Port of Oakland approves name change for airport

Written by Henry Lee and Amber Lee

OAKLAND, Calif. (FOX-35)- The Port of Oakland's Board of Commissioners unanimously approved a resolution on Thursday to rename Oakland International Airport.

A second reading of the resolution and a final vote will take place on May 9.

The proposal to change the airport's name from Metropolitan Oakland International Airport to San Francisco Bay Oakland International Airport has sparked strong reactions, with the fiercest coming from San Francisco International Airport (SFO) across the Bay.

On Monday, the city of San Francisco threatened legal action against Oakland's port commissioners regarding the name change, citing potential confusion.

Oakland's airport would keep the OAK airport code.

San Francisco City Attorney David Chiu criticized the proposed name change as "ill-conceived" and sent a letter to the Oakland Board of Port Commissioners, arguing that the inclusion of "San Francisco" infringes on SFO's trademarks.

"San Francisco owns two different trademarks," said Jen Kwart, Chiu's spokeswoman. "It owns San Francisco International Airport and it also owns the SFO logo and design. We feel really confident that the new name will infringe on those."