Libby Schaaf offers reasons to be excited about Oakland’s future

Libby Schaaf stood alone in Farley’s coffee shop on Grand Avenue unnoticed and unrecognized Sunday afternoon.

She had no entourage in tow, and unlike her more well-known predecessors, who include a former congressman and a two-time governor, she has no reputation to live up to. Oakland’s new mayor likes it that way.

“I am neither loved nor hated by special-interest groups,” Schaaf said as she sipped coffee at the cafe.

The 49-year-old Oakland native took the oath of office in the city’s historic Paramount Theatre on Monday with a clean slate, a clear conscience and a voter mandate to improve government operations — a necessity to keep pace with the demands of a city undergoing swift changes in its racial and economic diversity.

If the results of the November election are a barometer of public opinion, Schaaf tapped into the city’s silent majority, the hard-working, law-abiding residents whose work schedules, family responsibilities and common sense keep them a clear and safe distance from the chaos at Oakland City Hall.

They are residents, homeowners and voters, not crusaders for a specific cause, and they are overwhelmingly frustrated by a local government that always seems to be in crisis mode.

There is a similar feeling among the city’s municipal workforce of more than 4,500 part- and full-time employees, she said.

Taking the long view

“No one can do anything alone, and our employees need consistent leadership,” Schaaf said.

“I want to re-energize the workforce and modernize some of our systems to make them more responsive,” Schaaf said. “I think the city’s workforce is ready to do that, but there hasn’t been a crisis-free moment.”

Don’t expect to see Schaaf reacting to every challenge with a new program. She’ll take the long view.

“Oakland doesn’t need a politician-coined crime initiative, and before I announce a new initiative I want to address the current challenges,” she said.

It’s a big list that includes everything from nurturing the growth of the Oakland Police Department to accommodating the desires of urban farmers calling for property tax reductions to encourage landowners to allow vacant lots to be temporarily transformed into farm fields.

The list includes making smart decisions about the city’s housing needs, managing gentrification and addressing what Schaaf called “morally outrageous racial disparities” in Oakland’s public school system.

But the elephant in the room remains the city’s crime-reduction efforts.

Schaaf has yet to introduce a detailed plan she has developed to hire and maintain a force of at least 800 police officers during her four-year term, but that’s the goal. She also pledges to remove Oakland from its annual spot on the top 10 list of the nation’s most violent cities.

Schaaf represents a new generation of leadership. In a Facebook message sent after thugs (posing as protesters) went after the city Christmas tree on display at Jack London Square, Schaaf referred to the action as a “new low.”

Time to shine

It’s a pretty good sign your city has crime problems when a Christmas tree setting becomes a crime scene cordoned off with yellow tape.

“We need to expect protest,” Schaaf said. “Protest is part of our history, part of our present and our future. We really don’t have an excuse not to be prepared.”

Schaaf’s campaign theme, that it’s “hella time for Oakland” to shine, is about to be put to the test, and I’m excited about the city’s future.

Chip Johnson is a San Francisco Chronicle columnist. His columns run Tuesday and Friday. E-mail chjohnson@sfchronicle.com