Oakland officials vote to add “San Francisco Bay” to the name of Oakland International Airport

Port of Oakland officials voted Thursday in favor of changing the name of the city's airport to San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport. despite a threatened lawsuit from San Francisco on what it calls trademark infringement.

The Board of Commissioners voted unanimously during a meeting early Thursday evening to approve the change from the current name, Oakland International Airport. The airport's KAO code and visual branding will not change, port officials said.

“We are supporting Oakland and the East Bay; this will increase travelers' geographic awareness of the airport by highlighting the airport's location on the San Francisco Bay.” Port Commission President Barbara Leslie said in a press release issued by the Port of Oakland. “This name will make it clear that KCA is the closest major airport, to 4.1 million people, three national laboratories, the best public university in the country, and California's Wine Country.”

The board has scheduled a second reading and vote on the matter for the May 9 board meeting that would make the change official.

After the vote, San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu confirmed he would fight the measure in court.

“We are disappointed that Oakland did not take the opportunity to work collaboratively with us to develop alternative names and now have no choice but to take legal action,” Chiu said in a statement Thursday.

In response, Port of Oakland attorney Mary Richardson released a statement of her own.

“The port's proposed renaming does not infringe SFO's mark. SFO cannot claim the geographically descriptive term 'San Francisco,' let alone claim exclusive rights to San Francisco Bay,” the statement said. “The Port believes that travelers understand that the San Francisco Bay Area — like virtually every other metropolitan area around the world — may contain more than one airport. The Port will take all reasonable steps to provide clarity to travelers in relation to KBA geography, location and distinctiveness.”

Controversy over the name first appeared on March 29 when Oakland International Airport officials first went public with the idea in hopes of increasing the number of passengers flying to and from the East Bay.

The idea was was met with backlash from officials at both San Francisco International Airport and the city itself.

Officials of Oakland International have defended the name changeclaiming the airport has garnered the support of local politicians in the East Bay, including Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao.

“The name change will use our region's key geographic feature to identify its location, the San Francisco Bay,” said Craig Simon, the airport's interim director of aviation. “This is not about the city and county of San Francisco, or San Mateo County, but about our region and job creation in Oakland and the entire East Bay. No one owns the title to the San Francisco Bay.”

Earlier this week, San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu warned of a possible lawsuit.

“If you continue in these efforts, I intend to pursue legal action to prevent your use of the proposed new name,” Chiu said in a letter to the commissioners at the Port of Oakland.

He argued that the proposal to change the official name would infringe on San Francisco International Airport's trademarks.

“The city has kept these records for so long that they have become incontrovertible under federal law,” Chiu said. “Indeed there is and has only been one airport in the United States that uses 'San Francisco' in its name.”

The city attorney also argued that a renaming would cause confusion for commuters.

San Mateo County officials have also expressed opposition to the idea.