Newest articles on The Sacramento Press written by Marion Millin

Help Protect Parks and River Parkway

2011-08-08T17:08:25Z

The Grassroots Working Group (GWG) will be back before the County Board of Supervisors at 4:00 pm on Tuesday, August 9th, in the supervisor’s chambers at 700 H Street, Sacramento. For Grassroots, this will be the most important Board decision of the year.

The Board is considering whether to sponsor state legislation this year that would give the county the authority to place before the voters a 1/10 % sales tax for parks purposes (one penny for every $10 spent). The county is already authorized to place a sales tax before the voters, but not one this small. Save the American River Association supports this.

The revenue from a sales tax must to go to a governmental agency. SARA believes that the county should have the OPTION of having the revenue go to a new Regional Park District.

State legislative changes would be needed if the county were to have this option. SARA thinks this option is important because polling shows that voters are more likely to support the sales tax for parks if the money goes to a Regional Park District.

PLEASE ATTEND
Please show your support of the GWG effort to Rescue Our Regional Parks and Open Space, by attending the August 9th session.

Tuesday, August 9th at 4:00 p.m.
700 H Street, Sacramento

E-MAIL OR CALL
If you are unable to attend, please call or e-mail all 5 supervisors asking them to add the Regional Park District changes to the 1/10th of a cent sales tax legislation they are preparing -- to allow citizens to vote on the best opportunity to rescue Parks.

SACRAMENTO COUNTY

Supervisors - 700 H Street, Suite 2450 Sacramento, CA 95814

General Info: 916-874-5411 Fax for all members: 916-874-7593

(D-1) Phil Serna 916-874-5485 SupervisorSerna@saccounty.net

(D-2) Jimmy Yee 916-874-5481 jyee@saccounty.net

(D-3) Susan Peters 916-874-5471 susanpeters@saccounty.net

(D-4) Roberta MacGlashan 916-874-5491 macglashanr@saccounty.net

(D-5) Don Nottoli 916-874-5465 nottolid@saccounty.net

More information:
http://www.icontact-archive.com/jiwNoAJxqsBcFLsUf_qCTtVPhlMUSgvQ?w=2

"The Save The American River Association (SARA) had concluded that the best way to preserve the American River Parkway is to look at the bigger picture.

"In response to devastating budget cuts and the possible dismantling of the Sacramento County Regional Parks and Open Space System by the County Board of Supervisors, SARA formed the Grassroots Working Group (GWG) in mid-2010.

"The Group’s goal is to secure adequate, stable, long-term funding for operations, maintenance and expansion of the Regional Parks and Open Space System, which includes the American River Parkway, Cosumnes River Preserve, Deer Creek Hills, Dry Creek Parkway, Sacramento Delta Facilities and the Regional Parks at Mather, Elk Grove and Gibson Ranch.

"According to SARA President, Warren V. Truitt, "The popularity of the American River Parkway – some 8,000,000 visits per year – now stresses Parkway capacity, especially during the warmer months. Therefore, SARA is supporting the effort to rescue our entire Regional Parks and Open Space System.”

"The guiding vision of the Grassroots Working Group is a safe, accessible, well-maintained system of regional parks, farmland, open space and wild lands, linked by a non-motorized transportation network.

"GWG's mission is to identify an appropriate structure to manage our regional parks and open space, coupled with a reliable funding stream for operations, maintenance, and expansion of the system."

Capitol Vigil For Wisconsin Workers and Human Rights

2011-02-23T11:08:13Z

The sun was still shining on the State Capitol at 5:30 p.m. Monday, at the start of the Sacramento Central Labor Council's Candlelight Vigil for Wisconsin Workers. The crowd grew to an estimated 2,000 people, in solidarity with labor and human rights movements in Wisconsin and beyond.

The supply of signs for "We Stand With Wisconsin Workers" and flameless vigil candles didn't meet the demand. There were handmade signs, such as: "Labor Rights. Human Rights. Women's Rights. We Are One" and "Serf's Unite."

"We Are One," "It's About Freedom" and other signs from dozens of labor organizations, represented nurses, state workers, educators, fire fighters, law enforcement and skilled trade unions.

The opening invocation called for justice and for all people to have their basic needs met. It expressed gratitude for "so many who stood up to engage evil: the evil of corporate greed and malice; the evil of government union busting; the evil of protecting the rich at the expense of the poor."

The first speaker was Art Pulaski of the California Labor Federation. "The protests that we see in Wisconsin today are much bigger than one legislative bill or one state. It isn't just about Wisconsin. It isn't just about public sector workers. It isn't even just about union members.

"This is about an assault on the working class values of America. This is a fight for democracy. This is a fight that all working Americans cannot afford to lose."

The speeches and songs in solidarity continued. The best sound quality was in the center front. The crowd that spilled toward the back and onto the grassy sides had some difficulty hearing the speakers.

A man in a luxurious overcoat worthy of a corporate robber baron, passed through the crowd quickly and commented, "They should have gone non-union for the sound system."

The enthusiasm of the people was not deterred by the cold temperature or the cold-blooded attitude that non-union labor is superior to union labor.

Bill Camp, Executive Secretary of the Sacramento Central Labor Council, gave a shout out to several legislators that he said were "in the house." Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom Tweeted in: "Standing in solidarity w my brothers & sisters across this country."

One of the speakers challenged the legislators who have expressed support, to commit for the long term and write legislation in support of the Wisconsin workers.

The message, loud and clear from the feeble sound speakers and the strong show of solidarity, matched the invocation at the start of the vigil:

"As we applaud those in Egypt, Iran, Tunisia and Libya, who cried out against government oppression - oppression that seeks to deny their rights - let us also applaud those in Wisconsin and through out this land who seek to do the same."

More actions are planned for the week. MoveOn.org announced a call for "emergency rallies in front of every statehouse Saturday, Feb. 26 at noon, to stand together to save the American Dream."

USuncut is a group based on UKuncut to organize those "ready to help make corporate tax dodgers pay their fair share" also planning events for Feb. 26

Channel 1000 video: Solidarity for Wisconsin workers: candlelight vigil

Sacramento's Gem Up For Grabs

2011-02-01T07:54:22Z

We call it the Crown Jewel of Sacramento and are stingy about keeping it polished and protected. It generates an estimated $365,000,000 annually and more visits than Yosemite, yet it is underfunded and undervalued as a regional asset.

The American River Parkway provides our water, improves our air quality and supports diverse wildlife, including some of the last West Coast salmon runs. We go there to rest, recreate and reflect. The 23 mile stretch from Nimbus Dam to the confluence with the Sacramento River is officially designated as a Wild and Scenic River. It is the most heavily used recreation river in California.

TV news crews try to scare us silly when the river rises "near Flood Stage at the bottom of the Tower Bridge!" – just like it does every year. And every year, local media report that funding for the maintenance, health and safety of Sacramento's Jewel is in danger. The regional park system's share of Sacramento County's Discretionary General Fund went from 1.02% in 2005-06 to .36% in 2009-10.

How well do we appreciate and value the American River Parkway that is so central to our lives? What will it take to provide funding that makes the river safe, serene and secure, now and for future generations?

The Save The American River Association (SARA) had concluded that the best way to preserve the American River Parkway is to look at the bigger picture.

In response to devastating budget cuts and the possible dismantling of the Sacramento County Regional Parks and Open Space System by the County Board of Supervisors, SARA formed the Grassroots Working Group (GWG) in mid-2010.

The Group’s goal is to secure adequate, stable, long-term funding for operations, maintenance and expansion of the Regional Parks and Open Space System, which includes the American River Parkway, Cosumnes River Preserve, Deer Creek Hills, Dry Creek Parkway, Sacramento Delta Facilities and the Regional Parks at Mather, Elk Grove and Gibson Ranch.

According to SARA President, Warren V. Truitt, "The popularity of the American River Parkway – some 8,000,000 visits per year – now stresses Parkway capacity, especially during the warmer months. Therefore, SARA is supporting the effort to rescue our entire Regional Parks and Open Space System.”

The guiding vision of the Grassroots Working Group is a safe, accessible, well-maintained system of regional parks, farmland, open space and wild lands, linked by a non-motorized transportation network.

GWG's mission is to identify an appropriate structure to manage our regional parks and open space, coupled with a reliable funding stream for operations, maintenance, and expansion of the system.

In January, the Grassroots Working Group held a fundraiser at Rubicon Brewing Company on one of its “501(c) Wednesdays.” Rubicon's Glynn Phillips created this weekly event to benefit local 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations, by donating a portion of the day’s profits.

There is more GWG public outreach planned, with a Community Summit Meeting scheduled for March, 2011. Any planned ballot measures require approval in July 2012 to be on the November 2012 ballot.

To learn more about the Grassroots effort, including governance and funding options being studied, or to make a donation toward a public outreach and education campaign, visit www.sarariverwatch.org and click on the gold Grassroots Process button on the Home Page, or call (916) 482-2551.

http://www.sarariverwatch.org/
http://www.arpf.org
http://www.arnha.org/
http://www.sacbike.org/

Urban Design Alliance: Presenting the Pilot Alley

2010-09-25T02:44:43Z

Piped, paved and delivered. Well, almost. Underground work for what proponents call "Alley Activation" is complete.

The Urban Design Alliance's Fourth Wednesday dialogue topic was “Delivery of the Midtown Pilot Alley.”

Guest speakers were Julie Young, co-chair of the Alley Activation Committee and Disctrict 3 City Council Member Steve Cohn. Greg Taylor of UDA and Dustin Litrell hosted the free event at the downtown office of the American Institute of Architects.

The Alley Activation private/public works project has excavated the alley between 17th, 18th and L streets and Capitol Avenue. City water pipes and sewer lines have been replaced. The next step is application of permeable pavers to the alley surface.

The Alley Activation Committee plans for the pilot alley to be "delivered" Oct. 20. A celebration will be held Nov. 13.

A handout on the pilot alley project states, "This alley is an open-source template for future activation of the city's many neglected alleys and small urban spaces."

A crowd of about 30 design and planning enthusiasts heard Julie Young describe the process and Mr. Cohn promote "imagining" and naming alleys. A lively discussion moderated by Brian Fischer of Midtown Grid followed their presentation.

Both speakers made it clear that "all this project did is lay out the infrastructure." This first step was "pipes and pavers," as Cohn put it.

Young, who owns a lot next to The Press (formerly Dragonfly) at 1813 Capitol Avenue, plans to build a luxury lofts project, which is currently on hold.

She described how real estate values decrease from the frontage to the rear of the lot. Properties that face Midtown's lettered streets (Capitol once was "M") measure 160 feet by 40 feet and are called "deep lots."

Three years ago, when "parking became an issue" for her luxury lofts project, Young said she wondered why more people weren't using the East End parking garage. This garage is currently owned by the state of California and leased to the city of Sacramento at night and on weekends.

Her idea was to pave and beautify the alley, where she said "the presumption was that alleys are a place for garbage to reside."

This would potentially direct more people to the East End parking garage entrance at the end of the alley.

Cohn pointed out that the city's revised general plan has new incentives for adding more residential units on the back of lots, rather than the traditional single unit.

One of the possible themes that Cohn proposed for naming the alleys is based on Sacramento's sister cities and other international city names. Each alley name will start with the letter of the street it is directly north of.

Cohn said that said that naming alleys is important because the current system makes it difficult to describe locations for police and fire departments, code enforcement and solid waste haulers.

The presenters were asked what makes an alley viable for activation.

Young responded that the age of the infrastructure, parking and existing uses, make some locations more viable than others. She and Jeremy Drucker, owner of the Stitch condo under construction facing the "pilot alley," paid for a private study identifying 41 potential alleys within the Midtown Property and Business Improvement District (PBID). Drucker was also co-chair of the Alley Activation Committee.

Alley Activation proponents dismiss the historic utilitarian nature of alleys and consider them "wasted space" or as Cohn said "just a place to dump garbage."

The stripped down "pipes and pavers" version of Alley Activation being delivered in October does not include solutions for garbage and recycling dumpsters or chronic issues with traffic and parking congestion in the pilot alley.

"What we have now is a free-for-all" with multiple garbage hauling companies; a situation that is "not efficient, not aesthetic and not neighborly," Cohn said.

An idea for the city to contract with one franchise would have to be approved by the Sacramento County Solid Waste Authority (SWA). There also could be future requirements for what garbage receptacles look like.

Another audience question addressed this sort of continuity. A person who asked whether any corporate sponsors had come forward to fund Alley Activation amenities, also asked about design standards that would provide some variation and maintain character.

Young clarified that the former joint city/private Alley Activation Committee became the Alley Activation Alliance non-profit group, so that they may accept private and business funding.

When asked about funding for other potentially "activated" alleys, Cohn stated that funding from sponsorships only goes so far. He said the "half a million" price tag for the target alley was impacted by the replacement of the water and sewer lines, which was not anticipated. The estimated cost for surface improvements is $150,000.

The decision to replace functioning 80 year old water and sewer lines now, was so that potential need for future replacement would not require removal of the permeable pavers.

The pilot alley also received a $100,000 windfall of Federal Community Development Block Grant funds.

The Alley Activation Alliance is accepting donations for "street furniture and amenities." It cites a need for 12 tree planters costing $1,750 each and 15 solar lights costing $750 each. Donations will be recognized with a name plaque on the item.

Young also announced working on an Alley Activation book titled "How We Got it Done." It will be a record of "problem solving in a public environment."

Community Brainstorm: Second Saturday Solutions

2010-09-17T20:28:07Z

Victor Zavala will not be a martyr but he will be remembered. The shooting that injured three people and caused his death has been a catalyst for a community discussion of social, cultural and political issues.

When we are through discussing our differences, we may discuss what we have in common: our love for the history and beauty of our central city, rivers, climate and region; our pride in our diverse population and our commitment to continue to grow Sacramento into a wonderful place to live, work, play and visit.

The recent tragedy and ensuing community conversation has many aspects. Some are contentious and difficult to deal with. An open community meeting has been scheduled to discuss these issues later this month.

In the meantime, the call for solutions continues. If we, as a community, share our ideas, as fantastic as they might be, it may help the leaders and policy makers get a spark of an idea that could become reality.

Let's use this space to brainstorm and visualize some possible alterations to the Midtown and Second Saturday overgrowth of converging events, to spread the good parts and ease up some of the bad ones.

Please reply with your ideas, as solid, serious, silly, imaginative or fantastic (or not currently budgeted) as they may be:

Here's a start:

Spread Second Saturday out in space and in time, across the city and throughout the days of the month

Link clusters of galleries associated with one time period of gallery hopping and use RT shuttles to interconnect them (possibly from East Sac to Midtown to the downtown core ... and beyond)

Show films on outdoor walls in different parts of town during good weather (most of the year, here)

Create a community arts center as a hub for events, art shows, shops and performances

De-emphasize alcohol use and offer attractions for all ages and income levels of our broad population

Bring back Thursday Night Market to the K Street Mall

Use empty storefronts on the K Street Mall for art shows and installations

Require people crossing J Street illegally at 20th Street to stop and have their face painted first

Include kids crafts booths on Second Saturday and street fairs

Spread arts opportunities and gallery outreach into other neighborhoods

Feature live painting demonstrations

Develop yearly art auction to cover some of the costs

Generate jobs with some of these ideas so people aren't so desperate to get drunk or violent to deal with anxiety

Ask the Kings to pay their loan back immediately; use the money for the arts

Use the gorgeous new river promenade for regular art displays

Include more of the public in decisions made by city and business leaders

Have artists paint Porta Potties and trash cans

Create a gallery or shows specifically for area art students

______ add your ideas please ______

Second Saturday Synergy 2.0

2010-09-15T21:37:03Z

(please note: For the purpose of this overview, "downtown" and "central city" are used in the traditional sense of designating the urban business core AND including the area bound by two rivers and two freeways, which includes Midtown)

Gallery owner Michael Himovitz brought Second Saturday to Sacramento two decades ago, to "educate and connect people through discussing art." He advocated coordinating individual efforts into an event that benefited all the galleries, their customers, local culture and the community. It worked.

The synergy resulted in a Second Saturday tradition where art lovers gallery hopped, enjoyed artist receptions and mingled with lively crowds in different parts of town. Cooperating galleries increased their visibility and attracted new customers.

In the aftermath of the September Second Saturday shooting, it may be time to honor the legacy and maintain the event, by creating Second Saturday synergy 2.0.

The death of Victor Hugo Perez Zavala and shooting of three others place a sense of urgency on addressing issues that neighborhoods, city officials and business groups have been working on for years.

There is a call for a task force and study of best practices to address these issues, when such a Midtown task force has existed for over a year.

If we work with what we have, drawing on the existing efforts that are underway, we build that synergy. Especially during drastic budgetary times, this makes sense.

Despite attempts to intellectually distance the after-party from Second Saturday, "night life issues" from "Second Saturday issues" and the earlier crowds from "the criminal element," it is the combination of all of the above that resulted in the shooting.

In recent years, existing residents and businesses of Midtown were descended upon by development interests that turned neighborhoods into a perpetual Mardi Gras and Second Saturday into a street fair.

Now, all the various voices and stakeholders - who value the Second Saturday event, the interests of businesses and residents and our shared quality of life - have a choice to make: to create a healthy synergy or continue with a toxic one.

Some groups of businesses, associated with the above-mentioned task force, are already working on coordinating public relations, parking information and guide/security teams.

That type of synergy may be extended to a broader area, including business districts that may currently be perceived as rivals. A vision like the one Michael Himovitz had, extended over the entire downtown area, potentially benefits the businesses, residents and community within and beyond the central city.

Sacramento is famous for its rivers and trees and for its diversity. The "vision" of previous city management that brought people downtown with the lure of alcohol and a singles bar scene was short-sighted and unsustainable.

That demographic needs to be part of a broader mix that attracts families, theater goers, diners, music lovers, all ages, locals and tourists, to events that are not over-concentrated and over-inebriated.

There is a general consensus that one simple and immediate solution to Second Saturday congestion is to spread out events that attract large crowds. This fits with neighborhood association studies and recommendations for placing events in appropriate venues: appropriate for audience size, crowd control, noise, parking, garbage, alcohol consumption and other significant impacts.

Recognizing the interdependence of different types of businesses, in order to draw a diverse demographic to the central city, also makes sense.

One Midtown resident and business owner responded to a recent business association survey by advising them to "quit creating drunkfests" where the only businesses that benefit are "the ones that sell booze."

A Second Saturday Synergy 2.0 may include:

incorporating the existing and ongoing city/resident/business task force work on Midtown night life and Second Saturday issues
new city management and planning for sustainable development to "bring people downtown" while maintaining quality of life aka livability
recently implemented plans to enforce the 10:00 p.m. curfew, open 20th Street between J and K (and enforce traffic laws for crossing J Street?) and provide additional police presence on Second Saturday.
new regulation or reduction/removal of street vendors and bands outside
spreading Second Saturday and other crowded events over broader space and/or time
implementing current task force plans for street guides and security provided by the business association
implementing existing plans for improving parking regulations to ease excessive negative "night life" impacts on neighborhoods
challenging over-emphasis on singles bar scene, "drunkfests" and street closures as a Midtown draw - including on Second Saturday
requiring existing "nightlife" businesses to prove compliance with existing codes, noise ordinances and conditions of city Entertainment Permits and state ABC permits
returning Second Saturday to an event that gallery owners, artists, art lovers and residents want to participate in!

Artwork: Skinner www.theartofskinner.com; Fred Dalkey; Nathaniel Stewart http://www.nathanlewisart.com/
Photos: Marion Millin; Michael Zwahlen http://www.zwahlenimages.com/index.php

Opinion: Sacramento Second Saturday Intervention

2010-09-13T21:11:42Z

The murder of Victor Hugo Perez Zavala, 24, makes it harder for Sacramento to ignore the elephant in the room.

Yet there's a defensive reaction, as media mouthpieces argue over what time Second Saturday is officially over and unofficially continues. It's delusion, but a typical effort to save face and project blame. It is time for an intervention.

Sacramento city and business leaders have been addicted for several years to unsustainable city management policies. The "Bring People Downtown" mantra was distilled into "Instant Nightlife, Just Add Alcohol."

The Midtown oversaturation of bars and nightclubs-pretending-to-be-restaurants created mayhem magnets near residences. This also attracts a criminal element to prey on the well-heeled drunks who displaced yesteryears' homeless drunks.

The civic/business inebriation with toxic quick bucks has damaged the quality of life in Midtown and diluted the resources of the code enforcement and police departments. There have been more - and more serious - crimes than have been reported.

Every dysfunctional relationship has communication problems. City and business leaders have enablers in the media, who clean up the messes and make the excuses. They publish the pretense that everything's fine and any Midtowners who say otherwise "don't really know where they live."

We know very well where live. We live in their state of denial. Another tragedy, that we warned them was inevitable and imminent, has occurred.

Residents of Midtown embrace change and development, but not at the expense of quality of life and public safety; and not at the expense of those businesses, residents and (potential) visitors who don't fit the target drink-and-dash demographic.

Second Saturday became an alcohol-fueled street party over the years because city and business leaders actively turned Midtown into an alcohol-fueled street party zone over the years.

Second Saturday amplified that energy and those efforts.

The drunken, mob mentality that follows after 9:00 p.m is a continuation of Second Saturday and a reflection of the level of toxic, disruptive and abusive Midtown "nightlife" that local leaders have fostered.

Now that another person has died, they are forced to take a sober look at their ongoing policies.

It is time for city/business/media power brokers to pay their tab: show the community the cost/benefit analysis of creating crime magnet party zones that chugalug city enforcement and public safety resources.

It is time for them to detoxify their attitude toward neighborhoods and residents and find another place to turn into a spring break theme park.

It is time for them to match events to appropriate venues, to accommodate impacts and create attractions that are hospitable to more of Sacramento's diverse demographic.

It is time for city and business and media leaders to foster a healthy central city that works for the whole community - including those who may actually want to enjoy and purchase art work.

We want our Second Saturday back.

August Rainbow Over Sacramento

2010-08-30T18:15:27Z

On Sunday, August 29th, 2010 at 6:20 p.m., the western sky held an unusual sight. A sheet of cloud was illuminated, with a dazzling refraction on either side of the setting sun.

High up in the sky above this display, there was an upside-down rainbow.

These photos show the brilliant refraction of the sections of "ring" around the sun, made visible on the cloud sheet.

The rainbow was opposite the sun ring, far above the sun and cloud sheet, with the full spectrum of colors visible.

And upside down.

Cool Summer, Warm Tomatoes, Local Color

2010-08-20T18:44:48Z

The word may have already gotten out, that Sacramento, California -- halfway between places some would rather be -- has been visited by perfect California Mediterranean weather. Minus a mid-summer furnace blast of heat (so far), we've had near continuous Delta Breezes and mild temperatures, clean air and as one local weathercaster puts it, "good sleepin' weather."

The cool weather means that backyard and balcony gardeners may have harvested merely a handful of homegrown tomatoes. Now, residents can pick up good, fresh, cheap tomatoes from local farmers almost any day of the week; as well as nectarines, peaches, flowers, avocados, carrots, potatoes, strawberries, lavender and lavender honey, cucumbers, peaches, blackberries, blueberries and more ...

Prices on tomatoes range from $2.00 to $2.50 per pound for Heirloom tomatoes, to $.50 per pound for "Overripe."

Some farmers' produce is Certified Organic. Others have farming methods that are not certified organic, yet minimize the use of chemical fertilizers and pesticides. If you don't see a sign and want to know about how your food is grown, just ask.

Part of the pleasure of the Farmer's Markets, any day of the week, is getting to know and support the members of the community, who support us with their hard work and healthful produce.

http://www.california-grown.com/Market-times.html

World Class City Of Trees

2010-05-27T20:51:05Z

"The real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes but in having new eyes." -- Marcel Proust

"Victim trees are located outside, near to or within a block of bars and nightclubs. The damage consists of twisting, cutting them in half or breaking off at any point newly planted trees of all species, ripping out the stakes and battering the trees and trying to break a tree by bending it over so far that it damaged the root system so much it could not stand straight without city arborists’ attention and help." -- Tree Vandalism, Dale Kooyman

http://www.sacramentopress.com/headline/27950/Tree_Vandalism

Photos:
1. Vandalized tree. 2. Stunted growth of vandalized tree. 3. Growth of tree of same species and planting schedule. 4. Line of three planted together, with gap. 5. Vandalized tree removed (note mulch bed for first years' watering by City). 6. Trees planted at various times to maintain tree canopy.

The following is edited from "City of Sacramento Parks and Recreation Master Plan 2005 - 2010," to accompany photos and link to Dale Kooyman's article (with permission) on tree vandalization, as requested by SacPress. May the following history help foster more appreciation for our World Class City of Trees. MM

"C.K. McClatchy was one of the City of Sacramento's most outspoken proponents of trees. During his term as editor of The Sacramento Bee, he would often publish on the front page the obituaries for trees killed by vandals. McClatchy's efforts were vital in raising the awareness, appreciation and pride in the City's urban forest."

It is indeed ironic that the founding charter of the City of Sacramento was developed under the shade of a tree. Developing a lush and healthy Urban Forest was one of the key instruments in making Sacramento a healthy and vibrant community.

Sacramento during the first years of incorporation was considered an unhealthy place to live. Wetlands surrounding the city bred mosquitoes and disease. The summer months brought extreme heat. There were several fires in the years shortly after incorporation in 1850, 1852, and 1861.

Tree planting was seen as the solution to the problem of hot days and the unpleasant odor in the air. An early reporter in Sacramento found that shade trees add much to the beauty of this place; it will be in a few years the city of trees. Evidence of local appreciation for trees dates to 1855, during which time residents were said to have a "mania" for planting them.

Typically, urban forest management relies on the planting and management performed by city officials; however, in Sacramento, the maintenance of the urban forest has always been a partnership between the City and its residents.

The Urban Forest continues to provide the backbone of the city's living infrastructure. The City of Sacramento continues to be the steward of the City's Urban Forest, along with the City's residents, maintaining more than 150,000 city street and park trees, planting new trees and monitoring the health of the urban forest.

In 2005, the City of Sacramento planted its one-millionth tree, making it second only in the world to Paris, France in the number of trees per resident.

City of Sacramento Urban Forest Services
Mission: To Promote a Safe, Sustainable, and Healthy Urban Forest for Sacramento Communities.
Vision: To be the recognized leader in urban forestry.

Urban Forestry Service provides tree care service for the City’s public trees. Public trees include street trees (tree within planter strips or the area between the sidewalk and the curb), trees in City parks, and trees on City property. Urban Forestry Service, under the authority of the Sacramento City Code, also protects Heritage Trees on both public and private property.

For service requests or information, please call or email 311 and a call center agent will get back to you as soon as possible.
http://cityofsacramento.org/transportation/urbanforest/
http://cityofsacramento.org/transportation/urbanforest/faq.html
http://cityofsacramento.org/transportation/urbanforest/heritage.html
City of Sacramento Parks and Recreation Master Plan 2005 - 2010
http://www.cityofsacramento.org/parksandrecreation/masterplan/pdf/mp3-a-appendcs-a-c.pdf

photos: Marion Millin

Connecting the Macrodots

2010-05-08T10:34:24Z

"The information of the people at large can alone make them the safe as they are the sole depositary of our political and religious freedom." --Thomas Jefferson to William Duane, 1810. ME 12:417

"There is no pain you are receding, A distant ship's smoke on the horizon, You are only coming through in waves, Your lips move, But I can't hear what you're saying" -- Pink Floyd

When I moved back to Sacramento -- which so many hometowners do, as we are acclimated to the diversity, the sense of place and continuity, the perfect climate, the confluence of rivers, highways, dreams and history -- I took my childhood friend to an epic concert at Hughes Stadium on the Sacramento City College campus.

She was always the bigger Floyd fan. It was easy to be ambivalent -- in our youth, their music was everywhere, any way, any time.

It ranks among the best concerts I've ever been to, for artistry and showmanship; made more amazing by how perfectly balanced and clean the sound system was, in that vintage, modern day amphitheater.

I'm reminded of that show by one of their songs today, because we, have become, comfortably numb.

It may be unfair to point a finger at Sacramento Press. We have other venues for journalistic investigation. The Bee -- still there, propped on its laurels of getting Kevin Johnson anointed Mayor; Sacramento News & Review, primarily an entertainment weekly with dedicated community service aspects; Midtown Monthly, still finding its sea legs and consistently improving and SacPress with another take on the meeting ground between traditional journalism and social networking. (Don't know what to say about televised local media: choose your favorite weather guru and least annoying anchors ...)

Where though, is our investigative journalism? Who -- if anyone -- is connecting the dots? Sacramento has major changes happening, major scandals, minimized yet significant investigations of public officials and a remarkable near dead silence when it comes to press coverage.

Sacramento's former City Manager is under investigation. His soul mate from Portland was also under investigation and on administrative leave. When the just-barely-vested-so-taxpayers-will-be-paying-his-retirement Ray Kerridge retired, an Assistant City Manager was selected to serve in the interim, while seeking a replacement. The interim City Manager's first act in office was to tell the lounging-at-home-on-the-public-dime Development Services Director to quit or be fired.

Kerridge retired to Spend More Time With The Public Sector. Next thing ya know, he's hired as the City Manager of Roseville.
Development Services Department has a new name and new restructuring. Has the question yet been answered, about whether the upcoming city audit will include the previous management and directorial (retired/fired, under investigation) history of Ray Kerridge and Bill Thomas?

Oh, what a tangled web we weave, when first we practice to develop land that has an overabundance of water and -- when that is discontinued -- then flip flop development to land that has no water at all.

Rumors of fresh breezes blowing in the City of Sacramento blossom in the spring sunshine. Businesses, neighborhood associations and city officials are meeting to sort out years of city management lawlessness and poor planning that have turned the residential central city into a spring break theme park.

Is it the times we're in or the unrepentant influence of developers, that prevents our media from connecting the dots for us? How does this reality affect our upcoming election?

Oh, by the way: which one's Pink?

Comfortably Numb
Songwriters: Waters, Roger; Gilmour, David Jon

Hello,
Is there anybody in there?
Just nod if you can hear me
Is there anyone home?

Come on
Now
I hear you're feeling down
I can ease your pain
Get you on your feet again

Relax
I'll need some information first
Just the basic facts
Can you show me where it hurts?

There is no pain you are receding
A distant ship's smoke on the horizon
You are only coming through in waves
Your lips move
But I can't hear what you're saying

When I was a child I had a fever
My hands felt just like
Two balloons
Now I've got that feeling once again
I can't explain
You would not understand
This is not how I am

I... Have become comfortably numb

O.K.
Just a little pin prick
There'll be no more aaaaaaaah!
But you may feel a little sick

Can you stand up?
I do believe it's working
Good
That'll keep you going through the show
Come on
It's time to go

There is no pain you are receding
A distant ship's smoke on the horizon
You are only coming through in waves
Your lips move
But I can't hear what you're saying

When I was a child
I caught a fleeting glimpse
Out of the corner of my eye

I turned to look but it was gone
I cannot put my finger on it now
The child is grown
The dream is gone
I... Have become comfortably numb

Midtown Mixed Messages

2010-05-02T21:15:31Z

Midtown residents have been dealing for years with the impacts of a City led campaign to "Bring People Downtown" that ignored the fact that people are already here.

Media and Midtown Business Association boosters have contributed by consistently disparaging the existing mixed-use neighborhoods as a desolate, disgusting and scary wasteland; a "dead zone" with invisible/irrelevant residents.

Yet, Midtown's now-attractive and lucrative historic neighborhoods ONLY exist, due to the diligent, hard work and determination of residents, preservationists and neighborhoods associations, over the past few decades.

Residents met with the MBA and other stakeholders in 2009 as part of MBA's Regional Hospitality Institute process. A final report and meeting occurred in October. Follow up task force meetings were delayed by MBA, until a clamor from the neighborhoods and complaints to Councilmember Cohn's office brought them back on track.

We had a meeting on April 27 to regroup, with a reduced number of committed stakeholders. The very next day, the MBA unveiled new branding. Rob Kerth's (Business Journal) quoted claim of "reaching out to the community" rings hollow.

The logo, slogan and Kerth's comments reinforce the MBA agenda: that business and marketing plans include "visitors" and exclude residents. This contradicts the RHI process and conflicts with several topics and specific goals in the RHI consultant's report.

We don't need MBA continuing to promote Midtown as a transient party zone at the expense of residents. We don't need more and more visual clutter and aural overload assaulting the senses in historic neighborhoods.

Considering the value placed on "Cultural Creatives" and the state of the collapsed job market, the amateurish design of the new logo is another jab. Aesthetically-attuned (one reason we live in Midtown) residents would perhaps rather not be associated with it.

"Go Your Own Way" is exactly what the MBA has done, disregarding Midtown's sustainability and quality of life.

(This piece was written prior to an opportunity to ask Rob Kerth what he means by "reached out" and "community")

http://sacramento.bizjournals.com/sacramento/blog/inner_city/2010/04/midtown_states_its_identity_with_new_logo.html?surround=lfn

Council District 3 $100,000 Christmas Giveaway

2009-12-15T11:53:49Z

'Twas two weeks before Christmas, when all through the town

Not a citizen was stirred up, because it was unknown

That their money was being given away then and there

By town leaders pretending that no one would care ..."

Happy Holidays, District Three. What's on your wish list this gift giving season? Safe sidewalks glisten and visions of street bumps dance in your heads? A life-saving stop sign, cross walk or street lighting fires the Yuletide dreams?

How far would $100,000 go in your neighborhood?

To be in on the holiday fun, contact your City Council member before the Tuesday, December 15th Council meeting and tell them how you want $100,000 spent -- or not. Handy contact info is provided below -- you can call or email or use a new feature to make an online comment via the City of Sacramento web page. (Agenda Item 18; see below).

Better be quick though -- or the money will magically disappear like Santa's milk and cookies.

The $100,000 in public funds is available from federal HUD Community Development Block Grant money, left over from a street lighting project in the Ben Ali neighborhood, which came in under budget.

The CDBG entitlement program allocates annual grants to larger cities and urban counties to develop viable communities by providing decent housing, a suitable living environment, and opportunities to expand economic opportunities, principally for low- and moderate-income persons.

The Ben Ali neighborhood is in North Sacramento, west of Business 80, east of Del Paso Blvd., between El Camino Avenue and Marconi. The $100,000 savings on the lighting project there is being recommended by City staff for use in the trendiest of hot spots in Midtown Sacramento, to beautify an alley, between 17th/18th/L St. and Capitol Avenue.

Some might argue that other projects in the Ben Ali neighborhood (or others) might need the windfall more than one Midtown alley; or that lighting some of the unlit streets in Midtown would be more of a priority than paving and lighting an alley.

But no one is arguing any of this; because there is no public discussion, no public engagement and no public outreach regarding how to use these public funds.

There are no presenters scheduled for the City Council meeting on Tuesday. The agenda item has been recommended by City staff and signed off on by the City Manager. (links below).

The private project to "activate" Midtown alleys was the recipient allocated the $100,000 by District 3 Council Member Steve Cohn, who announced in September that he did not need Council approval to decide how to use the CDBG money. Even so, the agenda item is sneaking down the chimney for Tuesday night's Council Meeting.

On August 11, 2009, the Alley Activation committee -- a group of business/property owners/developers who had been meeting for 16 months with City staff -- made a presentation to the City Council, about (from Council minutes) "Alleys within the Central Business District and Midtown Area (Districts 1, 3, and 4); Action: Reviewed the various efforts underway to activate Central City alleys and directed staff to continue working with the Alley Activation Committee on the Pilot Alley proposals, and to help identify potential funding sources."

The Council approved that staff continue working with the Alley Activation Committee, which has been directed to study up to 47 potential alleys for activation. There has been no official final determination of which alleys will be "activated." There is no one on the City Council or relevant staff or on the Alley Activation committee who will answer the simple question:

Who has the authority to make the final decision as to which alleys will be activated? When and how will that be decided?

Meanwhile, the Alley Activation Committee has determined that their three "pilot alleys" coincidentally are where they themselves own real estate and businesses; where they will benefit from the infusion of public funds and prettified infrastructure, paid for with $100,000 designated by the U.S Department of Housing and Urban Development to "to ensure decent affordable housing, to provide services to the most vulnerable in our communities, and to create jobs through the expansion and retention of businesses."

The HUD website also specifies that CDBG grantees "must develop and follow a detailed plan that provides for and encourages citizen participation. This integral process emphasizes participation by persons of low or moderate income, particularly residents of predominantly low- and moderate-income neighborhoods, slum or blighted areas, and areas in which the grantee proposes to use CDBG funds. The plan must provide citizens with the following: reasonable and timely access to local meetings; an opportunity to review proposed activities and program performance; provide for timely written answers to written complaints and grievances.... "

Steve Cohn announced the availability of the $100,000 in August and urged the almost tw0 year old Alley Activation Committee to move forward ASAP. There have been no public Alley Activation meetings in October, November or December. There has never been any outreach to the residents and business neighbors that already exist on the target alley -- even after Mr. Cohn publicized that outreach was an instruction from the August Council meeting.

Meanwhile, the plans and the work go on. This week, City of Sacramento crews are out jackhammering and patching up the target alley to test underground infrastructure. The unaccountable decision about which alleys to "activate" has been made.

The vote at the December 15th Council meeting on approving the allocation of the $100,000, arrives on tiny reindeer feet on the snow covered roof; a gift to those who have designated themselves the most worthy beneficiaries of Alley Activation and the public funds that will make their private property more valuable; while District 3 residents sleep snug with visions of surviving Christmas and dreams of a Happier New Year.

http://www.cityofsacramento.org/council/index.html

http://sacramento.granicus.com/ViewPublisher.php?view_id=8

Tuesday, December 15, 2009
City Hall – 915 I Street- First Floor Council Chamber
http://sacramento.granicus.com/core/events/public/ecommentsform.aspx?guid=7f21710f-d995-102c-9f78-c9e72a1e1616
Item 18.
Contact: Ricky Chuck, Senior Engineer, (916) 808-5050, Tim Mar, Supervising Engineer, (916) 808-7531, Transportation Department.

Alley Activation:
Contact: William R. Crouch, Urban Design Manager, (916) 808-8013;
Stacia Cosgrove, Senior Planner, (916) 808-7110, Community Development Department.

Operation Sellout: How the Sky Box Trumps the Lunch Box

2009-11-01T06:41:22Z

From the lofty perches of the power players, in their skyboxes and bank towers, the public may look very small, almost antlike. Deal and decision makers are elevated and segregated from the little people, whose lives they influence.

On Thursday, October 29, Mayor Kevin Johnson announced his "Rules of the Game" plan to build an arena and entertainment complex in Sacramento. The press conference was held 25 floors up, with a hazy overview of the city, extending from the historic rail yards to Cal Expo: two potential sites for a new and lucrative sports/real estate venture.

In that same sweeping view, the mayor could look down on the central city neighborhoods. From Downtown, Midtown, East Sac, all the way east to River Park and southward to College Glen, Tahoe Park and back around to Oak Park -- all of these neighborhoods are being intentionally and systematically deprived of a comprehensive, traditional, public high school.

This mayor has claimed to want to be an education mayor for Sacramento, even though public education is outside the duties and jurisdiction of the mayor.

So why? Why is a task force and "Rules of the Game" for placing a sports complex in the central city, more of a priority for this mayor than providing a comprehensive, public high school for the majority -- and historic center -- of the city's neighborhoods and families?

Would it help the mayor to see the big picture from up there, if there was a Sacramento High School Tent City, laid out in Fremont Park, Boulevard Park, McKinley Park and Bertha Henschel, Glen Hall Park and East Portal, Tahoe and McClatchy Parks?

A visit from Oprah's cameras might help draw his attention to the estimated 10,000 Central City students that have been displaced, abandoned and disappeared, since the closure of the real Sacramento High School in 2003. The disenfranchised are the rightful public school students and families of the Second Oldest High School West of the Mississippi.

How can it be so easy to overlook the reality that this student body, all these historic, central neighborhoods, do not have a comprehensive, traditional, public high school for their children to go to?

It helps if the local newspaper is complicit in crafting the story of how the public school was closed and reopened as a charter, in a continuous campaign of disinformation and incomplete reporting. Another puffy editorial was printed on Sunday, October 25 stating "On the scale of turnaround options, closing a school and reopening it as a charter is the most dramatic. It also is the most risky. But, as the Sacramento High experience has shown, it can bring big dividends for students in poorer neighborhoods, who too often are left behind."

Wait a minute. Who is being "left behind" here? 6 years later, -- after huge community outcry and advocacy, after a lawsuit and a consent decree of the court, ordering that the Sacramento City Unified School District provide a replacement -- half of the city of Sacramento's students still don't have their high school.

As the editorial said:

"Closing a school and turning it over to a nonprofit to run as a public charter school is not for the faint of heart" -- especially when it is done prematurely and illegally, as happened to Sacramento High School.

"It requires a strong school board willing to back an inevitably controversial decision" -- and complicit in the back room deals, dirty deeds, misuse of Federal funds and betrayal of the community will, all of which got that "strong" school board voted out of office.

"It requires a charter organization willing to withstand withering criticism in its sensitive startup years by those tethered to the status quo" -- the "status quo" being pesky, boring stuff like: the will of the parents, voters and taxpayers (who were forced to become litigants and WON), the history, traditions and needs of the whole community and -- oh yeah -- the law.

The editorial quotes, Tom Loveless, director of the Center on American Education at the Brookings Institution, who told The Bee when Sac High was closed, "It has never happened before where a large, existing high school closed in June and opened in September as a charter." The editor fails to mention that it will never happen here again. After the illegal handover of Sacramento's historic high school to Kevin Johnson, the resulting lawsuit led to a consent decree requiring a one year period in between.

This most recent in a series of misleading and enabling editorials continues. "Enrollment has stabilized at 1,000 students in the last two years and the school slowly seems to be getting beyond the intense conflict surrounding its founding. This is a school that could be even more successful if it had something more than a dismissive brush-off from influential parts of the community."

This is a school that is propped up with powerful media complicity and fudged statistics, packaged with the illegitimate use of the trappings of the historic public school: the mascot, the colors, team name, school name and the school nick name (which the SCUSD has unsuccessfully ordered St. HOPE to quit using). This sporty, peppy, purple and white sham of "Sac High," continues despite repeated public protests to the newspaper and the school board.

The sham, however, provided Kevin Johnson his springboard to the 25th floor press conference vantage and the Mayor's seat.

St. Hope operates "Sacramento Charter High School." It is not "Sacramento High School" or "Sac High." The only time the Sacramento Bee has consistently used the correct terms, were in the few unavoidable investigative articles, when alleged malfeasance by Kevin Johnson was too serious to gloss over. Then, the Bee referred to all the various other official entities of Johnson's St. Hope franchise and avoided any mention of him or of "Sac High."

"Getting beyond the intense conflict surrounding (St. HOPE's) founding," while pretending that central Sacramento should not have a comprehensive, public high school, is impossible. This fuzzy media blanket masking the truth and muzzling the public interest made Johnson's mayoral win possible.

This is a school that was paid for by the taxpayers, supported by the whole community for 147 years and valued for its diverse community-building aspect. This is a school that Sacramentans previously voted to approve bond funds, for renovations intended to serve the whole community, that ended up providing Johnson's boutique charter a $27 million renovation. This is a campus that belongs to the whole community, which is owed a consent decree high school after parents sued over the St. HOPE takeover.

This is a school that cannot justify its presence on the community's historic, upgraded, public high school campus without fudging the statistics, without cherry picking its student body, without the enabling of the local media and without excluding thousands of SCUSD students every year (including student families in Oak Park, who prefer a comprehensive, traditional public school to the St. HOPE charter). This is a school that owes the SCUSD $1,000,000 because it can't pay its bills.

So, who is really getting the "dismissive brush-off from influential parts of the community"? The highly insular, media fortified, privatized outpost of St. HOPE, squatting on the Sac High campus and the mayor with his lofty sky box view?

Or is it that vast, diverse Tent City of displaced high school students, spread out as far as the eye can see, spelling out the words, "Where's my High School"?

The bank tower skybox elites care about the bottom line. They are not accountable to -- or even aware of -- the community experience on the ground level.

It is up to the community to make sure that this mayor is not so blinded by the haze of powerful influence and the sport of politics, that he overlooks his duty to the the families and future of Sacramento.

Stepping Out In Midtown: Beyond the Valet of the Dilettante

2009-10-26T02:58:15Z

Three young women navigated the west sidewalk of 18th Street last Friday evening. The one in front says to her friends behind her, "Last time we were down here, I was thinking I might like to live here." The Friday night scene was crackling, with loud music filling the air and cars filling the streets.

"Yeah," says her friend, "but you'd need a place with a driveway. There's actually a lot more of them than I thought." The third woman says, "You wouldn't have much of a back yard."

The trio crossed 18th Street at Capitol and stopped to reclaim their car from the valet. The street parking or East End Parking Garage may have been closer to whichever business they were coming from, but the valet represents the convenience and perceived safety that many local visitors opt for.

Even those who think that they "might like to live here," bring their suburban expectations with them. "You'd need a place with a driveway." Or you'd need a place in Midtown that was not overrun with too many businesses, which are given too many parking waivers, so that rightful residential street parking becomes impossible.

"You'd need a place with a driveway," or a place with parking provided where it historically has been in Midtown -- in the alley. "You wouldn't have much of a back yard." Traditionally, Midtown residences have deep front porches and shallow green setbacks, that match the others on the block, enough to catch the Delta breezes. In the back is a deeper yard, many with a parking garage at the alley. The deep lots and alleys provide a buffer to the overimpaction of bars and restaurants surrounding them.

Many businesses move into Midtown and immediately want parking waivers, so that they don't have to meet the parking requirements that their business is legally responsible for. This impacts the street parking that is available for residents and other businesses. The overuse of parking waivers and the dependence on valet parking as a solution to Midtown's parking woes, actually exacerbate the problem.

Valet parking reinforces the attitude that patrons need to park as close to the door of their destination as possible. It reduces the number of people who are parking on the street or in public parking garages and walking a few blocks.

Valet parking perpetuates the illusion that it is not safe or realistic to look for parking further from the door and walk. Yet, that's what the displaced residents have to do, when visitors, valets and restaurant/bar employees fill up the nearby parking.

More people walking on the streets encourages more people walking on the streets. It also increases public safety, where the valet service does not. Better lighting and signage at the available and inexpensive public lots will also encourage more people to use them.

The more transit options that are available, the more lighting that is provided, the more that people see others walking around Midtown and the more that public parking garages are well lit, affordable and highly visible; the more new visitors may broaden their expectations of what their Midtown experience -- or even living here -- has to offer.

photos: Marion Millin

City Charter Review Committee Final Town Hall Reveals "Gordian Knot"

2009-10-17T21:58:11Z

Sierra II in Curtis Park was the location for the ninth and final Town Hall Meeting of the City of Sacramento Charter Review Committee.

The crowd of approximately 45 people was on the Baby Boom-plus end of the generational scale. It included members of the public, neighborhood representatives and former, current and candidate public officials, from the Central City, Curtis/Land Park, Oak Park and the South Area.

The City Charter legally and procedurally defines the City of Sacramento and its operations. Kevin Johnson's Strong Mayor Initiative, which would dramatically change the City Charter, will be on the June 2010 ballot.

Sacramento was founded with a City Charter in 1858. In 1921, during the Progressive Era, in response to rampant corruption, Sacramento changed to the current strong manager/council system to achieve more accountability. Ironically, the current Strong Mayor Initiative proponents have campaigned that accountability is not possible under the current system.

In light of Johnson's own proposals for redefining the checks and balances of power, a public process of charter policy analysis is appropriate. The City Council appointed the Charter Review Committee to explore and recommend potential changes to the City Charter.

The Strong Mayor Initiative would change the City Charter in these areas: the Mayor's role, (add) veto power, appointment of the City Manager, appointment of Charter officers (City Clerk, City Treasurer, City Attorney), appointment of Department Directors and 800+ non union employees and budgetary powers.

The Charter Review Committee recommendations are for changes in two of those areas:

The City Manager -- currently appointed by the City Council -- would be appointed by the Mayor.

The city budget, currently submitted to Council by the City Manager, would be based on the Mayor's policy priorities, reviewed and modified by the Council and developed into a proposed budget by the City Manager. The City Council and Mayor would have until June 30th each fiscal year to approve the budget.

Under the Strong Mayor Initiative, the Mayor would propose the annual budget, a Council Majority would approve the budget and the Mayor would have veto power over Council's changes to the budget. The Mayor's budget would take effect in 30 days, if the Council had not voted to override his veto by that deadline.

Soon after the public input process has been completed, the Charter Review Committee will present final recommendations to the City Council. The Council will review the recommendations and receive additional input from the public. Then, the council will vote on whether -- or not -- to place the Charter Review Committee recommendations as a measure on the June 2010 ballot.

If the City Council decides to put the Charter Review Committee final recommendations on the June 2010 ballot and if they are approved by the voters, those changes would be effective in Nov. 2012, with the next mayoral election.

If Kevin Johnson's Strong Mayor Initiative passes, those changes will take effect 45 days after the election is certified.

Even if the Council does vote to put these recommendations on the ballot, the public will still have the option to NOT vote for any changes to the City Charter.

The materials provided at the Town Hall Meeting (see links below) included a chart showing the various cities with Strong Mayors and how each is organized -- differently, with different sets of checks and balances. The Johnson proposed Strong Mayor Initiative affords Sacramento's mayor more power -- with fewer checks and balances -- than any other strong mayor city. The potential transition period is shorter than in any other Strong Mayor city, some of which have taken years -- and multiple elections -- to study and implement such fundamental changes.

The proposed Strong Mayor Initiative has been compared to legislative or corporate organizations. Yet this SMI eradicates the current council/manager system, which is similar to many corporate/board structures. It also eradicates the legislative level of public input and public accountability, which is available when the Mayor participates with -- and the City Manager is answerable to -- the elected representatives on the City Council.

The Charter Review Committee's tentative recommendations include retaining the Mayor as a member of the voting body of the City Council, with one vote and no veto power. Johnson's Strong Mayor Initiative proposes that the Mayor will not have a vote and will have veto power, which leaves a ninth spot open in the Council voting body.

The new Strong Mayor would still have the power and the vote of the ninth Council Member ... until the 9th Council District is defined and the 9th District Council Member is elected. Redistricting ordinarily follows the 10 year census process. 2010 fast approaches. Redistricting is under state, not local, jurisdiction. The answer -- to how and when will the 9th Council Member be in place -- is that there is no answer.

Other cities that have adopted structural changes this dramatic have used a long term view and a deliberative process. Details regarding the 9th Council Member could be resolved, before the transfer of multiple elected officials' shared power into the hands of just one person.

The Strong Mayor Initiative bypasses that process, transfers unprecedented professional and managerial power to one politician and affords this aspiring Strong Mayor a bonus dip of power until the 9th Council Member is seated.

These crucial and unresolved aspects of the Strong Mayor Initiative were referred to in the town hall meeting as a "Gordian Knot." If ignored, those aspects will entangle the City and its Charter in all the "unforeseen consequences," litigation and unnecessary expenditures of a predictable mess.

The Charter Committee recommendations would retain the Mayor's role as a voting (9th) member of the City Council, participating in weekly meetings and without veto power.

The current City Charter provides for a professionally trained and professionally selected City Manager, supported by the authority of the full City Council, with the Mayor as a participant. Extreme empowerment of the Mayor disempowers the Council and weakens their accountability and availability to their community.

There is much more to consider and more time to make your voice heard to your City Council.

Information is available at: 

http://www.cityofsacramento.org/charter/ http://www.cityofsacramento.org/charter/Town-Hall-Meeting-Notes-Audio.html http://www.cityofsacramento.org/charter/documents/CRC-Town-Hall-Presentation-Revised-30-Sept-2009.pdf

Sign up to be email notified on your preferred City of Sacramento issues and events at: https://service.govdelivery.com/service/user.html?code=CASACRA

Contact your City Council Member at:
http://www.cityofsacramento.org/council/index.html

Shed Some Light On Alley Activation

2009-09-24T10:07:04Z

(This comment in response to Suzanne Hunt's "Pilot Alley Project To Get $100,000" is too long for a comment and too important to not bring to immediate attention. If the public is ever to have a voice in this matter and the expenditure of those funds, now is the time).

Today ground was broken for Jeremy Drucker's Stitch model project in the 17th/18th/L/Capitol Alley.

Today would have been the September Alley Activation meeting, which was inexplicably cancelled.

At August's Alley Activation meeting, Steve Cohn announced the availability of the $100,000 CDBG funds. He said the money needed to be spent and projects completed within a year and "Let's have a plan together within the next three weeks."

http://www.sacramentopress.com/headline/14244/Pilot_alley_project_to_get_100000

"Work on a pilot alley project may begin next year after $100,000 in community development money has become available, Sacramento City Councilmember Steve Cohn said Wednesday.

"The money is coming from unused federal community development block grant (CDBG) funds leftover from a street lighting program in North Sacramento's Ben Ali neighborhood."

I have been asking people in general what they think about this focus on alleys and expenditure on beautification during tight budgetary times. Most agree that there are many other priorities in the broader community, including the street lighting issues throughout Midtown. Why light alleys when many Midtown streets are still dark?

This past Wednesday night, Zocalo celebrated Mexican Independence Day. Whatever and for however long the patrons were drinking, this was one of the worst nights ever for people leaving extremely intoxicated, having altercations and driving away drunk. Two women were weaving down the alley at midnight, one literally falling out of her shoes, the other providing some balance and saying "I''m okay to drive."

If city leaders and local businesses continue to base their revitalization efforts on drawing crowds to Midtown to imbibe and drive, while creating a false sense of safety within "activated" alleys, more people are going to become crime victims, not fewer. It's already happened, with increased car break ins and robberies that are underreported. The overall sense of lawlessness and mayhem created and fostered by city leaders has resulted in another fatality. This past week, a security guard was hit by a car -- possibly shot or stabbed -- in a parking lot at 20th and K Street.

"The goal is to create an attractive, well-lit pedestrian- and bicycle-friendly corridor, giving diners and shoppers easy access to the East End Parking Garage."

Easy access? As if walking down the sidewalk and turning a corner is too difficult? Zocalo and other 18th Street watering holes need to herd their drunken clientele down a chute to the garage? If these patrons can't figure out how to get to and from the East End Parking Garage, before or after the party, please don't parade them down the prettified alley to be easy prey for criminals.

It's a real pretense that the issue here is getting people to the parking garage. Zocalo was approved as a 500-600 seat restaurant by the Planning Commission (it was never approved as the rowdy nightclub that it actually is) and granted a parking waiver. The streets immediately filled up with Zocalo and other business' patrons (and employees), making it impossible for residents to park. The Zocalo owner bought a registered Historic Landmark property a half block up Capitol Avenue and immediately cut down every living thing in the back yard (in a record two hours), including two extremely rare Heritage Trees.

One year ago, the owner paved -- without required City Building Permits -- the rear of the property. He created a tandem lot for 2 rows of eightfour cars, used by him and Zocalo employees. The East End Parking Garage at the end of the alley? No. They have to park closer to Zocalo and play musical cars all day and all night. That lot has been consistently used by the owners and patrons of Old Soul Co. directly across the alley, who also were granted a parking waiver for their retail business which was originally approved as "wholesale only, never need parking." The owners were notified by city staff that if their business use changed, the parking issue would come up again. The Old Soul owners claim that people walk and bike in or use the East End Parking Garage. Yet they all continuously park as close to the door of Old Soul Co. as possible, including stopping and parking illegally in the alley.

If the objective is to draw pedestrians down the alley, why don't the very businesses that directly and personally benefit from expenditure of public funds for "alley activation" use the East End Parking Garage, use the alternatives that they advocate, obtain proper permits and comply with the conditions of their Parking Waivers?

And now, a year after the illegal cement and compacted gravel tandem parking lot was put in, it has been taken out again, to make way for the Stitch model condo. Where will ALL those users of that lot be parking now?

Oh, and to top it all off, the Stitch project before the City Zoning Administrator tomorrow afternoon is requesting a Parking Waiver.

From the SacPress article:

"City Development Services staff will give input on the plan. Councilmembers have discretion over how CDBG money for their districts is used, so the plan doesn't need City Council approval, said senior city planner Stacia Cosgrove."

This will be news to the City Council, who on August 11th approved the continuation of City Staff working with the Alley Activation Committee, on what was presented as an open and public process, without specific decisions on which alleys would finally be chosen for development.

When this month's Alley Activation meeting was cancelled and after Bob Shallit in the Bee announced the 17th/18th/L/Capitol alley "activation" as a foregone conclusion, I called Steve Cohn's office. I asked whether the decision that this would be the first alley "activated" had been made and who makes the final decision. I was told "No" to the first and "I don't know" to the second. I also asked the same of Stacia Cosgrove. A week ago she did not have the answer that is presented in SacPress today.

So the public is left out of the process; the neighbors are invited to one meeting after complaining about being left out and the next meeting is cancelled; the Council is left in the dark; Council approval for use of city staff time is needed but their vote on the results of that staff time and the final choice of alleys for the project are "not needed."

City Staff is contributing "unpaid" hours to the project; the press reports it's a done deal; the process goes forging ahead behind the scenes; and the very people who will profit the most from "Alley Activation," who are on the committee, have selected their own properties to be first in line.

The canned answer to that last concern is "Doesn't it make sense that the people who are making the effort and spending their own money get something out of it?"

Yes. In a public process affecting public property, the future of sustainable development and the whole community, utilizing public funds intended to benefit the whole community, those business owners certainly deserve to be part of the process.

However, they don't deserve to run the process. The don't deserve to exclude the public and patronize city council representatives, while collaborating with city staff on how to spend $100,000 in public funds.

Maybe some lighting needs to be shed on this process.

Early Summer Color and Fruit at the Farmers' Market

2009-07-09T02:37:56Z

This was another perfect summer day with good breezes, bright sun and a bonus: the Wednesday Farmers Market at Cesar Chavez Plaza, in front of City Hall.

Magnolias are in full bloom, on the walk from Midtown along Capitol Park. A brushstroke of blue agapanthus cuts through the green park and hides the black security fence. Lunchtime walkers pass by with their goodies from the fresh produce market, just blocks away.

At Cesar Chavez Plaza, the inner ring around the fountain is full of lunch vendors and stalls selling fresh breads, kettle corn and Italian ices. The outer ring holds the fresh bounty our rich growing season.

The smell of strawberries hits before even reaching the table, spread with ripe, red gems. A man carefully decides which basket he will take home.

Early July brings us blueberries, raspberries and blackberries, plus the first of the apricots. We still have fresh apples and ice cold organic apple juice.

The usual bounty of greens, nuts, herbs, flowers and organic cold pressed olive oil, now is filling in with summer stone fruits: peaches, nectarines, plums and those early apricots.

We have yet to see a fresh tomato, except on the vines at home, purchased from the herb sellers. They have all types of perennial and annual herbs and a few of those tomato plants left, ready to get rooted and reach for the summer sun.

One flower vendor includes huge orange and magenta echinacea flowers in the bouquets. All the vibrant colors of summer clash well in exuberant arrangements.

On the walk back to Midtown, the Edible Garden in Capitol Park is revealed, no longer encircled by a white picket fence. The tomatoes, peppers, basil, zucchini, sunflowers and other herbs and vegetables are all well established.

California First Lady Maria Shriver got the idea for the Capitol garden after visiting Alice Waters Edible Schoolyard in Berkeley.

From the San Francisco Chronicle article on the dedication and planting in May, Shriver, "praised the community-building benefits of working in a garden and said, "Everything you need to learn in life you can learn on the playground and in a garden." "

Our farmers bring the garden to us nearly every day of the week, this time of year. We appreciate them, their hard work and their delicious, healthy and beautiful produce.

Farmers' Market locations and times
http://www.california-grown.com/Market-times.html

Article on Edible Garden at the State Capitol
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/blogs/nov05election/detail?entry_id=40501