Any SF hotel that is close to the Powell, Montgomery or Embarcadero BART stations will work. BART is your best option to get to the Federal Building that is 2 blocks from the 12th Street BART station.

Hello genocoop, here is the website for BART http://www.bart.gov/index.asp
this will give you schedules, fares etc., everything you will need to know.

Thanks,
I was also considering staying in Almadeda or Berkley are they closer to Oakland? I would prefer to stay any of the Bay cities that I are easy access to Oakland. I also would like an area where there are plenty of shops and restaurants and I could feel safe walking the streets in the early evening. Can you recommend any suite hotels that have the above?

Hello genocoop, personally I would stay in SF, in my opinion it fits what you are looking for. BART is quite easy to take. I have no idea what price range you are thinking of but if go to Google and type in Suite Hotels San Francisco, CA you will pull up a lot of websites. As SAB suggested, you would want to use either the Powell St., Montgomery or Embarcadero BART stations. I am sure all of the websites have maps that will show you how close the various hotels are to these three stations. Best regards.

"I also would like an area where there are plenty of shops and restaurants and I could feel safe walking the streets in the early evening. " Unfortunately that eliminates most any part of Oakland.

For your situation, staying in SF near a BART station will be best.

LOL janisj, I was trying to be subtle!

One simply can't be subtle when talking about Oakland