In the coming weeks, the City of Sacramento will be applying for a federal grant of discretionary funds called the Transportation Investments Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER IV.) This grant is being applied for with hopes of using the money for rehabilitation and improvements of facilities of the Sacramento Valley Station building. Although constructed in 1926 with expansive light filled spaces and fine architectural details, decades of neglect are evident. Most of the building’s systems have outlived their useful life, and only 20,000 square feet is currently in use. Proposed upgrades, such as adding heating and air conditioning, elevators, stairs and restrooms will increase usable i

The Midtown Business Association is inviting businesses to light up Midtown by transforming their store windows into a winter wonderland this season with an opportunity to win a $1,000 advertising grant from the MBA. This is the second year the MBA has hosted “Light Up Midtown” in the hope of opening the doors of local businesses to more customers this holiday season. “We wanted to find a way to dress up the district and be festive and let people feel very involved in it,” said Heather Philpott, MBA communications and events coordinator. “Businesses can take ownership of the project and get an opportunity to be a part of making the district look great,” Philpott said Wednesday, “and bes

Students and advisers from five Sacramento area high schools joined in a virtual rally Wednesday – with kids from Los Angeles, Fresno and Oakland schools – as part of the National Week of Action to raise awareness about the overuse of extreme school discipline. The rally connected more than 100 students, parents and community activists via live video feed to discuss recent trends in suspensions, expulsions and other harsh punishments in California schools. According to data from the California Department of Education, there were 235,033 students enrolled in public schools in Sacramento county in the 2010-11 school year. There were 47,678 suspensions and expulsions issued that same year

Some 50 disabled veterans came out to the Samuel C. Pannell Community Center in Meadowview Thursday morning to play wheelchair softball on the center’s rubberized field, throw javelins across the grass and scuba dive in the center’s heated pool. This athletic gathering followed a press conference announcing that the Department of Veterans Affairs, in partnership with the United States Olympic Committee (USOC), has selected Sacramento's Access Leisure as the recipient of a $150,000 grant for the second year in a row. Mayor Kevin Johnson, Congresswoman Doris Matsui, Congressman Dan Lungren and Congressman Tom McClintock were in attendance along with Paralympians and Army veterans Craig Vog

Want to help end violence in our community? Right now, it's as easy as clicking a button. Sutter Medical Center has launched an innovative campaign to help raise $10,000 for a deserving charity. WEAVE is one of the nonprofits participating in the contest. By clicking a single button to cast your vote online, you can help WEAVE earn this critical grant. What will $10,000 pay for? WEAVE, a 501c3 nonprofit, is the only provider of comprehensive services to victims of domestic violence and sexual assault in Sacramento County.  The agency plans to eliminate violence by: educating kids to break the cycle; improving laws to protect victims; and healing survivors. You can help in three easy way

THE HOME DEPOT, KaBOOM! AND ASPIRE PUBLIC SCHOOLS JOIN FORCES TO BUILD A NEW PLAYGROUND ON VETERAN’S DAY WHAT: More than 200 volunteers from The Home Depot, Aspire Public Schools, and organizers from the nonprofit organization KaBOOM! will join together to build a state-of-the-art, 2,500 square foot playground in one day. The playground will provide a safe, fun environment for the children in the community. The playground will also celebrate Veteran’s Day as veterans from the area will assist in the building of the playground. When a former private high school on El Camino Avenue in Sacramento closed, the Aspire Public Schools organization purchased the 9 acre campus and opened Alexander

The City of Sacramento Development Services Department announces: Under a City ordinance passed last fall, Sacramento property owners looking to improve a historic structure may be eligible for financial assistance. The Historic Places Grant Program will award up to $62,500 in quarterly grant funding, with a total of $250,000 to be awarded over the course of the coming year. The grant program, a collaborative program of the City’s Development Services Department and Sacramento Heritage Inc., aims to help preserve, rehabilitate, restore or reconstruct historic properties throughout Sacramento. To be eligible for funding, the property must be a City designated landmark or “contributing res