May 28, 2026
Recently I read an essay about the “third place.” The idea has been around for years. Our first place is home. Our second place is work. The third place is everything in between, the locations where we gather, linger and connect.
Sacramento has always had strong third places. But we can no longer assume they will sustain themselves.
Think about a Saturday morning at the Midtown Farmers Market or Sunday morning under the freeway. Strangers stand together and sample citrus, buy flowers and debate which bakery line is shorter. Everyone participates and builds familiarity and a sense of trust.
May 28, 2026
The city’s Planning and Design Commission is no ship of fools. Planning commissioners showed their smarts earlier this year when they discussed changing the rules for short-term housing rentals.
They declared—for the record—Sacramento isn’t Barcelona or Pismo Beach. Thanks for clearing that up.
A dozen or so people in the City Hall audience absorbed the news as one might expect. No shrieks. No boos. Just silence.
Comparisons to beach towns in Spain and central California are rare at City Hall. But comparisons are handy when local authorities try to corral short-term rentals.
May 28, 2026
Every city has pressure points. In Sacramento, one point is the growing disconnect between what the city spends and what it can afford.
Sacramento Regional Business Leaders Council steps into this discussion with a clear voice. Formed in 2012, the group is a roughly 60-member coalition of business leaders from banking, manufacturing, agriculture and development. Its focus is how governmental decisions affect the cost and feasibility of doing business in the region.
Its chief executive is John Vignocchi, a local affordable housing developer. He explains, “We’re trying to help Sacramento realize its full potential through advocating for common-sense government policies.”
Apr 28, 2026
With his years on City Council and the state Assembly, Kevin McCarty brings more than two decades of elected public service to the mayor’s office.
He says being mayor requires a different perspective.
After 15 months in his new job, McCarty invited me to City Hall for what he called a “one-year check-in.” We discussed homelessness, Downtown’s recovery, government efficiency and what surprised him most about being mayor.
We began with homelessness. “There’s no question it’s the issue I deal with every day,” McCarty says.
Apr 28, 2026
Homeless crises are nothing new in Sacramento. The first one happened in August 1850, when outrageous real estate prices caused people to camp on land that didn’t belong to them.
Everybody had guns in 1850. The guns went off when city officials tried to clear camps around Fourth and J streets and Tahoe Park. Five people died and six were wounded before things calmed down.
Apr 28, 2026
Sacramento County’s District 1 supervisor June primary election has four candidates. Question is, are they qualified?
Each prospect offers a version of leadership that sounds reasonable in isolation. But elections aren’t about isolated promises. They’re about tradeoffs, priorities and the complex realities of governing a large, diverse and financially constrained bureaucracy.
Then there’s Senate Bill 802, introduced by state Sen. Angelique Ashby. If it becomes law, the management of homelessness and affordable housing will change significantly.
The bill proposes a joint powers authority to oversee homelessness and housing policies, shifting decision-making away from the county into a regional body.
Where do the candidates stand?
