Contra Costa ACCE Action members are taking action and winning transformative changes!

Where we Organize:

We have strong chapters in Richmond and Bay Point, and we are also organizing in Concord. Additionally, we have a Home Defenders chapter that spans the county fighting for housing justice.

Our Campaigns:

• Fighting for Tenants: As gentrification and displacement throughout the Bay Area increases, rents in Richmond and throughout Contra Costa County are skyrocketing. 
  • WE DID IT! ACCE Action members and our allies celebrated a monumental victory when voters passed Rent Control and Just Cause for Evictions last year- setting a maximum allowable annual rent increase for most residential units, and prohibiting landlords from evicting tenants without cause.  The measure passed after a bitter two-year fight and more than $100,000 spent by Realtor groups to fight it.  Early 2016, ACCE Action members and staff spent countless hours organizing tenants and gathering over 1,000 petition signatures to put Measure L on the ballot. ACCE Action knocked on more than 11,000 doors and identified 1,800 supporters of Rent Control. Thanks to our efforts and the efforts of our allies with the Fair and Affordable Richmond Coalition, 9,900 units will be protected, which means 25-30,000 people will get real tenant protections.
  • Our fight dis not end at the ballots! We are working to ensure that Measure L is enforced across Richmond and are continuing to organize tenants to stop evictions, rent hikes and end slum conditions. 

• Progressive Governance
  • Our very own ACCE Action member and Community Organizer Melvin Willis, was elected to Richmond's City Council last November!
  • Backed by the Richmond Working Families Coalition (ACCE Action, SEIU 1021, APEN Action and AFSCME 3299) as well as the Richmond Progressive Alliance, Melvin reaped more than 12,500 votes and was the top vote getter in a race made up of nine-candidates that included multiple incumbents! This win comes two years after the resounding defeat of several Chevron-backed candidates in the 2014 election. As a Community Organizer with ACCE, Melvin has defended homeowners from the greed of banks and speculators and helped tenants whose rents are skyrocketing. Neither Melvin nor Ben accepted any campaign money from corporations or developers. We are thrilled to have two great new City Councilmembers who will stand up for our community! 

• Accountable Development for Communities of Color: With UC Berkeley building the Berkeley Global Campus at Richmond Bay, and investing millions in public money, we are fighting for this development to have positive impacts for communities of color. Through a Racial Impact Assessment and a Community Benefits package, we are fighting to make sure our communities benefit from this development, and that we are not displaced in the process. Watch this video to learn more.

• Our Swimming Pool: In Bay Point, our members have been fighting for the reopening of the Ambrose Community park swimming pool. Slated to open in the summer of 2015, we are holding our local officials accountable to make the needed improvements in our public park and pool so our community can benefit!  
  
  
• Health for All: Everyone in our community needs quality affordable healthcare, including our immigrant communities. We are fighting for a county program to provide healthcare for the remaining uninsured after the implementation of the ACA.

Contact Us:

Contra Costa Office
322 Harbour Way #25, Richmond, California 94801
Phone: 510-240-1120
Email: contracosta(at)calorganize.org

Join us! Sign up below:

If you want to see tenants protected, banks held accountable, investments in our community, and healthcare for all, sign up here to join us in taking action.