Oakland officials have voted to change the name of the city’s airport to San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport, despite the city of San Francisco threatening to sue for trademark infringement.
The Port of Oakland Board of Commissioners voted unanimously Thursday to move forward with the name change, with a second vote for final approval scheduled for May 9. The airport is now called Oakland International Airport.
Oakland airport officials said travelers unfamiliar with the area will board the San Francisco airport even if their destination is closer to Oakland Airport across the bay. Changing the name to San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport would change things, they say. His three-letter code OAK for the airport remains unchanged.
New York, Georgia and California airports list the world’s best food and beverages for travelers
“We are standing up for Oakland and the East Bay,” Port Commission Chairwoman Barbara Leslie said in a statement after the vote. “The name identifies OAK as the closest major airport to California’s wine country, home to 4.1 million people, three national laboratories, the nation’s top public universities, and California’s wine country.”
For nearly an hour, commissioners listened to public comments that included Oakland residents and airline representatives who supported the name change, and San Francisco tourism and hospitality industry representatives who opposed it.
Some advocates asked commissioners to consider giving the new name Oakland rather than San Francisco.
Travelers are seen arriving at Oakland International Airport on November 26, 2013 in Oakland, California. The Port of Oakland Board of Commissioners has voted in favor of changing the name of the city’s airport to San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport. (AP Photo/Ben Margot, File)
If final approval is received next month, “staff will move forward with the formal renaming process, including working with airlines, other airports, and local agencies to reflect changes to the airport and aviation system,” the Port Commission said. said in a statement.
Oakland Airport officials, like many other major cities, are facing increased crime and the effects of losing the last professional sports team that called the city of 430,000 people home. Approved the change. Last week, the Athletics announced that the team would leave Oakland after this season and temporarily play at a minor league park near Sacramento until a new stadium planned for Las Vegas is built.
With the Athletics’ departure, the city, which was also home to the NFL’s Raiders, NBA’s Warriors and NHL’s Seals, will no longer have a major sports team.
The proposed name change surprised San Francisco officials, who said it would confuse travelers, especially those flying in from overseas. San Francisco Airport Director Ivor C. Satello said he was “deeply concerned” about the potential for customer disruption and reduced service. San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu on Tuesday threatened to sue if Oakland officials pursue the name change, arguing that it would infringe on the city’s trademark for “San Francisco International Airport.”
San Francisco has “held these registrations for so long that they cannot be contested under federal law,” Chiu said in a letter to various Oakland officials.
San Francisco resident Helen Han said she doesn’t agree with the name change because tourists, especially those visiting the Bay Area for the first time, could confuse the two.
“It’s going to be very disruptive for people traveling to Oakland or San Francisco,” Han said. “If you’re visiting San Francisco for the first time, I can imagine it would be really confusing (in deciding) which airport you need to go to.”
Last week, San Francisco Board of Supervisors Chairman Aaron Peskin opposed the name change and filed a resolution asking the Port Commission to veto it.
State Sen. Scott Wiener, who represents San Francisco, said on social media platform X that the airport should not “cut and paste” San Francisco’s name.
“I love Oakland, but Oakland is Oakland. It’s not San Francisco,” he wrote. “Find another way to turn the situation around.”
However, other users of X pointed out that San Francisco’s airport is actually located in Millbrae, a city in San Mateo County.
CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP
One person quipped, “When are the 49ers going to change their name? #SantaClara.” The San Francisco 49ers play at Levi’s Stadium in Santa Clara, a suburb of San Jose and approximately 72 miles south of San Francisco.
Port of Oakland interim aviation director Craig Simon said Metropolitan Oakland International Airport, as it is formally known, has lost 39 of the 54 new routes added between July 2008 and March 2024. .
Mr Simon said: “Market research and interviews with partner airlines have shown that routes are not performing as well as they should due to a lack of geographic awareness, and airlines are looking to maintain the Auckland route or add new routes. They are becoming passive,” he said. Vote.
