After eight years as mayor, Darrell Steinberg knows the homeless crisis will be part of his legacy regardless of the resources, energy and political capital he put into the search for answers.
“I know two things,” Steinberg says. “I think I have been hurt by the expectations I set for myself and I readily acknowledge it. I came in as president of the Senate, author of the (state’s) Mental Health Services Act, and I pushed really hard, and I think the fact that it grew worse not just in the city but in the entire state, people said, ‘Come on. You said it was going to get better,’ and I have to own that.”
While critics tend to overlook his tangible results as mayor—1,200 more shelter beds, partnering with the county for services, and eventual enforcement against large encampments—there’s another part of Steinberg’s legacy I believe is more impactful.
Steinberg, who left office in December, scraped, clawed and finessed his way through the constraints of political leadership to leave a lasting imprint that will pay dividends for years.
At the UC Davis Health Center campus on Stockton Boulevard, Steinberg mediated the settlement of two neighborhood lawsuits and, with UC Davis Chancellor Gary May and others, paved the way for Aggie Square.
The $1.1 billion innovation hub is projected to generate nearly $3 billion in annual economic activity, with potential for scientific breakthroughs.
Steinberg was a driving force behind the project’s community benefits agreement to bring affordable housing, jobs and other enhancements to people near the health campus.
At the Downtown railyards, Steinberg, Republic FC soccer team and Wilton Rancheria, the tribe that owns Sky River Casino in Elk Grove, announced plans for a 12,000-seat expandable stadium.
The proposal also envisions a separate entertainment district that would include a hotel, housing, concert venue and other amenities for an investment of more than $320 million.
Much of the infrastructure will be funded by expanding an existing Stadium Enhanced Infrastructure Financing District over the entire railyard site, something pushed by Steinberg and others.
On his way out, Steinberg announced a revamped plan to upgrade the Old Sacramento Waterfront. An earlier effort was derailed by the pandemic, but the city now can leverage some $47 million in hotel tax revenues.
Those funds are available thanks to Steinberg’s championing of a 2022 voter-approved measure allowing the money to be used for “economic development projects.” The waterfront proposal includes a new hotel.
Steinberg’s role in promoting Downtown dates to before he became mayor. In 1997, when Steinberg was a City Council member and the late Joe Serna was mayor, they engineered a $74 million loan to the Kings. Team owners said the bailout was needed to balance their books and keep the Kings in town. The loan was paid back.
When Steinberg was state Senate president in 2013, Sacramento was again in danger of losing the Kings. Steinberg carried legislation to make it all but impossible to delay construction of Golden 1 Center under the California Environmental Quality Act.
Some of Steinberg’s actions were controversial. Some required slick political maneuvering. So what? That’s what it takes to get things done in a modern American city. Steinberg deserves credit for helping drive it all to fruition.
“At the end of the day, there are only two things that matter,” Steinberg said. “What you get done and how people feel about the way you did your job. I think on both counts, I’m leaving with my head very high despite some of the criticism. It’s been messy. It’s been hard. I have made my share of mistakes, no question.
“But the main job of a mayor of modern Sacramento is to aspire and achieve more places for people to have fun. To grow the economy. To build communities. To create memories. That’s why sports and music and art are so important. In a modern growing city, the mayorship is about placemaking, and we’ve done a lot of that.”
Gary Delsohn can be reached at gdelsohn@gmail.com. Follow us on Facebook and Instagram: @insidesacramento.
