoman serving less than half a term before the next election.

In her first mayoral state-of-the-city address on Tuesday, Lee went beyond that. She urged everyone listening to acknowledge that good things are happening in Oakland, presenting herself as more than the caretaker of a city that is recovering from a rough pandemic .

The 79-year-old progressive icon touted declining crime levels, her efforts to streamline permit approvals and — for the first time in two decades — keep all the fire stations open, while securing various pockets of funding from Alameda County and California’s coffers.

Mostly, though, Lee pleaded for a mo

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