There are many places in Sacramento city and county where a long roadway travels through numerous neighborhoods: Fair Oaks Boulevard, Watt Avenue and Sunrise Boulevard, for starters. When the street name is very close to the neighborhood name – such as Del Paso Boulevard and Del Paso Heights – people unfamiliar with the area often confuse the road and the neighborhood. Sacramentans take pride in their neighborhoods and, since the reputation of one neighborhood is not always carried on the roadway to the next, that confusion can get on a resident’s nerves pretty fast. For example, a commenter on a recent Sacramento Press article about road improvements along Del Paso Boulevard had this t

On a sunny afternoon in August, a group of kids made their way to Valley Hi Park to play. As they crossed the intersection of Arroyo Vista and Center Parkway, a vehicle driving through the intersection clipped the leg of a 4-year-old walking in the group. The little girl was left with a fractured leg, and neighbors were left wondering if the accident could have been prevented if there had been a traffic signal in place. What does it take to get traffic signals installed in Sacramento – especially if residents are seeing safety issues in neighborhood intersections? Sacramento currently has approximately 800 signals in intersections, including nearly 50 flashing beacons, according to Shad

Some thieves steal cars, others rob banks. In Sacramento, the big-ticket item lately is copper wire, and local copper thieves have hit the central city hard. Why steal copper wire? “Because it’s easily accessible,” said Sacramento Police Department spokesman Sgt. Andrew Pettit Thursday, “and there is plenty of it.” With miles of copper wire found in streetlights, electrical boxes, buildings and vacant foreclosed homes – places thieves won’t usually be deterred by watching eyes – copper wiring is easy pickings. And, at roughly $2.75 per pound, copper theft can be a lucrative business. According to a recent district letter from City Councilman Rob Fong’s office, copper wire thieves hit

Despite budget reductions and recent layoffs in the police department, serious crime in Sacramento has dropped 18 percent over the last three years – the second largest decline in California among cities of similar size – according to a report that Sacramento Police Chief Rick Braziel presented to City Council Tuesday. Braziel told council members that the core mission of the Sacramento Police Department hasn’t changed since 2008 when he took charge. The mission, he said, is still “reduce crime, engage the community and provide excellent service.” What has changed, however, is the number of police personnel – 81 sworn officers were laid off in July – and a department budget reduced by $1

Neighborhood Advisory Group members expressed concern about the growing number of social services centers – and the type of people they attract – within the Alkali Flat, Mansion Flats and Boulevard Park neighborhoods at the NAG meeting Monday night. A new Goodwill drop center is planned for the corner of 16th and G streets and none of the speakers at the meeting were in favor of the new development. Members said that these drop centers are often neglected and become a hub for vagrants. Martha Domjanovic, a Midtown resident and representative for the Washington Park Neighborhood Association, shared her concerns at the meeting with the lack of knowledge she had of the proposed Goodwill dro

Community centers in Sacramento got a boost Tuesday when the City Council approved more than $459,000 in funding to close the gap between what the centers have and what they need to stay open until next year’s budget is passed. Council members voted unanimously to take $459,188 from the city’s Economic Uncertainty Reserve – money that initially came from cell phone tower profits in each district – to pay for labor, supplies and services necessary for the remainder of the fiscal year. The total funding necessary to maintain operation of the city’s 15 community centers was $917,000 in the 2010-11 fiscal year, according to Dave Mitchell, division manager for the Dept. of Parks and Recreatio

City Council chambers were overflowing Tuesday night with residents lined up to voice their concerns about which redistricting map will – finally – be the final map, but the meeting didn’t end until one council member asked for one more map to be brought to the table. With audience members behind them holding signs that read, “Just tell us why?” and “Keep Oak Park whole,” more than 70 speakers chastised, questioned and – at times – shouted at council members as they expressed outrage over the most recent development in the redistricting saga. The outpouring of emotion from meeting attendees stemmed from a City Council vote last week on a proposed map to redraw city district boundaries –

Alkali & Mansion Flats Historic Neighborhood Association. Meetings are generally held on the Second Thursday of each month, 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the Boys & Girls Club, 1117 G Street. For more details contact Luis Sumpter at luis@luissumpter.com Ben Ali Neighborhood Association - Board Meetings are held the First Wednesday of each month at 6:30 p.m. at the Higher Learning Academy campus (formerly Ben Ali Children’s Center). For more information, contact Sondra Betancourt at 837-3339. Boulevard Park Neighborhood Association (BPNA) - For BPNA updates, see www.boulevardparkna.org. For more information, contact Asha Jennings at ashajennings@gmail.com or call 803-7409. Capitol R Street A

Pops in the Park Concert Schedule: Saturday, June 4th - Tom Rigney & Flambeau at McKinley Park Saturday, June 11th - The Q-Balls at Glenn Hall Park Saturday, June 18t h – SwingMasters at Bertha Henschel Park Saturday, June 25th – Mercy Me at East Portal Park For more information visit www.eastsacpopsinthepark.com Screen on the Green Movie Schedule: Saturday, August 6th – Despicable Me at Stanford Park Saturday, August 13th – Shrek Forever After at Hagginwood School Soccer Field Saturday, August 20th – Secretariat at East Portal Park Saturday, August 27th –Toy Story (1995) Glenn Hall Park For more information, visit www.sacscreenonthegreen.com

Construction is progressing on the Alex G. Spanos Heart & Vascular Center at Mercy General Hospital. To celebrate completion of structural steel, Mercy General hosted a topping off event on February 17, 2011, during which the last piece of steel was put in place. The Request for Proposal (RFP) for the residential housing project is expected to be released in late Spring 2011. Permitting is anticipated to be completed by the end of 2011 with construction starting in early 2012. At the February 22, 2011, Neighborhood Advisory Committee (NAC) meeting held in Mercy General Hospital’s Main Auditorium, community members learned about, questioned and discussed a wide range of topics including b

The next volunteer work day at Glenn Hall Park will take place on Saturday, April 2, 2011. Work will begin at 9:00 a.m. and will be completed by noon. River Park resident Jeff Harris hopes to organize work days four to five times a year as needed for the next few years. To get on the distribution list for information about upcoming work days or if you have questions, contact Jeff at cadence@surewest.net

The next volunteer work day at McKinley Park will take place on Saturday, March 12th from 9:00 a.m. to noon. The group will be working in the playground. This will include spreading new chips and evening out existing chips, sweeping the sand and chips from the toys and sanding the model of the Alhambra. The April work day will take place on Saturday, April 9th with focusing the health of the trees (newer trees first and then moving on to the older ones). The group will be spading or aerating around each tree, laying weed cloth and then spreading a layer of mulch 2 to 3 feet around each tree. East Sac residents Steve Swindel, Rich Clowdus and Patty Wait have organized a volunteer group fo

The Hagginwood Community Association (HCA) was awarded a $14,470 grant from the Sacramento Tree Foundation and Cal FIRE to beautify a spot in Hagginwood and to educate the community about the importance of green space and the urban forest. The grant will be used to plant shade trees, install irrigation and give us Sacramento’s first “community orchard”. The orchard will be a resource for people throughout the region to visit and see the type of trees that can be planted in our region and that the Sacramento Tree Foundation offers for free! The group has one year complete their project. Several years ago, I worked with the group to clean up and plant trees in the “parklette” located at Del

Please join me along with City of Sacramento Parks and Recreation staff to begin discussion on the cleanup and future design of the 19th and Q Street Neighborhood Park site. The meeting will be held on Wednesday, March 23, 2011 from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the CADA Courtyard, 1322 O Street. The meeting will include information on an EPA Brownfield Grant that was awarded to clean-up the future park site and we will begin discussion on what neighbors would envision for the future park. We encourage you to bring children to this meeting! For more information, contact Tin-Wah Wong at 808-5540 or twong@cityofsacramento.org.  

The City Council revises Council district boundaries every ten years following the U.S. Census. Districts must be as equal in population as is practicable. The 2010 Census data will be released on or about April 1, 2011, Council must complete the redistricting process within six months of the release of the Census “block data” figures for the June 2012 election. It is estimated that the 2010 census will show that the City’s population has grown from 407,000 to 470,000. District 1 in particular is expected to be 40,000 people over its pro-rata share. Given the anticipated significance of change to existing districts, the City needs to insure clear communication, encourage widespread partic

The City Management Academy's 3rd weekly Wednesday evening class brought the diverse group of 30 community association, organization and agency leaders together for the first of several off-site meetings this week. Who knew how vast the city's Corporation Yard (on 24th Street south of Fruitridge) actually is: 20+ buildings containing shops, offices, storage, and more are spread across acres abutting the neighboring Executive Airport. Some factoids we learned from city department heads this evening included: Our city owns 2000+ parcels of land, containing more than 400 properties to maintain. The city's amazing 311 Call Center receives 30,000 - 40,000 calls every month. They answer an

A Perspective: 2011 City Management Academy's Class #2: Mayor Johnson Presents with his Initiatives’ Pep Rally Squad The second session of the 2011 City Management Academy (CMA) 12-week classroom for neighborhood association and other community & business leaders began with a 4-minute, professionally-produced video presentation complete w/ pulsing background music and splashy visual edits which highlighted some of Mayor Johnson’s accomplishments while in office. As the video ended, Wednesday evening’s first speaker, the mayor (waiting in the wings -- poised in the doorway shadows of a 5th floor New City Hall conference room, standing very still & quiet, head bowed, anticipating the roo

After a few years of budget-induced hiatus, the city’s Neighborhood Services Department (NSD) revived a noteworthy community program Wednesday night. The City Management Academy (CMA) http://www.cityofsacramento.org/city-management-academy// is an annual 12-week series of classroom presentations designed to educate community organizers to better understand how our city government operates.  Wednesday evening's initial 3-hour session brought 30 eager, newly-appointed members of the "2011 CMA class" to their City Hall conference room home base, and the agenda and process for the next several months of presentations and city facility visits. With substantial support from a core group of ded

New Sacramento City Councilman Jay Schenirer said he wants to improve Sacramento’s neighborhoods. He’s approaching neighborhood groups because he believes local activism is essential for change. Schenirer, who represents 19 neighborhoods including Oak Park, Curtis Park and Brentwood, hosted a driving tour for The Sacramento Press on a rainy Friday. Neighborhood involvement was a topic that came up frequently as he talked about the troubles, successes and quirks of District 5. “People have been here a long time,” he said, as he drove around the Hollywood Park neighborhood. “They take a lot of pride. They have a good neighborhood association.” As Schenirer drove through South Oak Park, i

Office of the Mayor, Councilmember Steve Cohn and the City of Sacramento invite you to a COMMUNITY FORUM DISCUSSING MIDTOWN NIGHTLIFE When: Saturday, September 25, 2010 Time: 9:00 AM – 11:00 AM Location: Ethel MacLeod Hart Senior Center, 915 27th Street, Redwood Rooms For additional questions call (916) 808-6525