Developers looking for ways to reduce crime in Sacramento's alleys have grabbed onto an idea that will draw mounted police. That idea is to provide places where horses can get water and hitch up securely for short periods. While that conjures up Old West visions of water troughs and hitching posts for many, — including developers who described them as such — the reality may be much more 21st century. An ideal way to provide water would be a small fountain or water feature such as the small Native American drum fountain at City Hall, said Sacramento police Sgt. Chris Taylor. The idea is to make alleys more charming and useful, he said. "Right now, our alleys — they're kind of no-man's l

Sacramento soon may get something it hasn't seen in decades -- new water troughs and hitching posts. And folks, that ain't nothin' to snort at. Especially if you're a police horse on your appointed rounds. Seventy to 80 years after falling out of use, horse-friendly street hardware may make its way into alleys that are being developed as part of a new "alley activation" effort. A trough and a post, paid for through private funding, will be added first to one of two pilot alleys under development in the Handle District. More are possible on other Midtown alleys as property owners get involved in the effort, said Julie Young, a developer who launched the organized alley-use movement here.

A plan to build condos on some of Midtown's alleys may push ahead this week with the sale of a back lot on L Street. Homeowner Deanna Marquart is close to an agreement to sell 60 feet of her lot to Jeremy Drucker and other developers of an alley housing model called Stitch, the parties announced Monday. Selling the land for $100,000 will allow her to pay off the mortgage on her house at 2216 L St. Marquart, vice president of the Urban Design Alliance, said she also supports the concept. "I think this is the kind of development Sacramento needs," Marquart said. "Sacramento has to become denser in its residential development, and this is really a very desirable way to accomplish that." C

A prototype condo building will be constructed on a Midtown alley after approval by the city earlier this month. The Planning Division of the Sacramento Community Development Department granted a parking waiver and a side yard variance on Oct. 8 for a pilot alley residential project known as "Stitch" when developer Jeremy Drucker worked out compromises to address nearby residents' concerns. "The biggest concern was how heavily that block is impacted for parking," said Drucker, who previously developed 9 on F, the central city's first residential project certified by the U.S. Green Building Council for its Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design. Drucker made his comments Thursday a

A group interested in transforming alleys will present three prototypes to the Sacramento City Council Tuesday. A restaurant row concept is proposed to hold a mix of outdoor cafés just steps from Memorial Auditorium. Another could contain an alley-front condo sales model. The third would demonstrate the vision for alley hardscapeimprovements. The Alley Activation Committee is proposing three pilot alleys in Midtown. Two would stretch from 17th to 19th streets between L Street and Capitol Avenue in the Handle District, and a third is proposed for the alley from I to J streets between 16th and 17th streets. "It's thinking about the whole piece of how do people live and work in the city,"

This Wednesday, August 5, Sacramento's Preservation Commission will hear an update on the "Underground Sidewalks" survey project. This survey has explored much of Sacramento's surviving underground sidewalk structures, and is preparing a detailed report on their current condition and historic context. An earlier meeting, held in March, outlined what the survey would do(sacramentopress.com/headline/5128/City_Will_Survey_Underground_Sidewalks) and this meeting will present the initial findings of the survey team and report their progress. The final report on the underground sidewalks should be completed by September of this year. The meeting will be held at Sacramento's City Hall, 915 I Str

The two Midtown alleys stand largely quiet and deserted, except for the occasional rumbling delivery truck and dumpsters crouched behind buildings. The alleys have a hidden, tranquil feel in contrast to busy streets they run between. A third alley holding the entrance to Old Soul coffee house gets more foot traffic and cars heading surreptitiously to and from a state parking garage. So many cars, in fact, that they rob the alley of that serene environment. One group has another vision for what these alleys could become. They see al fresco dining in an upscale restaurant row reminiscent of San Francisco's Belden Street. They see a small, affordable, alley-front condo building that doesn'

Date: Tuesday, March 31, 2009 Time: 5:30-7:30 Location: Historic City Hall, 2nd Floor Hearing Room, 915 I Street On Tuesday, March 31, the city of Sacramento invites downtown property owners and community members to a Public Workshop to find out about the Raised Streets-Hollow Sidewalks Historic Survey. Join the Public Workshop, learn about the survey and ask questions. ----------------------- This survey, funded by a local nonprofit and a matching state grant, is intended to document all of the surviving "Underground Sidewalk" spaces in downtown Sacramento. In the 1860s and 1870s, Sacramento's Board of Trustees undertook a project to raise downtown Sacramento's streets above flood leve

The smell of stale urine, trash, puddles, cracked pavement - these are the things one might find in a dingy, unkempt alley. But can Sacramento turn those alleys into commercial and residential areas resembling something more like an oasis, complete with plants, permeable pavement and a sense of safety? That is what more than 75 Sacramento residents met to discuss on Wednesday, March 25. A monthly gathering organized by Sacramento's Urban Design Alliance (UDA), this week's dialogue was entitled Alleys in Sacramento's Future, and was standing room only for about a third of the crowd. The meeting began with everyone introducing themselves, viewing a photograph of an alley, and telling what

Urban Design Alliance-Sacramento (UDA) presents 4th Wednesday Design Dialogue: When: March 25, 2009, 6:00-7:30 p.m. Where: AIA Conference Room, 1400 S Street (wheelchair accessible) Admission: FREE EVENT, open to anyone who cares about design.  Please come early, several displays to view! Panel Presentation -- UDA has asked the two developers on the panel -- Jeremy Drucker and Aaron Zeff -- to describe what they initially saw, including where, that inspired them to come up with a comparable development concept for an alley in Sacramento. Tom Pace, the City of Sacramento's Long Range Planning Manager, will comment on alley concepts he has seen in a variety of locations; in addition, he w