News

Recruitment for 2012 City Management Academy ends Friday

2011-12-07T23:01:19Z

The 2012 City Management Academy (CMA) starts on Wednesday January 25th, 2012. Applications are being accepted through Friday, December 9th at 5:00pm, postmarks are not accepted. Completed applications can be hand delivered, faxed or mailed.

If you have a interest in how the City of Sacramento government works this is with out a doubt the best place to learn. This is especially true if you are a neighborhood activist or want to help make the city work better for everyone.

"Anyone considering running for election for mayor/ city council or serving on any board or commission would be well served by participating in these valuable orientation "academies:" fifthgenerationsacramentan SacPress reader and frequent commentor.

If you want to learn more about the CMA read this SacPress article from a year ago or the Neighborhood Services website. You can also contact Margaret Mack Alumni, City Management Academy (2008) mmackdwc@yahoo.com or Bill Burgua CMA Alumni (2003) bill@sheiladog.com or Kris Wimberly Neighborhood Services 916-808-5072 kwimberly@cityofsacramento.org

Disclosure: I am an alumni of the 2003 City Management Academy and an active member of the group of alumni members that have volunterred to see that the CMA continues-with no cost to the City of Sacramento.

SARTA Clean Tech Showcase

2011-11-02T00:49:21Z

The Sacramento Area Regional Technology Association (SARTA), as part of its Clean Start initiative, held the 2011 Sacramento Clean Tech Showcase last Monday, October 24, 2011.

The showcase, entitled, “Green Innovation: Engine of Growth,” was the fifth annual showcase and was held in the California State University Sacramento Union.

SARTA CEO Meg Arnold welcomed everyone to the Union Ballroom and acknowledged the governmental leaders present.

Mayor Kevin Johnson, a strong supporter of bringing clean tech companies to Sacramento; Dr. Joseph F. Sheley, Sacramento State Provost and Vice President for Academic Affairs and Congresswoman Doris Matsui, a strong supporter of clean tech in Congress (via video); also offered their encouragement to those present.

The welcome was followed by a series of speakers, starting with Neal Dikeman, founding partner of Jane Capital; Brian Keane, President of SmartPower and Carla Peterman, California Energy Commissioner.

The morning session also featured the presentation of the first Clean Tech Innovator of the Year Award to Dr. Raju Pandey of Synapse. The Distinguished Honoree was presented to Al Rich of SolarRoofs.com. SARTA's award committee included: Jim Alves, SMUD, Jack Crawford, Velocity Venture Capital, Mark Henwood, CleanStart, Laurie ten Hope, California Energy Commisssion, Emir Macari, Sacramento State, Jay Schmidt, PG&E, Gary Simon, CleanStart and Bruce White, UC Davis.

In the afternoon, there were two tracks of panels and presentations with multiple presenters or panelists. Track A was “Driving Growth” and Track B, “Making Markets.”

At the same time, there was a large exhibition hall displaying examples of clean tech products and all the associated companies needed to develop clean technology. As with the presentations, both the technological side, including research by academic and private companies, and the technology that has been developed and is being marketed, were present.

Technology included solar panels, inverters to convert the DC electricity from the panels to AC for the grid, and plug-in stations for electric/plug-in hybrids.

Several companies displayed clean technology that sometimes gets lost in the flashy equipment. This included high powered computer technology that reduces energy consumption by better management of energy use.

Emerging or developing technology - such as new, more efficient biofuels research and better ways of capturing solar energy – was also present.

Several research groups had poster presentations with researchers present to explain their work.

The business side included venture capital companies, law firms, marketing and communications consultants, business parks and workforce development and deployment firms.

Besides business and high technology, there was very low-tech technology present as well. The Sacramento Tree Foundation was there to promote the planting of shade trees to reduce residential heat load.

Susan Frost with Alliance Mortgage and Marketing spoke about their program, which works with a partner company that flips foreclosed houses with an emphasis on refitting the houses for energy conservation. The organization can then offer buyers a more energy efficient home with a mortgage with a lower down payment.

Even with all the technology on display on the exposition floor, the big technology draw was outside the building on a nearby street. Along with electric cars on display by manufacturers, there were numerous privately owned electric cars brought by their owners. The owners enthusiastically spoke with attendees about their real life experiences owning and driving the cars. More about the cars and other electric transportation in a future article including a test drive of the latest electric car coming to maket in a future article.

While 2011 Sacramento Clean Tech Showcase is aimed at those involved in the industry from academia, the private sector and government. That said there was a lot to interest those in the general public that like to keep up on technology and any technophile would have been heaven at this event.

Will Monday's Neighborhood Advisory Group Meeting Be Its' Last?

2011-07-14T23:03:12Z

After operating for nearly two decades, what may be the last meeting of the Neighborhood Advisory Group (NAG) will take place this Monday.

NAG started out as a meeting of concerned central city residents meeting in private homes. Eventually a partnership with the city was formed through Neighborhood Services/Code Enforcement under Max Fernandes. Neighborhood Services has continued to work with NAG publishing and distributing the NAG agenda that was created each month by the independent and volunteer NAG agenda committee. Neighborhood Services also serves as a conduit between the agenda committed for city entities that wanted to present at NAG and city endities that the agenda committe requested presentations from.

Highlights of this NAG agenda include a presentation by interim city manager Bill Edgar. Edgar will speak about the impact of the city budget cuts. It is sugnificant that Mr. Edgar will be presenting at this NAG. He had a major influence on forming the partnership between the NAG and the city when he was city manager, including the creation of Neighborhood Services.

The agenda committee also asked the police to speak during the police activity report about the increasing sales of alcohol in Area 1 in cojunction with reductions in police resources and how Area 1 residents will keep abrest of police issues if NAG ceases to exist.

Finally attendies will discuss the future of NAG after hearing what support Neighborhood Services can continue to provide.

Area 1 Neighborhood Advisory Group (NAG) July 2011 Agenda

In Partnership with the City of Sacramento Neighborhood Services Division

Monday, July 18, 2011
6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Hart Senior Center, 915 27th Street

Tonight’s Facilitator: Gerald Celestine, Capitol Area R Street Association (caRsa) and Friends of Fremont Park

6:30 Welcome and Introductions

6:35 City Budget Impacts
Bill Edgar, Interim City Manager

7:00 Area 1 Police Department Activity Report
· Increased alcohol sales and impact on Police
· How will residents keep up with Police issues if there is no Neighborhood
Advisory Group?
Sacramento Police Department

7:15 Announcements

7:20 Issue Updates: Mercy Hospital; Midtown Nightlife Issues/Responsible Hospitality Institute; R Street; Sutter Hospital/Trinity Cathedral; High-Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Lanes; Preservation Roundtable; Department of Utilities Funds; The Docks Project; K Street; Special Events; NAG Action Request Form

7:30 Neighborhood Services / Parks and Recreation Updates
· Support of NAG
· Cost /Availability of Hart Senior Center

7:50 Future of NAG

Adjourn

*Next Meeting: To Be Determined*

Items are placed on the agenda based on their time sensitivity and relevance to Area 1. Join the NAG agenda committee in setting the agenda at 12 p.m. on the first Wednesday of the month at the Clunie Community Center. (If NAG continues)

See City Council agendas and reports here.

Disclosure: Bill Burgua often attends the Neighbohood Advisory Group agenda committee meetings and often facilitates the NAG meetings.

A Independence Day Tradition Celebrated on Third Avenue

2011-07-06T06:50:51Z

On Monday, one two-block-long “block” of Third Avenue maintained a long standing Independence Day tradition. With a city approved street closure, a long row of tables was set up in the middle of the street. Coolers were rolled out, along with grills, gas and charcoal. A large American flag was brought out from safekeeping in the household that originally donated it, and strung between the huge trees that line the avenue.

Folks were making good use of the wading pool in one yard. Another yard had a crazy sprinkler going for the kids. The party was an amazing demonstration of the great diversity in the neighborhood. There were a lot more kids than one would expect and a lot of neighbors also invited friends and family to the event. All ages were well represented, along with every racial and religious representation, all having a wonderful time together.

How long has this event been going on? Nobody seemed to know.

Linda McAtee remembered that when she and her husband Steve Spar moved to the neighborhood, their son was three years old. He has now graduated from college and Linda said the July 4th event had gone on for years before they moved to the neighborhood.

The ritual begins at 4:00 when everyone starts to gather. First up is the kiddie parade. Every sort of child powered vehicle is present. Tricycles, bicycles, kiddie cars and parent pushed carts of all sorts are decorated for the holiday. They parade up and down the Avenue to the cheers of the crowd.

There is plenty of conversation and beverages while the grills get going. Then comes the grilling - chicken, veggies, buffalo burgers, ribs and more. Everyone brings salads, side dishes and all sorts of desserts. Most sit at the long communal tables running down the middle of the street.

After dinner the big fun starts. The kids are the first to finish dinner, as usual. They are chomping at the bit for the next event: the water balloon fight. The children are split into two groups, five years old and under and everyone over five, a group which was heavily made up of dads. More than 700 balloons had been filled with water earlier in the day. Soon, there were lots of wet people in the streets, though no one seemed to mind since it was still 98 degrees. Afterwards, the kids dutifully picked up all the broken balloons.

As soon as it started to get dark, hundreds of sparklers were handed out - one at a time - to the children. Everyone had great fun watching the kids involved in the great childhood ritual of playing with sparklers.

As each sparkler went out and the kids dutifully placed the stick in a bucket of water, the chairs were arranged on both sides of the street where there was a large space between the tree canopies. All those that brought fireworks put them in a communal pile. The rule is that everyone except the three people chosen to light the fireworks stays out of the street. Those lighting the fireworks called out the name of the one they were lighting. For over an hour, there were “oohs” and “ahhs.”

Just before ten everyone packed up, cleaned up the street and headed home with more memories of being part of a wonderful and very fun neighborhood tradition. Just one tradition, in one neighborhood, that is played out in many Sacramento neighborhoods and neighborhoods across America.

SMUD-CSUS Agreement Ups Region's Clean Tech Presence

2011-06-14T20:23:08Z

The Green Capital Alliance presented “Road Map to 3,000 Jobs” at the Sacramento State University Alumni Center Thursday June 9th.

The Green Capital Alliance describes itself as “a broad partnership of people and organizations aiming to make the clean technology sector a defining feature of Sacramento’s economy.”

The centerpiece of the meeting was the signing of a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) between Sacramento Municipal Utility District (SMUD) and the Californis State University Sacramento (CSUS). The MOA formally regonies work started last year between the two institutions. The MOA basically ties together the smart meter progran at SMUD and he California Smart Grid Center work at Sacramento State. For specific details of the agreement click here.

Dr. Emir Macari, dean of the Sacramento State College of Engineering and Computer Science and member of the California Smart Grid Center, introduced the two principals for the major event of the day. SMUD general manager and CEO John DiStasio represented SMUD in the partnership. He said $127 million was being spent on smart-meter transition for all SMUD customers that will be completed in 2013. Smart meters will be a major component and source of information that will lead to new technologies in managing energy usage and the management of the smart grid that will allow implementation of these technologies. The ability to have widespread use of electric vehicles is dependent on this.

Sacramento State President Dr. Alexander Gonzales was the other principal for the partnership. He said 85 percent of the students at Sac State come from the region. He went on to stress the long relationship between SMUD and Sac State.

“Both SMUD and us are essential for the economy,” he said.

They then formalized the relationship by signing a formal memorandum of understanding.

“Students will be the greatest beneficiaries of this agreement,” Gonzales said. “This is already a living document. We have been working together for three to four years.”

While the signing of the Memorandum of Agreement was the major event of the meeting, there was a great deal of more information prestented at “Road Map to 3,000 Jobs.'

Jack Crawford of Velocity Venture Capital was the keynote speaker at the presentation. Crawford presented a quick picture of the state of the creation of green economy companies and jobs in the greater Sacramento region. He said his venture capital company has 13 companies in its profile, with seven generating income and four that are cash-positive.

Crawford lamented that, while teaching as a guest in the MBA program at the University of the Pacific, he learned that the MBA graduates leave the area because of the perception that there are no “cool” companies to work for in the region.

He talked about the uphill battle after Forbes declared Sacramento the fifth worst city in the country and the difficulty of retaining start-up companies that do succeed. They leave for the glamor and climate of entrepreneurship in Silicon Valley.

Crawford does not see everything as bleak in regard to clean technology in the region. He cited Click Nation as one successful company that chose to stay. He cited a figure of 100-plus clean tech companies in the region. Entrepreneurs that were big on the Internet are now moving to clean tech. The Sacramento region is rated 10th in job activity and fifth in percent of LEED buildings in the country.

He sees a need for public-private partnership for clean tech to succeed here. Crawford believes that there is a poor tolerance for risk in the Sacramento region, and that there needs to be a change in culture to attract risk-takers. He cited the typical pattern of fail, fail, succeed for entrepreneurial companies.

Crawford ended by saying that with a growth of clean technology companies, philanthropic contributions would grow.

Following a short break, Julia Burrows with Valley Vision spoke of some of the different organizations studying green technology in the region. These included Sacramento Area Regional Technology Alliance, Center for Strategic Economic Research (CSER), Centers of Excellence at Los Rios Community College District, Valley Vision and Green Capital Alliance. They are helping to create the clean energy sector strategy, and what followed was an overview of the RICO (regional industry clusters of opportunity) process.

Burrows introduced Ryan Sharpe from CSER. CSER was formed in 2001 to gather data on clean tech in the region. They now have a database for the region. They group the data into four groups: clean energy, energy efficiency, clean transport and green building.

Sharp doubled Crawford’s estimate to over 200 companies in the region. Most of them are small with one to 19 employees and averaging $1.1 million in sales. Most deal with clean energy or energy efficiency. He said the Sacramento region competes mostly with Austin, Denver, Portland and the greater Bay Area.

He was followed by Theresa Milan from the Centers of Excellence at Los Rios CCD. This is one of several COEs set up and funded by the state of California.

Milan said state policy drives growth such as the CA Solar Initiative and New Solar Homes Partnership. The COE looks at expanded industry growth and workforce needs. They are seeing an employment increase from 700 in 2007 to over 1,300 today, plus a 60 percent increase in the number of clean tech firms.

The final speaker was Congresswoman Doris Matsui.

“It is important to get our stories out about what we are doing about clean technologies,” Matsui said, adding that housing and governmental sectors are imploding in the region.

Matsui is working on a bill in Congress to boost the competitiveness of clean-energy manufacturing. She pledged to keep working with this segment and echoed the need to keep the knowledge and jobs here. She is part of a bi-partisan congressional high-tech caucus. Matsui emphasized that we need to “learn from the past so that we do not get stuck in the past.”

She talked about the advantages in the Sacramento region of progressive utilities, educational institutions, infrastructure and investors.

“Federal investment is absolutely necessary,” she said.

Matsui concluded saying that her grandchildren Anna and Robbie are her touchstones for the future.

Speaking with Matsui after the meeting, she railed against "the stupidity of continuing the oil company subsidies while cutting funds for clean energy research," among other problems with congress.

The Clean Energy Sector Strategy: Sacramento Region, presentation materials and more infromation from each speaker is available on the Green Capital Alliance webesite here.

Shows, Lectures and Dance: Lots Going On the Next Couple of Weeks

2011-04-06T00:58:42Z

Theater

Openings

“The Bell of Amherst” Sacramento Theatre Company
Opened Saturday Great performance by Jackie Vanderbeck
SacPress review Schedule and Tickets

"FROM GODSPELL TO WICKED: The Musicals of Stephen Schwartz" STC Cabaret Thursday through Saturday only Last of STC Cabaret shows this season SacPress preview Tickets and Info

“Young Frankenstein” Broadway Sacramento
Opens Wednesday April 13 Mel Brooks’ insanity brought to the stage
Schedule and Tickets

Last Chance

“Circle Mirror Transformation” B Street Theatre Mainstage
Closes April 10th Features B Street’s great actors
SacPress review Schedule and Tickets

On Going

“Master Class” Capital Stage
Extended through April 17th Knockout performance by Janis Stevens
SacPress review Schedule and Tickets

“Cinderella” B Street Family Series
Two more weekends. Excellent children’s show for all ages.
SacPress review Schedule and Tickets

"A Grand Night For Singing" Cosmopolitan Cabaret Continues through May 8, 2011 The great music of Rodgers and Hammerstein with beverages and food. SacPress review Tickets and Information

Lectures and Performance

Thomas McGuane in conversation with Pam Houston California Lectures
Wednesday night only Novelist, humorist, filmmaker, fly-fisher and all around great storyteller.

SacPress preview Tickets and More Info

Sarah Silverman Mondavi Center
November 10th only If you have seen her on TV you can only imagine what she will be like live. Tickets and Info

Dance

Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Mondavi Center
Tonight and Tomorrow only America’s incomparable dance company and ambassadors to the world. Features “Revelations” Fiftieth Anniversary Performance
SacPress preview Tickets and Info

All Mondavi Center Events

Tue–Wed • Apr 5–6 Alvin Ailey American Dance Theate

Wed • Apr 6 Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater Recommended for grades 4-12 Mondavi Center School Matinee Program

Fri • Apr 8 The Silk Road Ensemble with Yo-Yo Ma Pre-performance Talk SOLD OUT more info

Sat–Sun • Apr 9–10 Lara Downes, piano Long Time Coming: The music of Duke Ellington and David Sanford Pre-performance Talk

Sun • Apr 10 Sarah Silverman Live

Tue • Apr 12 China Philharmonic Orchestra Long Yu, conductor and music director Renaud Capuçon, violin Pre-performance Talk

Wed • Apr 13 Max Raabe & Palast Orchester

Thu • Apr 14 Béla Fleck, Zakir Hussain, & Edgar Meyer

Fri • Apr 15 Gold Coast Trio Rachel Vetter Huang, violin Susan Lamb Cook, cello Hao Huang, piano UC Davis Department of Music

All Mondavi Center information and Tickets

Monday's NAG to Take Another Look at Second Saturday and NIghtlife Issues

2011-03-19T22:18:15Z

The Neighborhood Advisory Group (NAG) will meet this Monday 3/21/2011. This month's meeting will focus on Second Saturday and Midtown Nightlife issues. There are changes being made to Second Saturday as was reported by Suzanne Hurt on SacPress. This is partially in response to the shooting death and injuries that occurred in the early morning hours of September 12, 2011.

This presentation is a followup to a meeting on September 25,2010

Second Saturday and Midtown Nightlife issue meetings tend to have a very high turnout. If you want to sit up close, come early.

The Agenda

Area 1 Neighborhood Advisory Group (NAG)
March 2011 Agenda

In Partnership with the City of Sacramento Neighborhood Services Division

Monday, March 21, 2011
6:30 to 8:30 p.m.
Hart Senior Center, 915 27th Street

Tonight’s Facilitator: Gerald Celestine, caRsa and Friends of Fremont Park

6:30 Welcome and Introductions

6:35 Announcements

6:40 Issue Updates: Mercy Hospital; Midtown Nightlife Issues/Responsible Hospitality Institute; R Street; Sutter Hospital/Trinity Cathedral; High-Occupancy Vehicle (HOV) Lanes; Preservation Roundtable; Department of Utilities Funds; The Docks Project; K Street; Special Events; NAG Action Request Form

6:45 SPECIAL PRESENTATIONS: SECOND SATURDAY and MIDTOWN NIGHTLIFE ISSUES UPDATE
MIDTOWN NIGHTLIFE ISSUES
A. Public Safety
1. Youth & Gang Workshops
2. Neighborhood Watch
3. CERT
4. Lavender Angels
B. Parking
C. Entertainment Permits
D. Communication
E. Next Steps/Follow Up

The City of Sacramento’s Neighborhood Services Division, Police Department, Parking Division, Code Enforcement Division and the Midtown Business Association
SECOND SATURDAY
A. Time Change
B. Permit Requirements
1. Vendor Permits
2. Amplified Sound
3. Permitting on City and Private Property
C. Parking
1. Residential Parking/Enforcement
2. Parking on the Grid
D. Public Safety
1. Street Closures
2. Security Measures
E. Notification

Adjourn

*Next Meeting: Monday, April 18, 2011, 6:15 to 8:30 p.m., Hart Senior Center, 915 27th Street*

For more information, contact Janine Martindale at (916) 808-8193 or at jmartindale@cityofsacramento.org. Items are placed on the agenda based on their time sensitivity and relevance to Area 1. Join the NAG agenda committee in setting the agenda at 12 p.m. on the first Wednesday of the month at the Clunie Community Center. See City Council agendas and reports at: http://www.cityofsacramento.org/clerk/

Sacto May Be 5th Worst Place to Live, But it is Great to Walk

2011-03-08T20:38:58Z

Just in from Amtrak California Facebook page: the American Podiatric Medical Association rates Sacramento 24/25 of the most walkable cities in America. Naturally San Francisco is number one. Five other California cities on the list

WALKSacramento is always working on making Sacramento even a greater place to walk.

Check out what Sacramento neighborhoods walk the most.

Here is a great list to get your hike/walk on in and around Sacramento. Lots of other human powered activities too.

Want to get serious? River City Race Management & Chip Timing has a list of all the walking/running races around Sacramento.

Need some motivation? The Mayo Clinic, MedicineNet, and Cool Walking all list the benefits of walking and helpful information on how to get started the right way.

Please feel free to comment on your favorite place to walk in Sacramento

Spectacular President's Day Weekend Skiing After a Week of Snow

2011-02-22T02:41:12Z

A week of one storm after another dropped 81inches (that's nearly 7 feet) of snow on Heavenly Ski Resort at South Lake Tahoe prior to this President's Day weekend. By Sunday grooming crews had miles and miles of runs groomed. For the power hounds there was still acres of untouched snow. It was a beautiful sunny day with clear skies. The crowds did not arrive until about 2:00 in the afternoon leaving the early birds uncrowded slopes. Skiers and snow borders rejoiced.

City Management Academy Returns in 2011 Application Deadline December 3, 2010

2010-11-30T22:53:40Z

The City of Sacramento will be offering the City Management Academy (CMA) this winter after a brief sabbatical the last two years. What is the CMA? It is a multiple session course with eight classes over 10 weeks. It was started in 1995 and has graduated 14 classes. The CMA is put on by The City of Sacramento Neighborhood Services Division in conjunction with CMA Alumni.

The CMA is an introduction to the workings of the City of Sacramento government including the structure of city government, legislative leaders, and departmental functions and leadership. Attendees will also learn about the issues faced by city government.

Who should attend the CMA? Neighborhood association leadership, business owners in Sacramento and anyone Interested in creating a better Sacramento. The CMA is a great place to network with others interested in a better Sacramento. This is especially true during dinner.

Who can attend the CMA? Residents of the city of Sacramento, business owners in the City of Sacramento, and others on a case by case request.

The CMA will start on January 26, 2011 and end on April 12, 2011. It is critical that everyone attending the CMA commit to attending call sessions. The sessions will be on Wednesday evenings at various city properties (mostly at New City Hall). Dinner will be served. The sessions will run from 6:15 to 8:45 in the evening, including a half hour dinner break.

Individuals that want to attend the CMA must summit an application. There is a $25 fee to cover materials. Applications will be reviewed by CMA alumni. The sessions will also be facilitated by CMA Alumni.

The Ford Foundation and John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University recognized the City Management Academy as one of the Top 100 Innovative Ideas in the USA in 1997 and 1998. The City Management Academy also received an Outstanding Innovations in Government Award from the American Society for Public Administration, Sacramento Chapter, in 1998.

More information or to download an application. The deadline to apply for the 2011 City Management Academy is December 3, 2010 at 5:00 pm. All applications must be at Neighborhood Services at that time. Class enrollment is limited. Completed applications can be mailed, faxed or hand delivered to:

Neighborhood Services Division
Attn: City Management Academy
915 I Street, 3rd Floor
Sacramento, CA 95814
FAX (916) 808-5959

The Sacramento Living Library: Jeffrey Callison

2010-11-27T14:05:26Z

Jeffrey Callison, host of Insight Capitol Public Radio’s popular morning live news magazine, was interviewed by The Sacramento Press Editor in Chief David Watts Barton Sunday Evening. The interview was part of the The Sacramento Living Library, curated by Time Tested Books’ Peter Keat and hosted by “Midtown Monthly” editor Tim Foster.

Barton had kicked off The Sacramento Living Library 2010 in January, interviewing Tower Records founder Russ Solomon. More on The Sacramento Living Library and previous interviews is available at Time Tested Books’ website.

Insight premiered in July 2009 as a half-hour afternoon news magazine. Then the KXJZ news director had been invited by Station Manager Carl Watanabe to create a live show primarily focused on topics of local interest.

Callison emphasized that live is actually an advantage. He prefers that the show not be edited. For one, editing takes lots of resources. The primary reason is that everything operates at a higher level when done live. This includes the guests.

When Insight moved from 2 p.m. to 10 a.m., a fourth topic was added. Still, the hour allowed a little more depth for each subject. The hour tends to go from newsy to softer subjects.

Callison said he enjoys “the sense of discovery along with the audience.”

Though of Scottish heritage, Callison was born in England. The nearest hospital to where the family lived was across the border. The family was very poor when he was a child and moved around a lot.

His father had been very successful as a manager of a rubber plantation in Indonesia and had put away a sum of money. His parents met in Aberdeen, Scotland while his father was on a break from the plantation.

For safety reasons, (he had already been kidnaped and ransomed once) they decided to settle in Aberdeen instead of Indonesia.

The investment of his father’s savings in a farm was lost when the farm went bust. While Callison had lots of support from his parents when he was young, he and his siblings were on their own much of the time. Both parents had to work to support the family.

As a youngster, Callison listened to the BBC a lot – becoming a news junky. He dreamed of being a radio journalist. When he applied to colleges, he was turned down for that major due to lack of any experience in the field.

Callison ended up studying at the University of Edinburgh, majoring in English (his best subject in high school) and philosophy (an interest he picked up in his last years of high school).

He decided to become an actor. He had the opportunity to enroll in the École Internationale de Théâtre Jacques Lecoq in Paris. Callison described the school as very international and improvisational, and he said the work was presented with speaking as little as possible. He married an American from Santa Cruz and moved to California.

On Oct. 17, 1989, the job he had came to an end when the company he was working for was destroyed by the Loma Prieta earthquake along with a lot of other buildings in Santa Cruz.

A scary aside to the story: Callison had been heading to a building across the street from where he worked. If he had not turned around to get something hed forgotten, he would have been in the building that collapsed completely, killing several people.

Having time on his hands, Callison volunteered to help on local public radio KUSP’s fun drive. He got to know folks at the station and ended up as the local host for “All Things Considered.”

Eventually, Callison came to Capitol Public Radio. He has been the local host for “Morning Edition” and, as mentioned, news director before starting “Insight.”

During the question-and-answer session, he spoke highly of “Insight” senior producer Jen Picard. They work together to create a balance between “inform and entertain.”

When asked how it works when there is a guest host, he replied, “The show has its own life. I stay out of it when there is another host.”

He went on to talk about how Picard makes a lot of the decisions on guests. She works with the guest host, helping select guests based on the strengths and interests of the guest host.

Barton pointed out that there are a lot of musicians as guests.

“Part of this is Jen Picard,” Callison said. “She has been an entertainment writer.”

He also talked about there needing to be “a record to buy, a concert to go to,” or something else to make it both local and timely. He said he feels that Capitol Public Radio is one of the few local radio venues for musicians.

When asked the usual question about his most memorable interview, he said, “There have been some famous individuals that weren’t very memorable. There have been some not-so-famous people that gave memorable interviews. The one that stuck in his mind was with the woman who was in the well-known photograph as a child running down the road in Viet Nam after being bombed with napalm.”

He added that after more than 6,000 interviews, they start to blur.

One of the interesting questions regarded his name change. His original name was Jeffrey Hewitt.

When he was marrying for a second time and was discussing last names with his fiancée, they felt that a common name would connect them, but he thought that her taking his name was silly, considering their age.

A hyphenated name did not seem right either. They decided to both take a new last name they shared. They liked Callison – from the street in front of the home of friends where they were to be married.

Jeffrey Callison gave a great interview that gave the audience good insight into who he is and how he became the host of “Insight.”

Photos: CPR Staff-Capitol Public Radio David Watts Barton-DWB facebook page Loma Prieta earthquake-Santa Cruz Sentinel

Armistead Maupin Reads From "Mary Ann in Autumn"

2010-11-20T23:08:53Z

Writer Armistead Maupin read the first chapter of his new book, “Mary Ann in Autumn,” Thursday night as part of the Bee Book Club. The adoring audience hung on his every word, whether it was the familiar-sounding yet new prose of “Maryann in Autumn” or his reminiscing about his life and his very popular “Tales of the City” book series. With this latest book, the series now stands at eight titles. Maupin also wrote two standalone novels.

When Maupin started writing about what was essentially his life, it opened a door for the straight community for a look into the gay community. What was to become “Tales of the City” started in the San Francisco edition of the Pacific Sun.

In 1976 it had been picked up by the San Francisco Chronicle and began running as a five-day-a-week serial now titled “Tales of the City.” Maupin turned the Chronicle series into the first three “Tales” novels.

Maupin stopped reading at the end of the first chapter. He did not want to give too much of what happens in the book away. He said, “He hates when people give away things, even from the first books.”

When the series first ran in San Francisco, there was some criticism that Maupin was giving too much away about the gay community. To many gays, life was about living in a private, secret club, and they did not want outsiders to know what the club was up to.

He spoke of not writing about the gay community, but of writing about things in his life and that he happened to be gay and so were many of the people around him. Maupin had started out the reading referring to his characters as “your neighbors and your friends.”

This did not stop his editors at the Chronicle from trying to limit the number of gay characters in the series. One of the funniest stories he told was of a chart his editors had literally placed on the wall. It had one column for gay characters and one column for straight characters. He was told that he must maintain a specific ratio of gay characters to straight characters. In one plotline, DeDe Halcyon’s mother woke from being pasted out in the garden to find the family dog “attempting to have sex with her leg.” Maupin gleefully put the dog in the straight column.

When asked about how Mary Ann had started out as such a sympathetic character and had become such a “bitch,” Maupin feigned insult, since there was a lot of him in Mary Ann and that most of the characters are based on him.

When asked what took him so long to write this latest book, he spoke of how agonizing writing is for him.

“It is like laying mosaic tile,” he said. But when you step back, you can see how it all fits together.

Maupin became most excited when asked about the musical adaptation of “Tales of the City” currently in development at San Francisco’s ACT. Jeff Whitty, who wrote the book for “Avenue Q,” and Jason Moore, its director, are working on the production. Maupin said he couldn’t be happier. What seemed to make him ecstatic is that the producers are in negotiations with Broadway’s Betty Buckley to play Anna Madrigal.

After the question period, fans lined up the full length of the Tsakapoulos Library Galleria to have their copies of the book signed. He patiently spoke with each person as he signed their books. Most had some story of why “Tales of the City” had had some importance in their lives.

I spoke with Armistead Maupin for a few minutes after the crowd left.

The Sacramento Press: Are you aware of what you describe in “Mary Ann in Autumn” is no longer a San Francisco phenomenon, but that this mixing of gay and straight friends and family occurs in places like Sacramento?

Armistead Maupin: “I am very aware of it.” He went on to talk about how it happens in every city of any consequence throughout America.

SP: Was “Tales of the City” part of this?

AM: “It’s gay marriage.” He continued speaking about how wherever same-sex couples are getting married, the whole family and friends are involved. There is also the visibility created by the fight for gay marriage and its allies.

Armistead Maupin photos: Bill Burgua "Tales of the City" musical: American Contemporary Theatre (ACT)

Steady Turn Out at Brett Hart District 5 Precinct, Curtis Park

2010-11-03T03:21:14Z

Voter turn out has been steady all day according to Diane Buffington who was supervising the Brett Hart Elementary School polling location. Buffington has been working poling places longer than she could remember. "It's got to be at least double digits."

When asked about how turn out has been she said that it was average. Buffington reminded me that "average" in Curtis Park is probably much higher numbers than a lot of other neighborhoods Curtis Park is a very politically active neighborhood.

Voting was being observed by first time GOP poll watcher Pete Kazak. He said that he had not seen any Democrat poll watcher this location today.

Curtis Park resident Elizabeth Berg votes at the Brett Hart Elementary School polling location

Council District 5 trivia: Jay Schenirer will be having his post election party at Pangaea Two Brews Cafe, 2743 Franklin Boulevard and Patrick Kennedy will be hosting his at The Coffee Garden, 2904 Franklin Boulevard. They are two blocks apart in Curtis Park's small Franklin Boulevard retail district.

City of Sacramento Earth Day Celebration a Big Sucess

2010-04-24T18:48:58Z

There were several Earth Day celebrations and events Thursday. One of the biggest and most successful was the official City of Sacramento Earth Day Celebration. The event was held at Cesar Chavez Park and in the plaza of City Hall. An estimated 3,500 people of all ages attend this years' event. It was supported by Mayor Kevin Johnson and the City Council. The City of Sacramento Neighborhood Services Department organized the event.

I spoke with Neighborhood Services Department Director Vincene Jones. Jones and her staff started back in January giving early notice to Sacramento area schools, informing them of the event and its value as a field trip. Local media was enlisted to help get the word out. They worked with Regional Transit to secure 560 one-day free passes for bus and light rail. This allowed students to use public transit to and from the event in keeping with the values of Earth Day.

Staff had targeted junior high and high school students. It was obvious that there were large numbers of younger kids also. They especially stood out in the orange aprons given to them by Home Depot along with plants to take home for planting.

Home Depot had one of 59 booths. About 25 booths were commercial entities. The rest were city departments, other governmental entities, nonprofits, education and others. The 59 booths were an increase of about 35% over last year.

Mavis McAllister from American River College and Peggy Ursine with Cosumes River College were promoting Los Rios GreenForce. This is a program with all four Los Rios colleges that prepares students to work in green industries.

Ryan Bailey had a booth promoting Sacramento Sustainable Businesses. This included BERC, a free public service provided by Sacramento County, the city of Sacramento, Sacramento Utilities Departments and Sacramento Local Regulatory Agencies. They advise businesses on how to navigate all the complex environmental regulations.

City of Sacramento departments included utilities, promoting pollution prevention in waste water runoff, recycling, composting and one of several displays of worm bins. City employees Jamie Cutlip and Karl Kurka operated a booth promoting the city's Create a Sustainable Sacramento program. Bill Maynard, who works tirelessly at events like this, was giving out tomato plants as part of the city of Sacramento Community Garden Program.

The Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito & Vector Control District booth was a great hit with the kids. There were live displays of all stages of mosquitos and mosquito fish that eat them The kids were having a great time watching the mosquito fish eating mosquito larva. Kevin Valone and Steve Ramos with Vector Control said that this was one of the best turnouts for any of the venues they have been to. They were especially pleased with all kids asking them questions. They said they have found it best to educate the young kids to achieve their goal of protecting public health and welfare from diseases transmitted by mosquitoes such as West Nile virus, Western Equine Encephalitis, canine heartworm, malaria and others. In most cases, the kids go back to their families and educate them. This was a comment that was echoed by many of those presenting at the event.

There was also entertainment, with a message for the kids from Radio Disney, a performance from Top Class Magic and the Sacramento City College theatrical performance of the “Fall of X,” a play about the dangers of joining a gang.

Besides Home Depot, there were several other commercial green businesses or businesses with green products. These included Sacramento Natural Foods Coop, Costco, Propel Alternative Fuels, Green Sacramento Construction Services and several solar energy companies.

Jake Millan with Propel related a story about the power of kids. A man who came to his booth told him that he had recently purchased a flex fuel vehicle that would run on E85. When asked what prompted this, the man replied that his kids were so embarrassed and tired of getting teased when they were dropped off at school in the family Hummer they pushed the family to buy a more responsible vehicle.

Now I do not want to create the impression that the city of Sacramento Earth Day Celebration was only for kids. There were large numbers of downtown and state office workers asking questions and collecting information. I spoke with Rocklin Treasurer Kim Sarkovich and Mary Rister, one of her staffers. They were attending a conference on municipal finance. They said they were having a wonderful time visiting the event during their lunch break. They were particularly enjoying the Sacramento Natural Foods Coop booth. Part of Sarkovich's interest stems from her hobby as a suburban beekeeper.

All the people I spoke with who had displays at the event were very pleased with the turnout and response from the public. They expressed that Jones and her staff at Neighborhood Services were great to work with and that they were pleased with the commitment throughout the city government supporting a green and sustainable Sacramento.

Photos: 1. Welcoming kids to Sacramento Earth Day Celebration 2-3. City of Sacramento Neighborhood Services Department 4. Ryan Bailey, Sacramento Sustainable Businesses 5. city Department of Utilities 6. Jamie Cutlip and Karl Kurka, Create a Sustainable Sacramento 7. Bill Maynard, Sacramento Community Garden Program 8. Sacramento-Yolo Mosquito & Vector Control District employees Kevin Valone and Steve Ramos 9. Radio Disney entertains 10. Sacramento Natural Foods Coop 11. Dennis with Costco 13. A solar energy provider and Jake Millan in front of the Propel Alternative Fuels booth 12. Green Sacramento Construction Services 13. Kim Sarkovich and Mary Rister check out the Soil Born Farms booth with employees Randy and Jackie

Police respond to weapons incident

2009-10-11T20:23:54Z

Shortly after midnight this morning, a weapons incident resulted in a large police response in the post Second Saturday crowd partying on the 2700 block of J Street. Eight or more police cruisers and unmarked cars were double parked on 28th Street from J Street and down the alley behind Centro, Blue Cue and Aura. A suspect was identified but not arrested. Revelers at the several bars and clubs on the 2700 J Street block seemed oblivious to the large police presence and partied on.

Disclosure: Reporter is a neighborhood resident and Chair of the area Neighborhood Association.

Two Serious Crimes in Two Days at Gay and Lesbian Associated Businesses

2009-09-23T23:45:36Z

Armed Robery at Headhunters Resturant

Midday Tuesday an armed robery occured at Headhunters Resturant at 20th and K Streets in Midtown. According to an e-mail from Lt. Mike Bray with the Sacramento Police Department:

"I just wanted to advise you of a robbery today that occurred at Headhunters today. A black male about 19 years old walked in and pointed a handgun at the bartender and stole cash from the register. Thankfully no one was injured. Our detectives will be following up on the case. If I learn anything else I will let you know."

Early Morning Homicide in the Parking Lot Behind Badlands

A homicide occured in the parking lot behind Badlands Nighclub. Also from an e-mail from Lt. Bray:

"We had a report of a shooting or possibly a stabbing in the Badlands Bar parking lot early this morning at approximately 1:30 AM. Officers arrived and found that the security guard who works there had been struck by a car. He was transported to a hospital where he later died. Homicide and Traffic Detectives responded and are trying to determine if this was an intentional act or if it was a horrific accident and the driver fled the scene. We have suspect information but unfortunately I cannot release it to you at this time. Although it is the preliminary stages of the investigation this does not appear to be a random act or a hate crime. If I get more information I will try and forward it to you. I will be in LA until tomorrow morning so there may be a slight delay."