Email this page
Print this page
del.icio.us
diggThis town has 20/20 vision
Like most twenty-year-olds, the town is ready to do a lot of living.
Ana Cotham
Tower Bridge
Big plans for the future
“Launching big, ambitious projects and getting them done in two years is no longer big news, it’s expected of West Sacramento,” Mayor Christopher Cabaldon told the audience at the annual State of the City address on May 22.
A city’s first priority is its community—how to shelter, employ and entertain them. The current estimated population of about 45,000 is projected to rise to more than 78,000 in the next 15-20 years. West Sacramento’s older neighborhoods, while seeing the promise of revitalization and preservation, can’t handle that growth. Enter large subdivisions such as Newport Estates and Bridgeway Lakes, as well as smaller developments like River’s Side at Washington Square, nestled at the foot of the I Street Bridge. Since 2000, the city has added between 5,000 to 6,000 housing units (the numbers represent occupied housing, not just building permits); in 2005 alone more than 1,400 units were built. Before this, the city typically added 10-20 units per year.
Though the housing boom really started in this decade, the employment growth rate jumped 89% back in the 1990s—even before the big-name retailers began moving into town. “We’ve been retail challenged for years,” laughs Kay Fenrich, CEO of the West Sacramento Chamber of Commerce, but that is no longer the case. West Sacramento has not only welcomed retailers such as Nugget Markets (#13 on Fortune Magazine’s 100 Best Companies to Work For 2007), IKEA and Target—and, soon, Lowe’s and Home Depot—but the fresh design of WalMart, open since June, will serve as a model for future stores.
As for entertainment, the city is host to one of America’s favorite pastimes: baseball. Raley Field, which opened in 2000, is home of the River Cats, the Triple-A affiliate baseball team for the Oakland Athletics. The venue also hosts concerts, community celebrations, festivals and private events. While smaller community events such as summertime’s Harmony on the River concert series and the Neighbors Fair in October continue to thrive, the popular Fourth of July event, Bridgefest, has finally outgrown its location on the Daniel C. Palamidessi Bridge. The 2007 event was cancelled, but the city is currently researching replacement sites.
The phases of intelligent growth
West Sacramento is gung-ho about the years of hard work ahead. One of its top priorities is renovating the Tower Bridge Gateway, a 3,300-foot-long stretch of freeway that cuts across West Sacramento to the Tower Bridge. The project is divided into two phases. The West Phase Project, which began in April and is expected to be completed by the end of the year, will transform the gateway into a city street, complete with intersections with traffic signals and bike and pedestrians lanes. The East Phase Project is contingent upon funding and the relocation of the Union Pacific railroad spur track, so work will likely not begin for another three to five years.
What West Sacramento doesn’t really have—and what most small cities desire—is a central downtown area. Under the Streetscape Master Plan, the re-imagining of West Capitol Avenue features more pedestrian-friendly amenities such as trees, benches, lighting and wider sidewalks, along with a reconfiguration of traffic lanes and revised standards for building development.
 |
Proposed View of Midtown Residential District(Moore Iacofano Goltsman, Inc.) |
“It’s the transformation of a former state highway into the community’s downtown,” says Maureen Daly Pascoe, redevelopment program manager. “Not a small undertaking, but certainly worthwhile. The best analogy for the design concept is Octavia Street in San Francisco—formerly the site of the Central Freeway, now a multi-way boulevard lined with housing and shops.” Currently in the final design stage, the improvements are intended to cover the two miles between Harbor Boulevard and the railroad underpass near Fifth Street. Construction is scheduled to begin the summer of 2008.
Perhaps most representative of West Sacramento’s vision is the Project Pride initiative. Officially launched by the West Sacramento Chamber of Commerce in February 2007, it encourages the improvement and expansion of the city’s image and business environment. “We know it’s not a short-term project,” says Fenrich. “As we accomplish some of our goals, we’ll have additional items to replace them.” On the list of enhancements is increased lighting, improved signage (for both directional purposes and to promote events and community spirit), expanded recreational access at Raley Landing and the Sacramento River, and focusing on more cosmetic aspects such as public art and on monuments that celebrate the city’s rich history. It will also reach out, via workshops, to smaller businesses that may require assistance to upgrade their facilities.
Each area of Project Pride has its own committee that is charged with developing missions, goals and realistic timelines. The first project they hope to finish by the end of the year is lighting the Ziggurat Building, which will create a striking visual marker on the riverfront. As with most improvements today, thinking green is a big deal. “We’re working with the state on figuring out the best ways to go green,” Fenrich says. “The Ziggurat was built green when it was constructed in 1997. So it has that base, but the technology has improved.”
Project Pride is a partnership between the city, the business community and its residents, says Fenrich. “We know there are times for government to take lead, and other times when private businesses take the lead—and that’s where we are. We all have the same vision for what we are working to create for our community.” Another twenty years, and the pride of this city will be a vision indeed.
Sacramento River
Do you like what you read? Subscribe to Solano Magazine »
