George Jackson comment-45661 2011-02-15T00:13:30Z 2011-02-15T00:13:30Z If the City Council didn't take 3 hearings to address the issue that should have only taken one hearing, and if City staff listened and used resources at their disposal, this might not have cost the city much of anything at all to analyze. It's pretty clear that advocates (namely the CLUCK group) have been open to discussion and are willing to move forward to provide healthy and affordable food for all Sacramentans. Rather than take in the abstract, the Law & Leg Committee should move the issue forward to actually draft an ordinance that can be discussed openly for pros and cons, including the true costs. George Jackson 2011-02-15T00:13:30Z George Jackson comment-42437 2010-12-20T02:13:23Z 2010-12-20T02:13:23Z Can someone explain to me how Sac High is a closed school? I thought anyone who wants to can attend. Are there stories of students actually being turned away who wanted to go there. George Jackson 2010-12-20T02:13:23Z George Jackson comment-29721 2010-06-09T06:03:34Z 2010-06-09T06:03:34Z Sac Press is more reliable than the County Registrar tonight. I vote Sac Press to be the new Registrar. George Jackson 2010-06-09T06:03:34Z George Jackson comment-24801 2010-04-15T01:13:09Z 2010-04-15T01:13:09Z Unfortunately the same people that denied climate change and defended Big Tobacco are now trying to promote DDT as the savior for everything from malaria to bed bugs. Truly integrated pest management is the only sustainable way to control either, without the use of toxic pesticides! George Jackson 2010-04-15T01:13:09Z George Jackson comment-24226 2010-04-03T18:00:36Z 2010-04-03T18:00:36Z thanks for the story -- seems like a competitive race. nice to see actual competition for a council seat. George Jackson 2010-04-03T18:00:36Z George Jackson comment-22651 2010-02-26T08:35:19Z 2010-02-26T08:35:19Z Can't wait until they aerially spray communities with pesticides again this spring or summer--see the safe pesticides they use just uncovered in a great article by Environmental Health News as increasingly damaging to our health and waterways: http://www.environmentalhealthnews.org/ehs/news/pyrethroids-raise-concerns George Jackson 2010-02-26T08:35:19Z George Jackson comment-20721 2010-01-16T01:19:09Z 2010-01-16T01:19:09Z I have heard that City Councilwoman Lauren Hammond is planning to do a local purchasing law around city contracts--don't know how far it can be extended George Jackson 2010-01-16T01:19:09Z George Jackson comment-20715 2010-01-15T22:37:11Z 2010-01-15T22:37:11Z I assume that it becomes impossible for a local branch of any store to carry local beers or foods as soon as the entire company becomes large enough. George Jackson 2010-01-15T22:37:11Z George Jackson comment-20711 2010-01-15T21:56:14Z 2010-01-15T21:56:14Z great conversation starter Steve. I enjoy shopping at Trader Joe's for the type of products they carry but it is true that it is really just a liberal Walmart. (p.s. I can never understand why people are giving thumbs down--whether it is for the content or the quality of the article). George Jackson 2010-01-15T21:56:14Z George Jackson comment-20403 2010-01-10T06:46:38Z 2010-01-10T06:46:38Z I'm no fan of hers (she's done nothing to support Oak Park and berates her constituents constantly!), but prioritizing local business for city contracts seems like good policy. George Jackson 2010-01-10T06:46:38Z George Jackson comment-19371 2009-12-16T04:37:48Z 2009-12-16T04:37:48Z very cool article. hopefully agribusiness can't approve this stuff. George Jackson 2009-12-16T04:37:48Z George Jackson comment-12906 2009-08-30T16:00:12Z 2009-08-30T16:00:12Z It's disappointing that "local" means many of those large national chains mentioned in the article, rather than mom-and-pop stores. How many of these stores source their products from the Sacramento Region? That'd be a good question to pose to them. It's similar to what the Sac News and Review profiled in a recent article about Fresno. While the move by the City and businesses represents a positive step towards recognizing the need for local investment and purchasing, a few low-wage jobs and sales tax, don't take the place of truly local businesses with more local goods. I hope we can move more in that direction. George Jackson 2009-08-30T16:00:12Z George Jackson comment-11662 2009-08-07T15:22:44Z 2009-08-07T15:22:44Z Movies On a Big Screen is just as awesome as when they were in West Sac. Can't wait to see the above movie and Visioneers next week. George Jackson 2009-08-07T15:22:44Z George Jackson comment-11576 2009-08-05T03:40:11Z 2009-08-05T03:40:11Z Kathleen, I think the point is that the park may require the SAME amount of upkeep in the short run, but LESS overall upkeep in the long run. George Jackson 2009-08-05T03:40:11Z George Jackson comment-10608 2009-07-13T15:22:39Z 2009-07-13T15:22:39Z Great article. One more group to add to the list: Environment and Agriculture Taskforce (EAT) Sacramento hosted the screenings of the film "FRESH": www.eatsacramento.org. George Jackson 2009-07-13T15:22:39Z George Jackson comment-10520 2009-07-10T16:16:19Z 2009-07-10T16:16:19Z Can't wait to see the garden in Oak Park George Jackson 2009-07-10T16:16:19Z George Jackson comment-10504 2009-07-09T22:27:32Z 2009-07-09T22:27:32Z Shoot. Too bad it competes with all the activities of Urban AgFest: bike tours, movie screenings and dinner: slowfoodsacramento.org. George Jackson 2009-07-09T22:27:32Z George Jackson comment-9625 2009-06-18T18:23:35Z 2009-06-18T18:23:35Z we need more farmstands everywhere, including the 'burbs. George Jackson 2009-06-18T18:23:35Z George Jackson comment-9484 2009-06-15T20:42:17Z 2009-06-15T20:42:17Z They are based in the East Bay. See ore here: http://www.peoplesgrocery.org/ George Jackson 2009-06-15T20:42:17Z George Jackson comment-8635 2009-06-01T15:29:43Z 2009-06-01T15:29:43Z Whoa. Opening up K Street? Mayor: World class cities have lots of pedestrian malls. We should be moving towards more of these--not fewer. George Jackson 2009-06-01T15:29:43Z George Jackson comment-8312 2009-05-26T04:35:43Z 2009-05-26T04:35:43Z don't yelp.com and midtowngrid.com already fill this niche? what's so unique about sacdine? George Jackson 2009-05-26T04:35:43Z George Jackson comment-8188 2009-05-23T03:39:21Z 2009-05-23T03:39:21Z great film. and a similar movie "Fresh" is likely coming to town in July too. George Jackson 2009-05-23T03:39:21Z George Jackson comment-8181 2009-05-23T02:22:22Z 2009-05-23T02:22:22Z Every department will likely face cuts. Mayor, we need to use your volunteer effort and others to pick up where the Park's Dept leaves off. I don't see any other way to get through this mess. George Jackson 2009-05-23T02:22:22Z George Jackson comment-8003 2009-05-21T16:28:29Z 2009-05-21T16:28:29Z It's true. I saw the Mayor ride down "L" Street with an entourage behind him. I think he might actually need an upgrade on his wheels. George Jackson 2009-05-21T16:28:29Z George Jackson comment-7311 2009-05-07T03:59:21Z 2009-05-07T03:59:21Z Can't we use some of those federal transportation stimulus dollars to help fund and expedite this project? It seems like exactly the type of project we should invest those dollars in. George Jackson 2009-05-07T03:59:21Z George Jackson comment-7202 2009-05-06T01:50:08Z 2009-05-06T01:50:08Z The Environmental Health Legislative Working Group (EHLWG) just held two great days of training activists across the state to be better grassroots lobbyists and then folks lobbied legislators on priority environmental health and environmental justice legislation. To get involved in upcoming events, contact nidia(at)coalitionforcleanair.org. George Jackson 2009-05-06T01:50:08Z George Jackson comment-6909 2009-04-29T23:39:52Z 2009-04-29T23:39:52Z Steve, I think these initiatives are hard to swallow for voters, but I hope the Yes! Campaign prevails. George Jackson 2009-04-29T23:39:52Z George Jackson comment-6535 2009-04-22T19:47:11Z 2009-04-22T19:47:11Z The location is all about community. It doesn't matter whether it is a Starbuck's or not, Oak Park residences need a coffee shop or cafe to gather. If you've spent any time there, you realize the baristas at this Starbuck's are also integral parts of the community. With that said, I agree that we should e spending Sacramento dollars in Sacramento companies. I would propose that Naked coffee rosters, whose roasting operation is only a couple blocks away, come in and hire all the old Starbuck's employees. Too good to be true? George Jackson 2009-04-22T19:47:11Z George Jackson comment-5572 2009-04-04T20:56:34Z 2009-04-04T20:56:34Z the crop swap in oak park has been really successful--hope other neighborhoods replicate that success! George Jackson 2009-04-04T20:56:34Z George Jackson comment-5559 2009-04-04T06:47:08Z 2009-04-04T06:47:08Z thanks for the insight. an interesting followup would be who are the contenders to fill the hammond and dickinson seats. George Jackson 2009-04-04T06:47:08Z George Jackson comment-5336 2009-03-31T23:34:45Z 2009-03-31T23:34:45Z wow, this is frightening! hope everyone calls their councilmember. We need cleaner, not dirtier elections in this City. George Jackson 2009-03-31T23:34:45Z George Jackson comment-5194 2009-03-29T21:59:11Z 2009-03-29T21:59:11Z Environment California is a great group. We need more local environmental reporting on this site. George Jackson 2009-03-29T21:59:11Z George Jackson comment-2919 2009-02-01T02:40:52Z 2009-02-01T02:40:52Z David, thanks for sharing your perspective. To put it simply, the so-called "waste-to-energy" proposal was nothing more than an incinerator in disguise, that was both financially risky and unproven. David, I too would like to find the magic bullet to solve our trash problems, but neither burning nor burying will solve this problem. Over the past century, we have seen the countless problems posed by both options to our air and water. That's why I am one of many Sacramentans, joined by a litany of environmental and public health organizations (Californians Against Waste, Search for the Cause, Environmental Council of Sacramento, etc) who opposed the waste-to-energy incinerator and will continue to work in tandem with our elected officials towards the goal of becoming a truly Zero Waste city. In the interim, we must increase our capacity and support for recycling and purchase and support the creation of products that use less waste. For a thorough analysis of the problems with the proposed incinerator, the misinformation behind it, and an unproven track record, please visit: http://www.greenaction.org/incinerators/documents/GreenactionSacramentoPlasmaReport082608.pdf George Jackson 2009-02-01T02:40:52Z George Jackson comment-2536 2009-01-20T19:04:57Z 2009-01-20T19:04:57Z Earlier this morning I was approached to sign a petition to help hire an independent auditor to look at the City's budget and make recommendations about where to cut spending. Fails in Council one week--take to voters the next? Is this yet another attempt to circumvent the powers of the Council to make budget decisions? I'm all for spending tax-payer dollars wisely, but should the Council first take a stab at auditing the budget and making the tough political decisions about where to spend our dollars? George Jackson 2009-01-20T19:04:57Z George Jackson comment-2129 2009-01-11T20:13:34Z 2009-01-11T20:13:34Z While I'm all for having more accountable (i.e. elected) officials running our government, instead of shadowy city managers, it worries me to consolidate it too much. Why not just grant more powers to the entire council, including budget, appointments, etc. George Jackson 2009-01-11T20:13:34Z George Jackson comment-2128 2009-01-11T20:10:06Z 2009-01-11T20:10:06Z I'd add one to the list, though a little bit more below the radar: The effort to stop the construction of the plasma arc plant (aka trash incinerator). A small group of committed activists have been able to stop this boondoggle to date. Another misguided effort to think you can trash into nothing, without any problematic byproducts. Come on... George Jackson 2009-01-11T20:10:06Z