From the Publisher’s Desk

The Old Sacramento Waterfront has a vacant, dark hole instead of a beautiful dining spot with the best views in town. Mark and Stephanie Miller closed Rio City Café Aug. 3, ending 30 years as a family-run landmark.

The café’s landlord was the city of Sacramento. City officials didn’t maintain the building as required under lease terms. Most egregious was the city’s neglectful approach to the river deck that produced 70% of the restaurant’s revenue.

Rather than make repairs, the city ordered the deck closed for safety reasons. And the city rejected efforts by the Millers to fund a temporary measure to reopen the deck while permanent fixes were planned, approved and funded.

I’ve met hundreds of small business owners in almost three decades as publisher of Inside Sacramento. Mark and Stephanie Miller, co-owners of Rio City Café, are among my all-time favorites.

I met Stephanie in 2015, when the Millers arrived from Denver to run Rio City. Mark’s father owned the restaurant for decades.

Rio City has the best river views in town, just north of Tower Bridge. “The deck location has been the site of so many community memories, from parties to wedding proposals,” Stephanie says.

Crossing the street in the Sacramento region can kill you.

Local traffic accidents killed 377 pedestrians from 2018 to 2022, ranking the capital 20th on Smart Growth America’s list of the most dangerous U.S. communities for people on foot.

Isaac Gonzalez is working to reduce those horrific numbers.

David Sobon has overseen the creation of more than 200 local murals with Wide Open Walls, a nonprofit art organization he founded in 2017. His new passion is creating murals for local schools in underserved neighborhoods.

Murals bring social, cultural and economic benefits. They build a sense of community and offer accessibility to art and creative expression without the cost barriers of museums and galleries.

“Outdoor murals have a proven track record to be a fairly inexpensive way to enhance the image of cities,” Sobon says.

Our city’s murals have been featured in widespread media. The cover of Parade magazine recognized one as best in the state.

A statewide signature-gathering effort is underway for a ballot measure to roll back provisions of California’s Proposition 47, which turned drug possession, drug trafficking and theft into misdemeanors.

If adopted by California voters next November, “The Homelessness, Drug Addiction, and Theft Reduction Act,” or “Fix Prop. 47,” would give prosecutors discretion to charge drug addicts with a “treatment-mandated felony” after two drug convictions.

These are modest, necessary reforms to address drug trafficking, addiction and theft plaguing California.

Early last year, I needed hospice care for the end of my husband’s long life. I asked Jim’s doctor for YoloCares hospice. He said it was a good choice. He heard good reviews about YoloCares, especially in grief support services.

My decision was personal. It was a tribute to how Jim and I built our business for 27 years. Yolo was our largest advertiser. I learned about their services from ads. Jim always wanted to support businesses that supported us.

Jim’s hospice care was less than five days. He was 93 and suffered four years of worsening dementia after a car accident that caused a brain injury. His wishes were clear. He was ready to go.