City Council representative for District 4, Rob Fong, will not be running for re-election. With no incumbent running, the race has attracted four candidates who may be unfamiliar to Sacramentans. In the interest of learning about these candidates, a questionnaire was sent to them asking for a brief (less than 100 words) response to a list of topics. The list of topics included items which have been frequently discussed by the District 4 communities or at council meetings. Topics included river crossings, city budget, marijuana dispensaries, strong mayor, leaf piles, arena funding and other city policies. The goal is to give readers a brief introduction to candidate positions at this earl

Southern Midtown will be its own “G” Street Saturday as an experimental musical event composed of an expected 100-plus people all playing the G chord on various instruments winds its way from Bows & Arrows at 19th and S streets to Southside Park. Daniel Trudeau, a 26-year-old musician from Placerville, said he wants to create a community and play a pleasant sound walking through Sacramento, calling it the G Hum Parade. “It’s basically just for our ears,” he said. “Ambient noise is pleasing to the ear, and when you’re part of the energy of what’s going to be going on, it’ll be really special.” He said he’s had the idea since he was a teen, thinking it would be a funny experiment, and in

Two Sacramentans with a decade each working in local coffee bars are set to branch out on their own this week as they open Insight Coffee Roasters at Eighth and S streets. Ben Lance and Lucky Rodrigues met about five years ago when they both worked at Temple Coffee, and their idea of what a coffee business should be is set to open Wednesday – possibly as early as Monday or Tuesday if all goes well. “We’re opening this to stay in coffee, not just to own something in coffee,” Rodrigues said. “We want to do this our whole lives, and this is a way to stay in it and not earn minimum wage in our 40s.” The premise of the business is to keep things simple while providing sustainable coffee to t

Fear not, Rundown Nation…we’re back! Rundown Headquarters had to be shut down for a little while, while yours truly was tending to a three week gig as a substitute molder of young minds – and it is wrong that I got a little misty-eyed when five or six of them gave me the “oh Captain, my Captain” send-off, “Dead Poets Society” style on the last day of class? If it’s wrong, I don’t want to be right! But now that summer is in full swing, let’s get rolling… School’s Out for Summer Fest with Alien Ant Farm – Any way you slice it, there are eight youngs bands out there who will always be able to say that they opened for Alien Ant Farm – not a bag nugget for the ol’ rock and roll resume when

On Sunday, author of “Sacramento’s Southside Park” and board member of the Sacramento Old City Association (SOCA) William Burg led a walking tour of Southside Park and the surrounding area. “The tours stemmed from Jane’s Walk USA, a national organization that began in 2007 using neighborhood walking tours as a way to help people get in touch with their environment,” said Kay Knepprath, event coordinator and fellow board member of SOCA. This is the event’s second year in Sacramento. The tour of Southside Park was one in a series of five tours that occurred throughout Sacramento on Saturday and Sunday. While the morning was a bit gray and chilly, a group of about 20 gathered together just

Sacramento Jane’s Walk 2011: Saturday, May 7 and Sunday, May 8 Jane’s Walk USA is a series of free neighborhood walking tours that helps put people in touch with their environment and with each other, by bridging social and geographic gaps and creating a space for cities to discover themselves. Since its inception in 2007, Jane’s Walk has happened in cities across North America, and is growing internationally. Sacramento’s Jane’s Walk series incorporates elements of urban planning, neighborhood advocacy, urban history, and architectural history, to demonstrate how a neighborhood’s physical form promotes its walkability, sustainability and economic and social vitality. All tours are free o

Spring is nearly a month in, and as April turns into May, the forecast promises warmer weather and plenty of outdoor activities, especially this weekend, as Easter is Sunday. There are plenty of ways to celebrate Easter, whether you’re looking for a traditional egg hunt or a nice place to eat Sunday Brunch. What: Southside Park Spring Egg Hunt When: Saturday, 11 a.m. - noon Where: Southside Park, 2107 Sixth St. Cost: Free With help from the Southside Park Neighborhood Association and St. John’s Baptist Church, Vineyard Church, the city of Sacramento will host the Southside Park Spring Egg Hunt, which will have a plethora of activities for the kids, including an egg hunt, face paintin

The agenda for September's meeting of the Area 1 Neighborhood Advisory Group (NAG) follows. Lt. Mike Bray hopes to have some updates from the police department on the Second Saturday shootings. Food banks have become a survival resource in todays economic climate. Many city park swiming pools have closed or are slated for closing.  Some Area 1 neighborhoods have managed to keep their pools open. We will hear what their stragities were to achieve this.  Measure B is a controversial ballot measure that could have longterm consequences on how the city utilities department operates and the delivery of services to city residents. Each month's NAG agenda is put together by residents of the

The Muslim Mosque Association of Sacramento announced plans to expand its presence in the Southside Park community by converting a nearby building at 2110 Fifth St. into a multiuse facility and community center. Southside Park Neighborhood Association President Beverly Bumpas said it was the first time the MMA had sent representatives to a neighborhood meeting. Bumpas said she believed their desire to build a new facility has now given them “reason to make the effort to be involved.” A vibrant Muslim community has existed in Southside Park since the first mosque west of the Mississippi River was constructed there in 1946. The Muslim presence in the community has aided in transitioning Mu

After budget cuts threatened to close seven community pools, concerned residents of Southside Park decided to write a letter to City Councilman Rob Fong. The letter will specifically address the Southside Park Community pool facility, which serves people from many different neighborhoods, not just those who reside in Southside Park. Land Park resident Pat McKnight showed up to support the Southside Park community and said she would be very sad to see it close. "This is my favorite pool," McKnight said. I've been to others, and this is my favorite. It's very near and dear to my heart. My grandchildren visit here, and they love it." Don Knutson, treasurer of the Southside Park Neighborho

Join the Southside Park Community and The Sacramento Press for the second annual Southside Sessions art and music festival at Southside Park, 2115 Sixth St. This event is anticipated to bring a much larger audience than last year's premier festival and will feature art and skateboarding demonstrations, live music, games, water activities and free art and music classes for the kids. Local musicians Prieta, Smirker, O Street Dub, Majesty and Esteban Villa will be rocking the stage from start to finish, and children will have an opportunity to take a small recorder lesson and take their instrument home. A designated skateboard area will be set up for those who want to watch and skaters are

This year’s Fire Spectacular, on Sunday August 8, was slated to begin around seven in the evening. The Fire Spectacular is a festival event where fire, dance, art, and music are celebrated. The event had a small festival type of atmosphere. Several vendor booths were set up to sell goods related to the event. Drumsum, a local world music style band, was on hand to provide musical entertainment. The event started slow but gained momentum as people started to set up their sitting area in front of the Southside Park Amphitheatre. Once the entertainment began on the amphitheatre stage it indeed became a spectacular event. Earlier in the day, as I approached the entrance to the event, three pe

Say the word Xilonen and most people will have never heard of the word, how to pronounce it or its meaning (I was one of those people). You can write dissertations on the subject but I’ll just provide a few facts here. Xilonen is a Nahuatl word, a Mesoamerican language still used mostly in parts of Central Mexico. Nahuatl was the language of the Aztecs. The word itself, Xilonen, means young tender ears of maíz (corn). Symbolically it is a rite of passage for young women and it seems to be a growing celebration in popularity. It is celebrated in major cities of California and as Maria Miranda said even in some places in Idaho. Sacramento has hosted Xilonen celebrations for over 30 years. M

The following is an excerpt from Ernesto Galarza's autobiography, Barrio Boy, which tells the story of the Galarza family's immigration from Mexico to the United States. Ernesto grew up in Sacramento and attended Lincoln Elementary School, on the site of the PERS "Lincoln Plaza" building. Lincoln School's student body was primarily made up of immigrants who came to Sacramento from all over the world. In Barrio Boy, Galarza wrote much about how his school experiences helped shape his identity as an American. Here, he writes of his experiences starting first grade in Miss Ryan's class at Lincoln, shortly after arriving in Sacramento from Mexico:   'During the next few weeks, Miss Ryan over

68 years ago on this day, on May 13,1942, in the middle of World War II, buses began taking all people of Japanese heritage in the City of Sacramento (approximately 3800), including some from Southside Park neighborhood (citizen and non-citizen, adult and child, on no basis other than ethnic heritage) from Memorial Auditorium to a temporary camp at Walerga (near the present day Walerga Park near the intersection of Madison & I-80;) for internment, as part of the larger internment of people of Japanese heritage from all areas of the West Coast.  I Street between 15th and 16th, and 15th between I and J, were blocked off for this purpose.  The removal continued thru the morning of May 16.  Pe

MADD (Mothers Against Drunk Driving) is preparing rain or shine to host its annual marquee community event and fundraiser “Walk like MADD” on Saturday October 17th at Southside Park in Sacramento. The registration is free and all are invited to come out and participate in this annual pledge walk that raises money to fund many programs and services that MADD provides to the families and communities of which it serves. MADD California is located at 4529 Whitney Ave. Suite 7 in Sacramento. For more information about MADD or how you can help visit the MADD website at www.madd.org or contact (916) 481-MADD.  

With Sacramento's proximity to both the Sacramento and American Rivers and the abundance of fishermen in both locations, many Sacramentans look no further than the river system to fulfill their fishing needs. However, this would be a mistake - one that the Department of Fish and Game's Fishing in the City program is trying to correct. The Fishing in the City program stocks fishing ponds in cities throughout California, focusing on parks in the San Francisco, Los Angeles and Sacramento areas. Although workers stock multiple ponds in the Sacramento region, the only two ponds in central Sacramento that are refilled fairly regularly are Southside Park and William Land Park. These ponds are st

Saturday, June 20 9:30 a.m.-noon The 22nd annual Pride Festival, sponsored by the Sacramento Gay and Lesbian Center, will begin with a march and parade from the west steps of the Capitol to Southside Park. This kicks off a two-week-long schedule of events including the all-day Pride Festival at Southside Park. View the Pride Festival's schedule here. 3,000 are expected to participate in the march, parade and festival. Sunday, June 21 7 a.m.-9 p.m. Karma Productions 12 LLC will be shooting a film on the west steps of the Capitol. 700 people will participate in the filming.  

I have always loved the alleyways in the central city and wanted to document the amazing gems that lived just a few steps of the beaten path. The original shot is from the main road and the following are some of the items I chose to shoot. I plan to repeat this process for many streets in the central city. After this first post I will not name the street and I would love to see if the community here on sacpress.com can figure out were each weeks post comes from.   Week one is 10th and Q

After being away from Sacramento for a couple of years, I realized that I have really missed out on a lot of great bands. In an effort to reconnect with the Sacramento music scene, I went to Old Ironsides last Friday to check out Casual Fog. I really lucked out; my first foray into Sacramento music led me to a band that I really enjoyed. Ryan Donnelly's clear, almost throaty tenor voice lends itself to the mellowness of the music. With a range of songs from "Want the Day" with its eerie tonality, to "Dive the Blue" with its comforting familiarity, the melody and lyrics flow together to form the kind of music that you want to stop what you are doing just to listen and absorb. However, the