Last year at this time, I was writing about the “squashed” Farm-to-Fork Festival due to the pandemic. Now it’s back and blooming and better than ever.

Sacramento’s beloved music and food street festival returns to the Capitol Mall Friday and Saturday, Sept. 17–18. Attendees will find local foods, wines, craft beer, cooking demonstrations and more, all within view of the Tower Bridge and state Capitol.

More than two years ago, the city of Sacramento embarked on a major construction project at McKinley Park—an underground water vault to pull excess water from storm drains during heavy rains. The goal was to prevent the recurrence of floods in the neighborhood.

This month the city moves to the final step—renovation of the eastern part of the park between the McKinley Rose Garden and tennis courts. Renovations include new turf, trees and picnic areas. A heater for Clunie Pool will create a year-round aquatic center.

I lived across the street for about 90 percent of the construction. It was exhausting. The nonprofit Friends of East Sacramento—founded by Lisa Schmidt and me in 2010—manages the Clunie Community Center and rose garden, adjacent to the vault construction. The impacts on the center and garden were significant.

Kevin Dobson is different from you, me and most people. When we see a problem in our community, we may gripe and vent, but we’re busy with our own lives and that’s often as far as we get.

Not Dobson. When the 32-year-old Natomas Charter School principal grew frustrated seeing so many smart, creative students finish school with “no tangible real-world skills,” as he put it, he felt compelled to act.

The Gavin Newsom recall began as a referendum on the governor’s handling of the pandemic. But homelessness has become a critical issue for Republican candidates eager to replace Newsom in this month’s special election.

Businessman John Cox has been hauling an 8-foot ball of garbage around California to symbolize “the trash that’s left behind” by homeless people.

What is the role of city planners? Should they decide what’s best for citizens and draft Byzantine building codes and zoning regulations to enforce politically inspired mandates? Or should they learn the preferences of residents and make those preferences work?

It appears top-down influence is the order at Sacramento City Hall when it comes to upzoning, where multiple units are encouraged over single-family homes.