Inside Land Park - Grid - April 2021

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LAND PARK • CURTIS PARK • HOLLYWOOD PARK • SOUTH LAND PARK • THE GRID • OAK PARK Our Other Editions Serve: East Sacramento • Arden/Carmichael • Pocket

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1727 Deerhaven Drive - $1,100,000 CUSTOM BUIL COLFAX HOME ON 3+ACRES 4+ beds 5+ baths, soaring ceilings, luxury flooring 2 incredible stone fireplaces, 4-car garage, private well, Tankless water heater STEPHANIE FERRIS 916-402-9213 DRE-02016586

PENDING

6661 Fordham Way - $599,000 COMFORTABLE SOUTH LAND PARK HILLS. Beneath a beautiful shade tree, 3 beds, 2 baths, with hardwood floors, tile kitchen, baths and sunroom. 2-car garage. Gorgeous big backyard!

HILARY BUCHANAN 916-397-7502 DRE DRE-01359213 01359213

SOLD

3347 – 11th Street - $830,000 LAND PARK SQUEAKY WILLIAMS BUILT 3 bed, 2 bath with original charm of hardwood floors and built-in cabinets updated with white kitchen and baths and hu huge separate family room. Out building too. JOHN BYERS 916-607-0313 DRE-01935458

1148 – 8th Avenue - $699,000 NEAR VIC’S IN LAND PARK 3 bed 1½ bath, classic Land Park home in a great location. Gorgeous remodeled kitchen with new appliances and quartz countertops.

MONA GERGEN 916-247-9555 DRE-01270375

PENDING

885 Robertson Way - $539,500 LAND PARK PERSONALITY PLUS! Cheery 2 bed 1 bath home with lots of windows! Hardwood floors, expansive deck, deep backyard and detached garage. Your own paradise SHEILA VAN NOY 916-505-5395 DRE DRE-00924678 00924678

PENDING

2672 – 17th Street - $535,000 CHARMINNG LAND PARK BUNGALOW. 2 bed, 1 bath, with newer windows, HVAC, insulation and more. Huge backyard deck and remote office area/studio behind the garage. Great location.

SHEILA VAN NOY 916-505-5395 DRE-00924678

PENDING

1817 – 5th Avenue - $839,000 LOCATION! LOCATION! LOCATION! 3 bed, 2 bath charming Land Park home w/1873 sf. Large family room with vaulted ceilings, swimming pool and updated kitchen.

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5600 Greenbrae Road - $599,000 SOUTH LAND PARK DUPLEX. Convenient location near shopping schools and minutes from downtown. 2 bed, 1 bath units each with private yard, fireplace and garage. New exterior paint LISA McCAULEY 916-601-5474 DRE-00933026

Land Park (916) 454-5753 DRE#00707598 Sierra Oaks (916) 484-2030 DRE #01103090

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EAST SACRAMENTO • McKINLEY PARK • RIVER PARK • ELMHURST • TAHOE PARK • CAMPUS COMMONS

ARDEN • ARCADE • SIERRA OAKS • WILHAGGIN • DEL PASO MANOR • CARMICHAEL

LAND PARK • CURTIS PARK • HOLLYWOOD PARK • SOUTH LAND PARK • THE GRID • OAK PARK

POCKET • GREENHAVEN • SOUTH POCKET • LITTLE POCKET • RIVERLAKE • DELTA SHORES

Our Other Editions Serve: Land Park/Grid • Arden/Carmichael • Pocket

Our Other Editions Serve: East Sacramento • Land Park/Grid • Pocket VISIT OUR WEBSITE: INSIDESACRAMENTO.COM 3104 O ST. #120 • SACRAMENTO, CA 95816

Our Other Editions Serve: East Sacramento • Arden/Carmichael • Pocket

VISIT OUR WEBSITE: INSIDESACRAMENTO.COM 3104 O ST. #120 • SACRAMENTO, CA 95816

Our Other Editions Serve: East Sacramento • Land Park/Grid • Arden/Carmichael VISIT OUR WEBSITE: INSIDESACRAMENTO.COM 3104 O ST. #120 • SACRAMENTO, CA 95816

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COVER ARTIST

3104 O St. #120, Sac. CA 95816 (Mail Only)

info@insidepublications.com PUBLISHER Cecily Hastings EDITOR Cathryn Rakich editor@insidepublications.com

LIZ CARROLL Liz Carroll was raised and schooled in Land Park.

She still resides in the beautiful community and works daily in her garage studio. Her background consists of instructing all forms of art to children and seniors. She loves to find beauty and innocence in the world through children's eyes.

Shown: “Land Park Lotus Ballerina,” alcohol ink on YUPO paper, 11 inches by 14 inches. Her inspiration is the lotus blooms in Land Park. She is currently working on marketing greeting cards and can be reached at lizayden@comcast.net.

PRODUCTION M.J. McFarland DESIGN Cindy Fuller PHOTOGRAPHY Linda Smolek, Aniko Kiezel @anikophotos AD COORDINATION Michele Mazzera DISTRIBUTION Sue Pane Sue@insidepublications.com ACCOUNTING Daniel Nardinelli, COO, daniel@insidepublications.com

Lauren Stenvick accounts@insidepublications.com 916.443.5087 ACCOUNT Sally Giancanelli 916.335.6503 SG@insidepublications.com SERVICE TEAM Lauren Stenvick 916.524.0336 LS@insidepublications.com Abby Fulton 916.380.7238 AF@insidepublications.com EDITORIAL POLICY Commentary reflects the views of the writers and does not necessarily reflect those of Inside Publications. Inside Publications is delivered for free to more than 80,000 households in Sacramento. Printing and distribution costs are paid entirely by advertising revenue. Inside Publications welcomes readers’ comments. Letters to the Editor should be submitted via email to editor@insidepublications.com. Please include name, address and phone number.

Letters may be published as space permits and edited for brevity.

No portion may be reproduced mechanically or electronically without written permission of the publisher. All ad designs & editorial—©

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APRIL 2021 VOL. 24 • ISSUE 3 6 8 16 18 20 22 24 28 30 32 34 36 38 40 42 43 44 46 48 50

Publisher's Desk Out & About Meet Your Neighbor Inside The County Pocket Beat City Beat Open House Animals & Their Allies Celebrating 125 Years Giving Back Not So Fast Building Our Future Garden Jabber Farm To Fork Spirit Matters Here Comes The Sun Sports Authority Open Studio Restaurant Insider Youth Interrupted

It’s a perfect time to sell. Low inventory feeds a seller’s market so you and the girls couldn’t have timed it better. Glad we ZHUH DEOH WR ĬQG \RX D QHZ amazing place to call home as well. Win-win.

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TIM COLLOM

ANDREW HINDMAN

LAND PARK • CURTIS PARK • HOLLYWOOD PARK • SOUTH LAND PARK • THE GRID • OAK PARK

ARDEN • ARCADE • SIERRA OAKS • WILHAGGIN • DEL PASO MANOR • CARMICHAEL

EAST SACRAMENTO • McKINLEY PARK • RIVER PARK • ELMHURST • TAHOE PARK • CAMPUS COMMONS

Our Other Editions Serve: East Sacramento • Arden/Carmichael • Pocket

Our Other Editions Serve: East Sacramento • Land Park/Grid • Pocket

Our Other Editions Serve: Land Park/Grid • Arden/Carmichael • Pocket

VISIT OUR WEBSITE: NSIDE ACRAMENTO.COM 3104 O ST. #120 • SACRAMENTO, CA 95816

VISIT OUR WEBSITE: NSIDE ACRAMENTO.COM 3104 O ST. #120 • SACRAMENTO, CA 95816

VISIT OUR WEBSITE: INSIDESACRAMENTO.COM 3104 O ST. #120 • SACRAMENTO, CA 95816

THE MOST INTERESTING PEOPLE, PLACES, NEWS & OPINION IN AMERICA'S FARM-TO-FORK CAPITAL

THE MOST INTERESTING PEOPLE, PLACES, NEWS & OPINION IN AMERICA'S FARM-TO-FORK CAPITAL

THE MOST INTERESTING PEOPLE, PLACES, NEWS & OPINION IN AMERICA'S FARM-TO-FORK CAPITAL

Susan Silvester

Tim Collom

Andrew Hindman

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IT’S A SMALL WORLD 25 YEARS, BUT SOME THINGS DON’T CHANGE

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he essay below appeared in February 1996 in our first Inside East Sacramento. I found it recently in a book of the first year’s editions my husband made for me as a gift.

My first reaction was astonishment.

As I read, I realized little has changed with our mission after 25 years.

Last month, Inside Sacramento was honored with two special awards. First, we were selected as part of “10 News Publishers That Do It Right 2021” by the trade magazine Editor & Publisher.

“Our 10 news publishers had to learn how to navigate a brand-new world.

Whether it was pivoting to virtual work to offering creative and innovative advertising packages to address the needs of their communities, they were able to find a silver lining during a very tough season,” the editors wrote.

“Even with the COVID-19 shutdowns, (Inside Sacramento)

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maintained profitability in 2020 and avoided layoffs. In 2021, the company also aims to help local restaurants recover by offering scholarship paid advertising plans funded by a COVID city creative grant it received.”

Additionally, Editor & Publisher selected our COO Daniel Nardinelli for its “25 Under 35,” recognizing Next Generation News Leaders across the country.

In both categories, Inside Sacramento was the only local publication based in California.

I've also selected three more of my favorite covers shown above.

IT'S A SMALL WORLD After nearly three years as editor of the East Sac News, I decided East Sacramento merited its very own homegrown publication. After all, East Sacramento is a fascinating corner of the city. It has a diverse population, ranging from college students and young families to retirees. It’s physically beautiful, with distinctive architecture, wonderful parks and lovely shade streets. It features a flourishing neighborhood preservation movement and a vibrant small business community. In an era of inner city

decline, East Sacramento is a model of what an urban neighborhood can be.

Each month this publication will take a probing look inside East Sacramento.

You’ll find articles on our schools, restaurants and small businesses.

We will discuss the neighborhood’s wonderful older homes and gardens, and the interesting people who live in them. You’ll see stories about how we’re trying to preserve our heritage, which includes both our historical buildings and the rich heritage of our longtime residents. Anyone who knows me well is aware that I am an unabashed fan of East Sac. We will cover our city government and politics from the perspective of how decisions affect our lives both positively and negatively. I’m still amazed at how little people know about their city government. We can’t depend on politicians and the Bee to give us everything we need to know about our community.

While the management of our city has become much more user-friendly in the last several years, I still see politicians operating behind closed doors negotiating deals that will affect our community for many years into the future. It often appears less a matter of

right or wrong, than what is politically correct at the time.

We named this publication Inside East Sacramento for a specific reason. For many folks, East Sac has come to represent the community of neighborhoods bounded by the freeways, the river and the railroad tracks. But drawing lines based upon a set of freeways has disconnected us from people who once were our neighbors located to the south and west.

So while our primary audience is residents of East Sacramento proper, we

Cecily Hastings, 1996

Eric

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will be including information pertinent to all neighborhoods east of Downtown.

My experience has shown we have much more in common with these areas than we may realize. Midtown has more than a dozen active small neighborhoods and hundreds of great shops, restaurants and cultural activities enjoyed by many Sacramentans. If you’re not yet a fan of Midtown, we encourage you to get to know our historic and unique neighbor.

Just because we are living inside East Sac does not mean we’re not affected by problems outside our boundaries.

We cannot simply bury our heads in the sand, believing it won’t happen here.

Many of the problems facing East Sac, including graffiti vandalism and theft, have been plaguing the neighborhoods surrounding us for years. We need to care about the problems of our neighbors. If we don’t, one day soon we’ll face much bigger problems closer to home.

All great cities are a sum of the diversity of their neighborhoods. It has been my pleasure to discover that the people living inside East Sacramento play important roles throughout our city and region.

One final word, and it may be the most important. We want this publication to be fun to read and look

at, and full of new discoveries. We will also strive to provide you with information that will make you a more informed citizen. Each and every one of us needs to find something to offer back to our neighborhoods. After all, it’s great neighborhoods that make great cities.

We also want to challenge you to see things from the perspective of your neighbors, whether you agree with them or not. We plan to put in practice the saying, “Let’s disagree without being disagreeable.” We’re constantly on the lookout for the people, places, ideas and imagination that give our portion of the city its unique spirit and flair.

Please feel free to pick up the phone and call us. After all, we (and the many small businesses that make this publication possible) are your neighbors.

That perhaps, more than anything, is what we hope to present to you, our readers, as we join together in defining East Sacramento for ourselves and articulating a vision of what we can be.

Cecily Hastings can be reached at publisher@insidepublictions.com.

Previous columns can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

I LOVE meeting new people!

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RAISING KALE Amber Stott of the Food Literacy Center launches a book and podcast with fun activities for kids.

LITERACY CENTER CHIEF KEEPS FOOD CONVERSATION GOING

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mber Stott has been busy. The CEO and chief food genius of the Food Literacy Center recently launched a book and podcast to teach kids about food and continue the conversation around food access.

“We have all personally experienced a fractured food system during the COVID pandemic: empty grocery store shelves, rising hunger and political protests for Black Lives Matter,” Stott says. “All of these issues are connected to the work that Food Literacy Center

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By Jessica Laskey Out & About

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does. But these aren’t easy issues.

Carrots are just part of the solution. It’s complicated.”

Stott’s “Raising Kale” podcast, launched last month in partnership with RADIO.COM, explores our multi-layered food system by talking to inspiring “kale raisers” who are solving problems and making change happen. Listen in at raisingkale.com.

With her debut book, “Food Anatomy Activities for Kids,” Stott takes learning to the kitchen with an exploration of food history and food science through recipes and fun, hands-on activities, such as baking bread, making cheese and sprouting a watermelon.

“I’ve seen thousands of students light up with joy as they learn to cook with our nonprofit,” Stott says. “I know (the book) will bring that same sense of exploration and joy to young readers.”

Neither Stott nor the Food Literacy Center receive any royalties from the sale of the book. Stott even donated her

author fee to the nonprofit. For more information, visit foodliteracycenter. org.

INCLUSIVITY PROJECT The Inclusivity Project launched earlier this spring with the goal of securing $100 million for 1,000 Black-owned businesses in Northern California.

A strategic partnership between Northern California Small Business Development Centers and Nor-Cal Financial Development Corporation, the initiative hopes to help level the playing field for Black small business owners when it comes to accessing capital. It’s been estimated that half of the nation’s Black entrepreneurs have been forced out of business by COVIDrelated circumstances.

“One hundred million dollars is a lofty goal, but the SBDC is committed to economic diversity as it breeds

economic vitality, and I think we are up for the task,” says project coordinator and SBDC finance expert Chris Horton.

“It’s my hope that this opportunity will bring needed attention to Black and minority-owned businesses and demonstrate that the SBDC ecosystem serves all people and bridges pathways for minority-owned businesses to financial platforms to stand on.”

Participants receive expert business advice and training opportunities, as well as other resources at no cost.

For more information or to apply for services, visit theinclusivityproject.com.

OLD SAC CAROUSEL A fun new carousel, characteristic of old-time county fairs, has joined the 65-foot Waterfront Wheel in Old Sacramento.

Both operated by Brass Ring Amusements, the attractions are located in Waterfront Park on Front Street

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in front of Rio City Café and are open every day for $6 per ride. Hours are Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Friday through Sunday from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m.

Safety protocols include physically distanced line queues, regularly sanitized carts and high-touch surfaces, and contactless payment and admission.

THE PLUM SALON San Francisco-based The Plum Organic Beauty has opened a second location in the Union Park Project, a new small business complex in Oak Park.

“After moving to Oak Park with my family two years ago, I have been looking for a salon space that is close to home,” owner Danica Winters says.

“I am excited to own a business in my local community and create a place to recover from all of the challenges that have resulted from the pandemic. The Plum Organic Beauty is a safe place for hairdressers to work, and for customers to come and relax and rejuvenate.”

The beautiful salon features 540 square feet of a light, bright space with a modern design aesthetic, including ethical furniture by Year of None and plants for sale from local plant shop Public Land. In addition to highperformance hair services, customers can find organic beauty products handcrafted in California from brands such as Innersense Organic Beauty, Reverie and Botnia.

The Plum Organic Beauty is located at 3400 Broadway, Suite 300. For more information, visit plumorganicbeauty. com or shop online at theplumshop.com.

URBAN TRAILS Get outside and hit the trails with help from the new hiking book “Urban Trails Sacramento” by Redding native John Soares.

Experienced hiker and author Soares expertly guides readers to 35 local trails in Sacramento, Davis, Elk Grove, Folsom and the Sierra Foothills that provide ample options for familyfriendly outdoor adventure and fitness.

Published by nonprofit independent publisher Mountaineers Books, the book includes detailed route descriptions, charts, history highlights and full-color photos and maps. To purchase, visit mountaineers.org.

CARMICHAEL BOCCE The Carmichael Recreation and Park District recently added a new amenity— two bocce ball courts—to its flagship park, Carmichael Park.

Bocce, also known as Italian lawn bowling, is one of the oldest and most widely played games in the world. It’s a great way to destress, get outside and engage in light cardio with friends and family at a safe distance. The game is easy to play and suitable for all ages and skill levels.

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“Sundering the Unconsciousness” by Stan Padilla is on display at Axis Gallery.

Photo by Stan Padilla.

The Carmichael Park Foundation helped raise funds to bring this classic international game to the community.

For rules, free game introduction clinics and more information, visit carmichaelpark.com/bocce-ballcourts. Remember to bring your own equipment.

SQUARE ROOT UPDATES STEM-based nonprofit Square Root Academy has all kinds of projects in the pipeline this spring to educate underrepresented youth and improve the community.

The organization is overseeing the installation of hydroponics at

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“Urban Trails Sacramento” by John Soares explores regional hiking options. the Meadowview Navigation Center Women’s Shelter in partnership with the Sacramento Metropolitan Arts Commission. The project will provide healthy, organic food options to shelter residents.

Students who sign up for free Square Root workshops in partnership with the Sacramento Public Library will receive a free food voucher from Andy Nguyen’s Vegetarian Restaurant.

For a variety of virtual classes, Square Root offers Scholars Playground, an online learning platform featuring more than 60 asynchronous learning modules from local educational leaders.

Classes are free to all youth from Title 1 schools and who demonstrate financial need.

Square Root is also helping revitalize local basketball courts through the HOMECOURT project overseen by the Uncommon HAUS Arts Collective. Local artists, including Brandon Alexander and Aliyah Sidqe, will paint courts in Meadowview, Seavey Circle and Del Paso Heights. The project’s completion will coincide with the Big Day of Giving on May 6.

For more information, visit squarerootacademy.com.

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AXIS ART

ONLINE TUTORING

Axis Gallery is featuring two exhibitions this month. In the gallery’s East Space, artist Doug Dertinger’s landscapes—made during his early morning and evening walks—are on display in an exhibition titled “March 2020–March 2021.”

In the Main Space, “Sundering the Unconscious: An Indigenous View of the Transformation of Western Values” features the work of Stan Padilla and Ray Gonzales. The multimedia exhibition explores the ancient Mexican indigenous prophecies about this tumultuous, transformational period in human society.

Both shows are April 3–25. Axis Gallery is at 6245 S St. Hours are noon to 5 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays.

Experience Corps Sacramento is continuing to support struggling readers during the pandemic through online tutoring.

The intergenerational volunteerbased tutoring program created by AARP helps children become great readers by the end of third grade by pairing them with volunteers age 50 and older. Tutors and students meet virtually twice a week for 30 minutes to work on reading fluency and comprehension. According to project manager Anastasia Geinrikh, the program hopes to reach at least 60 students this year to combat the decline in student literacy skills predicted by the Sacramento Literacy Foundation due to abrupt school closures.

“We all need to figure out how to keep education flowing, and if virtual learning helps keep students on the educational path, then I want to contribute,” says volunteer tutor Shelly Fredericksen.

For more information or to become a volunteer, visit sccsc.org/ experiencecorps.

LIFT GRANTS Fourteen regional organizations recently received grants from the James B. McClatchy Foundation LIFT Initiative, launched in 2019 to advance awareness of the First Amendment as it relates to free speech, freedom of expression and a free press in Central Valley communities.

The latest grants range from $25,000 to $100,000 and support leadership development, staffing, technology capacity and strategic planning for organizations, including Sacramento’s Black Youth Leadership Project, California Center for Civic Participation, PRO Youth & Families, Social Justice PolitiCorps and YDN’s Nueva Epoca Early Career Development Program.

“This is about us believing in and standing by an inclusive generation of leaders,” says JBMF board member Joaquin Alvarado. “It’s the local stories and local leaders on the front lines who create real change.”

For more information, visit jbmcclatchyfoundation.org.

SOUTH SAC MURALS Southgate Plaza, on the corner of Florin Road and Franklin Boulevard in South Sacramento, has added two new murals by local artists.

“Beautiful Bird Garden” is located on the wall outside Ono Hawaiian BBQ. Local artist Ana Valentine painted flowers “because they have a resilience that few notice. They push through dirt and face the bright side of life, rain or shine.”

“Harmony” is located on the wall outside the Asian supermarket 99 Ranch Market. Sacramento-based artist Lin Fei Fei says she hopes her mural will “bring people happiness, enlightenment and new beginnings.”

“Harmony” is the creation of artist Lin Fei Fei. The murals are part of plaza owner NewMark Merrill Companies’ Community Art Initiative.

workshops with live Q&A. For more information, visit crc.losrios.edu/ academics/music-department.

IN THE STUDIO

CAMP EDMO

The beat goes on for the Cosumnes River College Music Department through a weekly series of online performances.

“CRC Music: In the Studio” was founded last fall as a way to bring together innovative artists who push the boundaries in their fields and highlight student voices through open mics and student ensemble performances.

“This series is a tremendous opportunity for our students to interact weekly with world-class artists from across North America, including some right here in our own backyard,” says CRC music professor Kurt Erickson.

“In the Studio” takes place every Friday at noon and features special guests, student performances and

Registration is now open for Camp EDMO, a Bay Area-based summer camp company that offers accessible STEAM and Social Emotional Learning programs designed to cultivate curious, courageous and kind humans.

Every day, campers engage in a variety of subjects, including science, coding, engineering and the arts to access their curiosity, build connections and develop critical life skills like empathy and problem solving.

This summer, EDMO will offer camps in smaller groups to comply with strict COVID-19 protocols. Camps run in full-day, weeklong sessions for pre-kindergarten to fifth grade from June through August at 30 locations,

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Ancil Hoffman Golf Course is honored for its environmentally smart programs. including Downtown and East Sacramento. To sign up, visit edmo.org.

ANCIL HOFFMAN GOLF AWARD Ancil Hoffman Golf Course in Carmichael was recently named the winner of the 2020 California Golf Course Owners Association Community Environmental Award.

Marc Connerly, executive director of CGCOA, explains the criteria for the award includes preserving coveted resources, implementing environmentally smart programs, maintaining a recycling program, creating safe natural habitats for birds and other animals, and increasing citizen awareness of the role golf courses play as friends of the environment.

Sacramento County’s Department of Regional Parks, operator CourseCo and Ancil Hoffman staff were recognized for their leadership during the pandemic, including the development and quick implementation of safety protocols that allowed the golf course to remain open.

BOTANICAL ARTMAKING Revel in Mother Nature’s splendor this spring in a series of art classes hosted by local artist Cassie Berube at The Flower Farm in Loomis.

In Botanical Printmaking, Saturday, April 24, learn the basics of botanical mono-printing using real plants to create lush designs and patterns on paper.

In Botanical Hearts, Sunday, May 9, celebrate Mother’s Day by creating

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botanical hearts using foraged plants, stencils and flowers while enjoying mimosas.

In Boozy Blooms, Saturday, May 15, learn how to create beautiful abstract florals with alcohol inks while sipping on wines from local vineyard Casque Wines.

Classes are held from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. Registration fees include materials and beverages. Participants can also grab a bite at The Flower Farm cafe, explore the nursery and shop local artisan goods in the gift shop. To register or for more information, visit cassieberubeart.com.

OUR LIFE STORIES The city of Sacramento’s Hart Senior Center and Cosumnes River College will host “Our Life Stories,” a virtual writers conference featuring lectures, readings and workshops to help people of all ages collect and create family memoirs.

Presenters will include poet Lisa Dominguez Abraham, poet JoAnn Anglin, journalist Marcus Crowder, former Sacramento poet laureate Bob Stanley, writer Kate Washington, and educators Dale Flynn, Jessilyn Gale and Lesley Gale.

The Zoom conference will be held Saturday, April 17, from 10 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. Registration fee is $20.

For more information or to register, visit ourlifestories.org. For questions about the conference, call the Hart Center at (916) 808-5462 or email hartcrcwritersconference@yahoo.com.

“Herald Homesteading” by Erin Martinelli is featured in Elk Grove Fine Arts show.

ELK GROVE FINE ARTS Archival Gallery will present the small group exhibition of Elk Grove Fine Arts from April 1–24, featuring regional artists Terry DeFrates, Stacy Maeda, Erin Martinelli, Jolene Matson and Mary Sorrels.

Work includes contemporary and traditional landscapes, still life, and glass and ceramic sculptures. Artists in this collection are active members of the Elk Grove Fine Arts Center and showing works curated by Archival Gallery owner D. Oldham Neath.

The gallery will be open for a Second Saturday reception with respectful distancing and limited capacity April 10 from 5–7 p.m. Visitors are welcome during normal business hours with no appointment needed, but masks are required at all times.

Archival Gallery is located at 3223 Folsom Blvd. For more information, visit archivalgallery.com.

BEER WEEK Sacramento Beer Week 2021 will be held April 23 to May 2. The 10-day celebration highlights the region’s bustling craft beer scene at more than 150 events presented by nearly

80 participating breweries across Sacramento, Yolo, Placer and El Dorado counties.

“Supporting our local craft breweries and retailers is more important this year than ever,” says Andrew Mohsenzadegan, president of the Sacramento Area Brewers Guild, which is organizing the week. “Bringing our region’s craft beer enthusiasts together while celebrating the talent and hard work of our member breweries is a win for everyone.”

Events will be held virtually and socially distanced, in accordance with the participating businesses’ respective county health guidelines. For more information, visit sacramentobeerweek. com.

Jessica Laskey can be reached at jessrlaskey@gmail.com. Submissions are due six weeks prior to the publication month. Previous columns can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

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Getting

Creative FRESH FROM OHIO, SHE BUILDS CITY’S ARTISTIC SIDE

Megan Van Voorhis Photo by Aniko Kiezel

JL

By Jessica Laskey Meet Your Neighbor

M

egan Van Voorhis loves how she can sit outside on her balcony in the middle of winter. The city’s new cultural services and creative economy manager moved to Downtown from Cleveland last September. The Northern California climate made a positive impression.

“I’m so used to the cold and the snow, I love that I now get this beautiful weather,” says Van Voorhis, who has spent more than a decade examining the role of arts and culture across multiple sectors.

She served as president and CEO of Arts Cleveland, a nonprofit community partnership created to advance arts and culture in Cuyahoga County.

In Ohio, Van Voorhis launched new programs such as the Artist as an Entrepreneur Institute and Cleveland’s first Collaborative Marketing Database to assist arts and cultural institutions with audience development. She worked on public policy and grants, and conducted research on the economic impact of arts and culture. When the job in Sacramento’s Office of Arts and Culture came up, it seemed like a perfect fit.

“I was in the stage of my career that I really wanted to see what was next,” says the Flint, Mich., native. “Sacramento was enticing, particularly because of its Creative Edge plan,” an initiative launched in 2018 to create a comprehensive cultural vision for the city.

“I’m very interested in its approach around the creative economy.

I’ve never worked in government—I’ve always been an advocate from the outside—but this job seemed like a really great opportunity to take the work I was doing and make a change.”

The fact that Van Voorhis had to change jobs and homes in a pandemic hardly fazed her, proving her determination to ensure Sacramento’s creative culture can survive and thrive. Her two sons, ages 12 and almost 17, are still in Cleveland, but they’ll join their mother in California when the school year is done. The time alone has given Van Voorhis the chance to explore her new city and learn its cultural landscape.

“I won’t lie, it’s a tough time for the creative community, since arts and cultural players rely on in-person experiences,” says Van Voorhis, who studied dance in college before discovering her love for arts administration and earning a master’s in business administration from Case Western Reserve University.

She continues, “I have lots of goals. Our team is heavily involved in grant making as part of the pandemic response. The mayor and City Council have been outstanding in allocating funding. We’re also making sure that as we reopen, communication guidance is clear. Performing arts organizations need a timeline—they can’t just open—so we need more guidance from the state. Clarity is very important for the people we serve.

“A lot of my work has been getting to know our broader priorities—how the arts connect to each other and to the economy.

My job is to help my division become what it’s intended to be and advance the goals of the Creative Edge plan. That means I’m involved in arts education, grant making, the film office, public art—figuring out who we are and how we move our goals forward.”

Workforce development, professional education and economic development are on Van Voorhis’ list of priorities, as is increasing the visibility of minority artists who may fly under the radar but contribute immensely to the city’s creative makeup.

Van Voorhis believes a creative city must be affordable to people who make art. This means the city needs to be “catalytic on the housing and planning front.” She’s prepared to help make Sacramento a vibrant, economically secure culture hub for decades to come.

If her work allows time to bask in the lovely Sacramento weather, even better.

For information, visit arts.cityofsacramento.org.

Jessica Laskey can be reached at jessrlaskey@gmail.com. Previous profiles can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

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Empty Talk?

BOARD’S PLANS AREN’T MATCHED BY MONEY

H

eading into 2021, the Sacramento County Board of Supervisors promised to provide residents with more opportunities to help shape the county’s budget. Several public workshops were scheduled for April. But it seems the supervisors already have their own ideas about budget priorities.

The board has declared its focus on two areas—systemic racism and climate change—as county staff prepares the budget for fiscal year 2021-22.

Despite anticipated funding shortages, budget cuts and possible layoffs to county staff, Supervisors Phil Serna, Patrick Kennedy and Don Nottoli—the board majority—have identified racism as a public health crisis. They are committed to promoting racial equity while shaping policies and allocating resources.

HS

By Howard Schmidt Inside The County

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Serna and Kennedy are up for reelection in 2022. Nottoli will retire when his sixth term ends next year, setting up a scramble for his south county seat.

All three voted to “implement solutions to eliminate institutional, structural and systemic racial inequity in all community services provided by the county.”

Supervisor Sue Frost voted against the declaration. She questioned how the county can “divert funding resources from other county programs” while budget cuts were under consideration.

Serna acknowledged the equity prioritization would have “budget consequences.” The votes came before Supervisor Rich Desmond was sworn in, but his vote couldn’t have changed the outcome either way.

Serna, Kennedy and Nottoli said they would create a “Sacramento County Racial Equity Policy Cabinet” to issue public reports and promote equity through coordination across county departments. Along with its lofty goals, the new policy cabinet seems likely to impress social justice activists and discourage potential ballot challengers to Serna and Kennedy.

It’s unclear whether the affirmative equity effort will run counter to the California Constitution, which

makes it unlawful for state and local governments to discriminate against or grant preferential treatment to people based on race, ethnicity, national origin or sex. An attempt to repeal that provision was defeated by voters last year.

Serna, Kennedy and Nottoli also declared a climate emergency. Once again, Frost made a fiscal argument against the proposal, noting the county has “more obligations than revenues” and is “balancing its budget on the razor’s edge.” But the majority voices prevailed.

Sacramento County’s version of a Green New Deal will seek “urgent action to achieve carbon neutrality by 2030.” The action includes development and implementation of a climate emergency response plan.

Achieving a countywide carbonneutral footprint by that date is meritorious. But real solutions always depend on funding. The majority put a marker down by declaring, “Where existing funding or resources do not support the level of action required, the board wants staff to identify gaps and provide recommendations.”

No significant public opposition was expressed. There was little discussion about how shifting funds

into climate reduction will impact the budgets of other county programs and departments.

However, plenty of residents phoned the supervisors to talk about how much the climate effort meant to them, their children and grandchildren. The issue became reminiscent of COVID-19 discussions, when the supervisors said the climate action plan “shall be guided by science, data, best practices and equity concerns.”

There are plenty of critics who don’t believe the county response to the pandemic has met those standards— especially for underserved communities.

As the 2021-22 budget comes together, county residents will hopefully get answers to how the Board of Supervisors plans to finance its battles against systemic racism and climate change.

Howard Schmidt has worked on the federal, state and local levels of government, including 16 years for Sacramento County. He can be reached at howardschmidt218@aol. com. Previous columns can be found at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

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Pocket resident Devlin Lavelle bikes with son Henry on Florin Road.

Photo by Aniko Kiezel

Slow Down, Please POCKET TRAFFIC FORCES US TO SPEAK UP

R

aising kids in Pocket means riding bicycles. When my two boys were little, we rode all the time. We rode to Martin Luther King Jr. School each morning, Mountain Mike’s Pizza on Friday nights, Garcia Bend Park on Sundays.

We were lucky. Our house was one block from the Pocket Canal bike trail, which made our trips safe and easy.

But even with the bike trail, there were concerns. To get to school, the kids had to cross Rush River Drive. To get to soccer, they had to bisect Pocket Road. Both crossings were dangerous, especially Pocket Road, which some motorists treat as an autobahn without speed limits.

I was reminded of these joys and worries recently while reading

RG

By R.E. Graswich Pocket Beat

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complaints about traffic realignments now underway or under consideration for Pocket and Greenhaven.

I’ve heard only a few complaints.

They are measured and reasonable.

Some come from my friends. But they made me think about the negative forces that swirl around disruption and change. They made me think about the challenges faced by Pocket City Councilmember Rick Jennings, whose job is to improve his community without upsetting too many neighbors.

A goal I consider brilliant—let’s find ways to slow traffic on Pocket Road, Florin Road and Rush River Drive—is a hassle for someone else. Dennis Rogers, chief of staff for Jennings and the guy who curates criticisms presented to his boss, tells me about a trip he took with a local resident.

They toured Florin Road in Pocket.

Rogers wanted opinions on the recent traffic realignment that narrows the busy street. Basically, the realignment reverses bike lanes and curbside parking spots and makes traffic slower and safer.

This is a modern design found on several Downtown streets. The idea is to protect cyclists by placing them between parked cars and the curb, rather than

between parked cars and speeding cars.

Rogers says it’s a fairly cheap strategy that requires little more than paint.

There’s no need to summon engineers, backhoes and bulldozers.

Still, the person who toured with Rogers wasn’t happy. He didn’t understand why Florin Road needed anything changed. It was fine the way it was. He was suspicious about bicyclists receiving special accommodation. He didn’t like cyclists.

“We’ve been hearing from some people who are legitimately upset, and we’re pleased to hear from them,” Rogers says. “We want input, and we want people to know we can always go back and change things that aren’t working.”

The city is working through a major traffic study on how people move around Pocket and Greenhaven.

It’s a generational project that surveys everything: how people go to school, shop, play and commute. The infrastructure realignments that flow from the study will require more than paint. It’s a backhoe, bulldozer and engineer kind of study.

Jennings is determined to hear from as many people as possible before he rips up streets. His eagerness to listen

isn’t to reduce political liabilities. He believes the community should guide city priorities. Are residents primarily interested in speedy access to Interstate 5? Do they prefer to walk and cycle around Pocket? Are they hungry for recreational opportunities?

“Hearing from the community is really a good thing,” Jennings says. This means people have to speak up—or else.

When I first heard about the traffic study, I thought the results would overwhelmingly favor slower traffic, getting people out of cars, and encouraging long walks and bicycle rides. That’s the kind of place I want to live—where I can walk to shops and restaurants, cycle, rarely need a car, and definitely don’t need two of them.

But I guess that’s not how everyone feels. When I think back to Pocket Road with my kids and our bikes, I remember those motorists racing past us. For some people, having no speed limit is the best plan of all.

R.E. Graswich can be reached at regraswich@icloud.com. Previous columns can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

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NONE BETTER POLICE CHIEF FIGHTS BATTLE OF THE AGES

Merv Brookings Photo by Aniko Kiezel

RG

By R.E. Graswich City Beat

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M

ayor Darrell Steinberg calls Daniel Hahn the “best police chief” in the United States. The praise comes with a hyperbole warning. The U.S. has about 12,300 police departments, which means maybe Steinberg

overlooked someone better than Hahn.

Or not. This time, the mayor could be right.

It’s not easy to win support from a mayor who tries to withhold funds from your police department. But

that’s Steinberg. He wants it both ways. The mayor can gush about his favorite police chief while arguing against requests for police hiring, training and internal affairs.

Hahn gets it. He doesn’t care whether elected officials like him or not. He takes direction from one man—City Manager Howard Chan— who implicitly trusts his police chief.

What Hahn really wants is for people to hear what he has to say.

He’s been saying a lot. Making links between civil unrest over the killing of George Floyd and the attack on the U.S. Capitol, Hahn raises his voice to address racism’s smoldering legacy. His words bring epic events home when he discusses tensions between race and power in Sacramento.

In a tour-de-force speech to City Council, Hahn said he’s compelled to publicly affirm his love of city and country because, “I regularly hear that the only reason I’m police chief in my home town after 33 years of policing is because I am Black.”

Comparing last summer’s Floyd protests to January’s Capitol riot, Hahn said, “Often protestors are told, if you don’t like it, get out of our country. Yet, when a mostly White group, some carrying the battle flag of the confederacy, wearing T-shirts glamorizing some of the worst atrocities in world history, constructing a noose hanging from gallows, yelling racial slurs at Capitol police officers, defecating and urinating in the halls of our United States Capitol, breaking into the offices of our elected officials, stealing property, damaging property, and threatening to hang and kill our elected representatives, and actually assaulting and killing police officers, many of us call this group patriots.”

Violence will continue until we confront “the issues of race and difference,” he predicted.

Hahn tackles topics that address the role of police—from the history of slave hunters to the spread of White supremacists. “They can’t shut me up,” he says. “My mom didn’t teach me to know my place.”

At the same time, Hahn has worked with university researchers and criminal justice experts to study and

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law office of brian d.wyatt ,PC reform Sac Police. Reforms include training and recruiting. As budgets shrink, the work will require years and continue after Hahn retires.

The state’s gilded pension system means Hahn’s paycheck increases when he retires. He’s already eligible to step down and loses money by sticking around. “As long as I’m not completely worn out and as long as I can work to reverse things that have haunted this country since the beginning, I’ll keep going,” he says.

A North Sacramento man named Merv Brookings illustrates how Hahn has changed the police department.

Brookings started Brother 2 Brother, a support group for incarcerated men, former inmates and teens vulnerable to criminal pathways. Hahn saw the link between Brother 2 Brother and Sac PD: People arrested by cops were Brother 2 Brother’s clients and staff.

Now they work together.

“We’re partners with Sac PD,” Brookings says. “Every academy class that comes through, we give presentations of voices from the community. We show them the neighborhoods they’ll be serving in.

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The cadets do eight hours of cleaning up, having lunch and getting to know community members.”

Sacramento had a reform-minded police chief before. In 1993, Mayor Joe Serna recruited Arturo Venegas, a former Fresno motorcycle cop, as a change agent. Reforms were minor, mostly tied to retirements of old-school cops. Venegas was fired in 2003.

Hahn moved up under Venegas, but learned ugly lessons. As an African-American with ambition, he was accused of relying on race to get ahead. As a Black cop, he was accused of selling out. He became “completely comfortable” in his skin.

Two decades later, Sacramento has something remarkable—maybe the nation’s best police chief.

R.E. Graswich can be reached at regraswich@icloud.com. Previous columns can be read and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento.com. n

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Oil Change

ART LOVER TURNS AUTO SHOP INTO HOME GALLERY

CR

By Cathryn Rakich Photography by Aniko Kiezel OPEN HOUSE

I

t takes vision, creativity and a good amount of gumption to convert a former auto repair shop into a living space and art gallery.

Pamela Skinner, local art consultant and curator, has those admirable traits.

Formerly Tony’s European Auto Repair in the Mansion Flats neighborhood Downtown, the 4,600-square-foot building is now home to Skinner and more than 100 pieces of original artwork by artists throughout Northern California.

“If you could have seen it before, you would have said we were crazy,” Skinner says. “It was just a shell of a building and it looked pretty sad.”

Skinner and her husband purchased the building in 2005 with the goal of converting the “dank, dark” structure into a modern “livable” space, plus a place for emerging and established artists to showcase and sell their work. Skinner had been renting a loft at 14th and R streets that was part gallery, part living space, long before R Street became the vibrant hub it is today.

When that building sold, she moved the gallery to Seventh and S streets (now Beatnik Studios). “After the loft space sold, we were looking for something a little different,” she says. That’s when the former auto repair shop

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came up. The couple rented a bungalow in Southside Park, where they lived until their new home was ready.

The revamp, which took place in 2010–2011, went relatively smoothly. But complying with city bureaucracy, including building and zoning codes, was another story. “There were so many issues with the city. They did not understand what we were trying to do,” Skinner says. “We wanted to make it a contemporary, industrial space. It was outside the box.” Luckily, the environmental mandates were already met, so once the permits were in place, the new structure didn’t take long to build out.

The couple knew exactly what they wanted—a sleek, open, clean-line setting with a floor plan that lends itself to small private events, and a place to call home.

The 3,300 square feet of living space includes a dining area, spacious kitchen, small office, sitting/TV room, bonus room, guest bedroom with an adjoining bath, master bedroom and bath, wine room and laundry room. Add to that two outdoor patios—one up front as an entry to the home and one tucked away off the kitchen—plus an art gallery/garage with room for Skinner’s car.

A glass and steel roll-up door leading from the front patio into the home is the first

Pamela Skinner

indication something unusual is going on. The industrial vibe is undeniable—not because the building was a former auto shop. Because that’s what Skinner, who designed the space, prefers.

“I have never been very conventional,” she says.

Adding to the industrial ambience is the original cement floor, grease spots and all, which Skinner had sanded and sealed. “But I wanted them to leave all of the imperfections. I wanted them to show some of the character of what the building was.” Absent is carpeting—not a throw rug in sight.

The 15-feet-high ceiling exposes black insulation, new ductwork and original wood beams. Cinderblock walls, now painted a steely grey, were also retained where possible. “But because of the codes for energy and different things, we had to do a lot more drywall than we wanted.”

The open kitchen keeps the contemporary theme alive with blizzard-white Caesarstone quartz countertops, a high-glaze porcelain tile backsplash, and a mix of stainless steel and high-gloss white lacquer cabinets. No

ILP/GRID n INSIDESACRAMENTO.COM

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predictable pendant lights hang over the island. Instead, track lighting is throughout. “I didn’t want dropdown fixtures because I wanted it to be open. I didn’t want anything in the way.”

Natural light streams in from a courtyard situated between the kitchen and TV area. Skinner created the outdoor patio by walling off the space, removing the roof and adding two massive glass roll-up doors. “It’s nice when the doors are open because it creates a nice flow.”

Continuing with the open concept is the master bedroom with an extra wide doorway that invites in visitors. More art, of course, dominates the room, which includes an ultra-modern master bath with more steely grey tones and stainless steel fixtures, including two metal rectangle sinks.

The bonus room and guest bedroom, plus the gallery/garage, are dedicated to showcasing the work of visiting artists. But the main living spaces are devoted to Skinner’s personal collection of contemporary, mostly abstract, make-a-statement art in every medium, configuration and size. “I love threedimensional work. I like things that are a little more edgy,” says Skinner, who has no favorite artist. “I respect all their work. They speak to me.”

Pre-COVID, Skinner held two or three private, invitation-only artist receptions a year. With two rescue cats, her passion is helping local animal organizations by hosting fundraisers. Business is still good, by appointment, via word of mouth and established clientele looking to add to

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their collections. “People are home more and wanting something new. If you’re into art, it’s very satisfying and comforting.”

To recommend a home or garden for Open House, contact Inside Sacramento at editor@ insidepublications.com. More photography and previous columns can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

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Return to Sender MICROCHIP IS BACKUP SECURITY FOR YOUR LOST PET

I

was pulling out of a parking lot when I spotted her—a reddish ball of fluffy fur sprinting southbound on Fulton Avenue. Dodging car after car, she crossed the freeway overpass and then Auburn Boulevard.

I followed the wayward pooch to Edison Avenue, where she took a hard left. Twice when she stopped, I jumped out of my car and called to the misplaced mutt—only to have her ignore my pleas and keep moving.

When she turned down a residential court with nowhere to go, I had her trapped. I grabbed a dog lead from the emergency kit I keep in my car for these exact situations.

CR

By Cathryn Rakich Animals & Their Allies

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The exhausted dog sat down, tongue dangling, and let me scratch behind her ears and slide the lead over her head.

She had no collar, no identification tag and, as it turned out, no microchip.

But she appeared in good condition.

Her fur was clean, soft and mat-free.

She rolled on her back and exposed a fat pink belly, not a flea in sight.

She was not a stray who had lived a hard life on the streets. She belonged to someone. But she couldn’t tell me who.

Approximately 6.5 million companion animals enter U.S. shelters as strays each year, the American SPCA reports. Yet only 10 percent are reunited with their owners.

Ensuring your pet has your contact information—on a tag attached to or information printed on a comfortable collar—is the fastest way to bring your lost animal home. If the dog I chased down had a tag with a phone number (or several numbers) and a home address, I could have returned her immediately. No middleman

involved—the unfamiliar, often stressful environment of a shelter, veterinary office or stranger’s house would have been avoided.

But, because collars can slip off, a microchip is a critical backup security measure. Microchips are small

cylindrical devices, about the size of a rice grain, that come preloaded in a sterile applicator. The chip is injected under the loose skin between the pet’s shoulder blades in a quick and relatively painless procedure, similar to administering a vaccine.

NO REASON NOT TO CHIP! There are several no- and low-cost microchip clinics in Sacramento: The city’s Front Street Animal Shelter has a drive-thru clinic offering free microchips and vaccinations on the second Sunday of each month from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. The April 11 clinic takes place at Robertson Community Center at 3525 Norwood Ave. For future clinic locations, visit cityofsacramento.org/community-development/animal-care.

The county’s Bradshaw Animal Shelter hosts a mobile clinic with VIP Pet Care on the third Thursday of each month from 3–5 p.m. offering microchips for $19, as well as low-cost vaccinations. VIP Pet Care also holds mobile clinics throughout the Sacramento area. For times and locations, visit vippetcare.com.

The Sacramento SPCA offers microchips for $25 by appointment at its low-cost vaccination clinic. Visit sscpa.org.vaccinations.

The average cost is $45 to have a microchip implanted by a private veterinarian.

If you adopted your pet from a shelter or rescue group, he or she is probably chipped already. Be sure to ask if the chip is registered or if you need to do it.

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“The primary benefit of a microchip is that once implanted it cannot get lost, torn off or taken off the collar like an identification tag can,” says David Dickinson, director of Sacramento County’s Bradshaw Animal Shelter. “If the owner keeps contact information current by reporting any changes to address or contact numbers, the animal will have a much better chance of being reunited if it gets lost.”

Microchips don’t track your animal’s location like a GPS. They use radiofrequency identification technology to ID the pet. There’s no battery, no moving parts, nothing to charge, nothing to wear out or replace. A microchip should last the pet’s lifetime.

“Animals can be scanned at any veterinary establishment and those with chips can be reunited without entering an animal shelter,” Dickinson says. “When a stray animal is picked up by one of our animal control officers, they scan for chip immediately and can return to owner if registered correctly with current information.”

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When a scanner is passed over the animal, the microchip’s unique ID number is displayed. Think of it as your pet’s Social Security Number.

Standard practice by shelters and rescue groups is to scan all incoming pets for microchips. If one is detected, staff will contact the microchip company to determine who registered the ID number.

Therefore, it’s critical to 1) remember to register the microchip number; and 2) keep your contact information up to date with the microchip registry. Dogs have been reunited with owners after being found hundreds of miles from home or years after they were lost—thanks to microchips.

A collar with an ID tag and a microchip are the least we can do to keep our pets safe.

Cathryn Rakich can be reached at crakich@surewest.net. Previous columns can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

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Celebrating

125 Years

Photo by Aniko Kiezel

LOCAL CATHOLIC SCHOOL CONTINUES TRADITION OF COMMUNITY

BY SETH SANDRONSKY

S

t. Francis of Assisi Elementary School in Midtown celebrated its 125th birthday last November.

The school opened in 1895 with 60 students in a two-story, four-room clapboard structure at a building cost of $3,600. Today, 312 students from transitional kindergarten to eighth grade attend the parochial school.

To honor its historic contributions to the community, SFAES donated to Loaves & Fishes, which serves homeless and hungry children and adults in Downtown. That charitable effort defines the school’s mission, following in the footsteps of St. Francis of Assisi.

“This is the tradition of the Franciscan community,” says Ivan Hrga, the school’s principal. “That is empathy, inclusivity and engagement with the community.”

The families of the 1895 student body lived nearby the school. In 2020, students’ families reside throughout the capital region. They commute from Elk Grove, Natomas, Roseville and West

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Sacramento, reports Hrga, whose kids are SFAES students.

Kim Bushard is a state worker who lives in East Sacramento. Her twins, Piper and Preston, are fifth graders at SFAES who have attended since kindergarten. “SFAES is a tight-knit community that embodies the small school experience,” Bushard says. “As a parent, having the peace of mind to know my kids spend their days surrounded by people who know, love and support them is invaluable.”

That is not all. “Similarly, being seen, heard and supported as a parent has been a true gift,” Bushard adds. “We all crave community and SFAES offers that to all of us.”

The current SFAES building opened in 1926, run by Catholic Franciscan Friars and Franciscan Sisters. Just ask Michelle Boyer (class of 1959), a retired classroom teacher for the Sacramento City Unified School District. “We were taught by nuns and priests,” says Boyer, who lives in Midtown.

Boyer and her two brothers attended SFAES after moving with their parents from Denver to Sacramento. Boyer’s

brother, Bruce (class of 1968), an East Sacramento resident, was a St. Francis Church altar boy for three years. “I still have friends from my years at SFAES,” he says. “Overall, the school influenced every chapter of my life since graduation.”

Dealing with the current social tumult is an issue now. COVID-19’s health and economic crises have challenged SFAES. “There have been sacrifices and uncertainty,” Hrga says.

On that note, financial aid remains available to students in need. SFAES is 100-percent self-funded from student tuition. Fundraisers help maintain the school’s financial bottom line.

Speaking of a strong foundation, some SFAES staff have been there for 30 to 35 years. Their experience is a stabilizing force for students and their parents in this uncertain time. Newer staff also enhance the educational opportunities at SFAES. TV journalist Julissa Ortiz, a Sacramento native and alumni of SFAES (class of 1991), covered the 125th birthday bash for Channel 31.

She got her first taste of journalism as an eighth grader at the Catholic school.

“Mrs. Church was my eighth-grade teacher,” Ortiz says. “She has been teaching there for 36 years. Her son now works there, too. He was in my brother’s class!”

SFAES’ 125th birthday celebration reflected pandemic precautions. A drivethru legacy tunnel on the playground allowed SFAES alumni and the community to view photo boards dating back to 1895. SFAES students and staff buried a time capsule with contributions from each class and magician Scott Green performed virtually to end the day’s festivities.

What is next for SFAES? “Our hope is that we are around for another 125 years,” Hrga says.

For more information, visit stfranciselem.org. To support the 125 Year Giving Campaign by purchasing a commemorative brick, go to sfes.ejoinme. org/125yeargiving.

Seth Sandronsky can be reached at sethsandronsky@gmail.com. n

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Helping Hand HER TEAM OPENS DOORS FOR NEWCOMERS

Jessie Tientcheu Photo by Linda Smolek

J

essie Tientcheu has spent her career empowering people.

As CEO of Opening Doors, Tientcheu is responsible for a complex organization that provides economic and social services to refugees, immigrants, human trafficking survivors and underserved Sacramento area residents.

JL

By Jessica Laskey Giving Back: Volunteer Profile

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Before becoming CEO in 2019, she volunteered for the organization’s refugee resettlement program, helping newcomers connect to their new community.

“I had known and loved Opening Doors for a really long time,” says Tientcheu, a Los Angeles native who served in the Peace Corps in Cameroon before settling in Sacramento in 2008.

“I first volunteered with them in the fall of 2009, but really dove in head first in 2016.

“The election got a lot of us thinking about what kind of communities we wanted to live in, and we decided to lean into the positive response: welcoming people and doing good in the midst of everything going on at the national

level. Working with Opening Doors kept me grounded.”

Opening Doors was founded in 1993 as the Sacramento Refugee Ministry, a refugee resettlement agency sponsored by the Interfaith Service Bureau. The mission was to help refugees from the former Soviet Union, Southeast Asia and elsewhere find homes. That mission quickly expanded when clients began requesting help starting businesses, which led to the founding of the Microenterprise Assistance program.

In 2003, the organization incorporated as a nonprofit under the name Opening Doors and became a Community Development Financial Institution the following year. Since then, new services include helping survivors of human trafficking,

intensive case management, trauma and crisis intervention, immigration legal services and women’s health.

When the pandemic hit, Opening Doors expanded its services to offer food aid, unemployment and financial assistance, health access and home learning information to people hit hardest by the pandemic—immigrants and communities of color.

“The depth of vulnerability has become greater,” Tientcheu says. “We took a survey four months (into the pandemic) and found that 40 percent (of our clients) had some sort of financial impact—losing a job, having their work hours cut, not being able to work because their kids were out of school.

“We made a big push into various kinds of emergency relief, investing our own resources, securing grants to get cash assistance out to folks, linking to food aid services and partnering with other organizations to get meals and grocery boxes delivered.”

While Tientcheu acknowledges many people view helping newcomers from a humanitarian or faith angle—that it’s “just the right thing to do”—she points out the economic argument for welcoming them into our community.

“Refugees and immigrants make a huge economic impact,” Tientcheu says, noting that an estimated 29,000 health care workers are DACA recipients and that newcomers contribute $21,000 more in taxes than they use in public benefits, according to the National Bureau of Economic Research.

Immigrants are more likely to start a business—30 percent of entrepreneurs in the U.S. are immigrants, though they comprise only 13 percent of the population.

Sacramento has benefitted from these statistics. It continues to rank as one of the most diverse cities in the country.

And newcomers continue to bring their entrepreneurial spirit, which gives Tientcheu hope.

“Despite the challenges of 2020, I’m incredibly hopeful about the future,” she says. “Sacramento as a community is incredibly welcoming. With that broad support, newcomers will continue to have the ability to contribute positively to our community.”

For more information, visit openingdoorsinc.org.

Jessica Laskey can be reached at jessrlaskey@gmail.com. Previous profiles can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

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Not So Fast OPEN ZONING WON’T SOLVE HOUSING PAINS

BY KERRY FREEMAN & MAGGIE COULTER

S

acramento city planners say single-family zoning must go. For now, the City Council agrees. Unfortunately, the city has failed to consider the negative impact of this proposal. There’s no factbased justification for it.

The proposed 2040 General Plan, which takes effect next year, seeks to eliminate single-family zoning. It would allow fourplexes on any single-family lot. Under state law, two Accessory Dwelling Units (or in-law units) are already permitted. This means up to six residential units would be allowed on lots currently zoned for single-family homes.

In some of the city’s older neighborhoods, this experimental proposal would allow a six-fold density increase. No assessment has been done about whether the infrastructure can handle the extra workload or the cost of upgrades.

The proposed General Plan would eliminate on-site parking requirements, with no suggestion of where those extra cars will park.

At public workshops, city planners try to downplay the impact. They say only 100 new multifamily structures are

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expected each year. While 100 units a year would be impactful, the long-term outcome is more ominous: The barn door will be wide open for investors to convert single-family homes on a much larger scale.

Planners claim these new multifamily units will be subject to design review.

But current review standards are minimal. And if buildings don’t require deviations from setback, height or lot coverage rules, they don’t need neighborhood input for approval.

What’s the rationale behind converting single-family neighborhoods to multifamily?

The city offers these justifications: the need for more affordable housing; undoing the legacy of racist covenants and redlining that prevented people of color from buying houses in certain neighborhoods; to create more housing.

Eliminating single-family zoning will increase land values and housing prices, not decrease them. Research by Patrick Condon, an urban design professor at the University of British Columbia, shows the strategy drives up housing costs and doesn’t create affordable housing.

“We have incrementally quadrupled the density of Vancouver, but we haven’t seen any decrease in per-square-foot costs,” Condon says. “No amount

of opening zoning or allowing for development will cause prices to go down.”

Neighborhoods where property is less expensive, such as Oak Park, will likely feel the negative impacts first when investors buy single-family homes to convert to multifamily. The process will speed gentrification and the displacement of lower-income residents.

Turning single-family housing stock into market-rate apartments will not help groups excluded from home ownership. Rather, it will reduce the number of single-family homes available for purchase, making it even harder for first-time buyers.

The city’s flawed premise is that equity and justice are served if people can at least rent in a so-called “desirable” neighborhood (assuming they can afford the rent). Equity and justice would be better served if the city invested in making every neighborhood desirable.

While converting single-family neighborhoods to multifamily will not produce more affordable housing or create equity, it would increase density.

But Sacramento’s diverse and predominately single-family neighborhoods do not need to be eliminated to provide more housing.

There is a vast potential for housing at

many large vacant lots. Moreover, the city has many underutilized commercial and office buildings that could convert to housing.

Do we really want density in every neighborhood? Do we want single-family housing converted to multifamily apartments? Do we want to eliminate the choice to live in lower density, predominately single-family neighborhoods?

In a February workshop, city planners attempted to defend increasing density and eliminating on-site parking requirements. They pointed to San Francisco and Manhattan, where crowded conditions and very limited offstreet parking discourage car use.

Do we want zoning and parking changes that convert our city into San Francisco or Manhattan?

This controversial proposal is being rushed into law without adequate assessment of its impact, or whether the majority of Sacramento residents even want it. How about letting the public vote?

Kerry Freeman and Maggie Coulter can be reached at no2rezone@gmail. com. Freeman is past president of the Elmhurst Neighborhood Association and Coulter is current president. They are longtime Sacramento residents. n

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Photo by Linda Smolek

INDIE LOVES TO BUILD WHERE OTHERS AVOID

I

f your passion is building houses for a living, as it is for Indie Capital’s Erica Cunningham, there are easier ways to do it.

Cunningham, who got into the business after buying and rehabbing her own rundown house in Oak Park and selling it for a profit, formed Indie Capital with her husband, Nate, about 15 years ago.

Now, with about 50 aesthetically noteworthy residential projects to its credit, all in the center of Sacramento,

GD

By Gary Delsohn Building Our Future

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Indie follows the road less traveled for a successful homebuilder.

Instead of replicating what sold last, Cunningham scours the city for empty lots no one wants. She and her team put up homes that stand out for their sleek aesthetics and attention to detail. The couple and their two daughters have lived in several, moving after making a sale, putting profits back into the company and searching for the next opportunity.

“I don’t like tearing down structures,” she says at her white, rooftop-terraced duplex on I Street that is part residence, part office. “If there’s a structure that has value, I don’t like to waste things. I would leave that for someone else to rehab.”

Indie does not seem to mind if the land is surrounded by blight. It thrives on the challenge. It will buy the property, work with customers, build and sell the home. The couple keeps in close touch with owners to guarantee

the craftsmanship and learn what works and what does not.

“I have been very open to absorbing anything I may learn along the way and hearing what people say, how they react, how they feel,” Cunningham says.

“Since we warranty the homes for 10 years, that is a very long relationship to have with someone. We take it very seriously.”

If there are neighbors, Indie routinely meets resistance to its plans for building something different. Yet it is on these unloved parcels where Indie established its reputation for excellence.

“I’ve seen it many times,” Cunningham says. “We can have a lot of resistance on building a new house or a new duplex or anything, and I will have the same people come up to me a year or two after it’s built and say, ‘You know what? This is the best thing for the neighborhood. I love the people that moved in. It created a spark of energy. Everyone started fixing up their houses.’”

Indie’s formula, which includes standards the company calls “exhaustingly high,” appears to be working. There aren’t many local homebuilders whose properties receive glowing reviews in Architectural Record, as Indie’s Broadway Housing Project did in 2019.

“We want to shed light on places that are a little bit on the fringe, that need some energy,” Cunningham told the magazine.

For Indie’s latest effort, head to Ninth Street and Broadway, where 17 duplexes are underway. Designed by the company’s go-to firm, Milwaukee’s Johnsen Schmaling Architects, the 34 units feature Indie’s trademark flexibility that allows for “an evolution in lifestyle (and) an opportunity for varied living functions within one space.”

Buildings are oriented toward an inner courtyard, with eight units in the first phase on track to be completed in March for $879,000.

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916.822.4717 “It’s probably an area that most people would not consider living five, six, 10 years ago,” Cunningham says.

“But the site was big enough where we could really create a new community and provide that comfort of being within a community in an area where people wouldn’t have considered it as such.”

Cunningham’s love for diverse housing types dates from her Sacramento childhood. “Diversity within neighborhoods is great,” she says. “It gives people an opportunity to experience other people and experience other lifestyles and help each other.

“Growing up, we were the people who needed help in the neighborhood. We were always struggling. My dad worked at a print shop. He was constantly being laid off or on strike. We relied on our community and that’s what did it.”

She and her husband have different visions for Indie’s future. He wants to build an investment portfolio with more

rentals. Cunningham prefers finding challenging plots to transform and broaden her clientele.

“Our buyers have typically been young professionals, people moving from the Bay Area or L.A., but also a lot of local business owners. People in the health care field,” she says. “Going forward, we want to make our product more accessible to as many people as possible. That includes people who live in the suburbs now and work Downtown.”

The houses are not cheap. The dense, urban lifestyle is not for everyone. But Indie has undoubtedly given a growing group of people new reasons to consider the central city.

Gary Delsohn can be reached at gdelsohn@gmail.com. Previous columns can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

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Curb Your Enthusiasm THE RIGHT GARDEN ADDS BIG BUCKS TO VALUE

S

pring is more than the Easter Bunny and cherry blossoms.

As Earth rotates around the sun to fetch spring, there is a strange gravitational impulse to launch landscaping projects. Excavators, backhoe loaders and trenchers descend upon Sacramento neighborhoods to deliver the desired result: curb appeal.

Whether you are selling or staying, curb appeal adds value to homes and pride in home ownership. Consider how many people pass your home by walking, running, cycling or driving, compared to those invited inside. First impression is a lasting one.

In Sacramento’s sizzling real estate market, a stunning front yard will sell any home faster than one down the street with weeds, overgrown shrubs and worn paint. According to a study

DV

By Dan Vierria Garden Jabber

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conducted by the National Association of Realtors and another by Michigan State University, a beautiful front yard will add 5 percent to 11 percent to home value.

“Picture a charming brick cottage with freshly painted shutters and front door, manicured lawn with flower-lined walk leading to a welcoming front porch with potted flowers and comfortable chairs,” says Julie Reardon, executive associate for Lyon Real Estate.

“Contrast it with a picture in your mind of poorly kept front lawn, faded front door with old hardware and blank cement porch. Which home do you want to see? I know where I want to go!”

Simply pruning overgrown shrubs that block window light, adding a fresh layer of bark mulch, and power washing walkways and the driveway will improve visual appeal.

Exterior lighting, an attractive mailbox and a window box of flowers are easy upgrades.

Those considering tearing it all out may want to consider a modern landscape suited to today’s challenges.

Curb appeal once embraced big, bright green areas of lawn, but the shift has been to eco-friendly or sustainable landscapes. Millennials are especially wired to eco-friendly as they migrate to single-family homes. If properly done, a landscape that reduces water usage, chemical pesticides and maintenance is desirable and saves money.

A smaller patch of lawn for children and pets may be the right plan for your family. Others are discarding all the lawn and converting sprinklers to drip irrigation systems. Paying the mow-andblow gardeners monthly is one reminder of the cost of large areas of lawn.

Another is the water bill. Lawns require an abundance of maintenance and water. Drought is a constant threat in the West, prompting city and county watering restrictions and water district rate hikes.

Sacramento landscape designer Roberta Walker of Roberta Walker Landscape Design specializes in sustainable, low-maintenance and water-efficient gardens.

“Although getting rid of your lawn to create a water-wise landscape is a great idea, don’t take out all of the plants and blanket the entire area with crushed rock,” Walker says. “Do remove the plants that are unhealthy, try adding a dry cobble stream or new flagstone pathway to create a flow. Add a few boulders and remember to put down a weed barrier before using any type of rock as a top dressing.”

Water features should not be in the middle of the yard, but close to the house by the entry, Walker advises.

Sacramento’s summer heat can quickly evaporate water, so placing a water feature in an area that receives plenty of shade is a good idea.

“Hot sun exposure will not only evaporate the water quickly, but sun, plus water, equals algae,” Walker says.

All successful landscaping projects require planning. Choose plants wisely for a front yard that will elicit compliments from neighbors.

“Don’t buy a bunch of plants and plant them helter-skelter,” Walker says. “Do ask about the plants that you are buying and take note of how big they will get. Plant the larger growing shrubs on the perimeter and graduate the sizes of the plants down as you come to walkways. Also, do not plant annuals.

Put those in pots by your front door.”

Walker’s favorite water-efficient plants can be found at robertawalker. com/2016/11/favorite-droughttolerant-plants. For plant choices and landscaping information, visit sacmg. ucanr.edu/perennials.

Good luck and remember: Your home’s appeal begins at the curb.

Dan Vierria is a University of California Cooperative Extension Master Gardener for Sacramento County.

He can be reached at masterg29@ gmail.com. For answers to gardening questions, contact the UCCE Master Gardeners at (916) 876-5338, email mgsacramento@ucanr.edu or visit sacmg.ucanr.edu. Previous columns can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

SPONSORED BY:

Neighborhood Real Estate Sales Closed February 1 - 28* 95608

6064 VIA CASITAS 3937 OAK VILLA CIR 3522 GARFIELD AVE 4543 FOSTER WAY 5960 ASHWORTH WAY 6109 COYLE AVE 5348 HESPER WAY 5949 ASHWORTH WAY 4916 HEATHERDALE LN 5432 HESPER WAY 6225 CASITA AVE 3330 FOGLE CT 5506 WILSEY WAY 2627 KNABE CT 2501 LAURENCE AVE 5220 LINDA LOU DR 4632 JAN DR 5112 ROBANDER ST 5000 CYPRESS AVE 5247 KENNETH AVE 4922 OAK LEAF AVE 4750 LIESEL CT 5909 CAMRAY CIR 6211 MINERAL WAY 5217 MCKINNEY WAY 5115 LOCUST AVE 4676 LUE LN 5427 HALSTED AVE 1834 WALNUT AVE 6129 RANGER WAY 7042 LOS OLIVOS WAY 6031 RAMPART DR 6812 APPOMATTOX WAY 3718 BELLA CRUZ CT 5801 TOPP CT 2125 MARCHITA WAY 4949 HEATHERDALE LN 25 RIVER BLUFF LN 3340 WINSOME LN 3618 AVA WAY 3631 KIEKEBUSCH CT 3834 DOTTY ST 3525 BAJAMONT WAY 1208 GENESEE CT 2633 CARDINAL CT 5601 GIBBONS DR 2359 CALIFORNIA AVE

95815

3026 DEL PASO BLVD 2986 GROVE AVE 1126 GLENROSE AVE 2465 COLFAX ST 1211 SONOMA AVE 1530 STRADER AVE

$256,000 $284,000 $338,000 $355,000 $380,000 $392,000 $394,000 $395,000 $395,000 $400,000 $402,000 $406,500 $415,000 $425,000 $430,000 $435,000 $455,000 $460,000 $461,000 $470,000 $475,000 $481,000 $486,500 $487,000 $495,000 $497,000 $500,000 $500,000 $510,000 $510,500 $516,000 $525,000 $531,000 $550,000 $612,000 $613,100 $615,000 $650,000 $652,000 $701,000 $731,000 $755,000 $799,000 $875,000 $897,500 $1,135,000 $1,175,000

$210,000 $225,000 $235,000 $241,000 $255,000 $255,000

2756 ELLEN ST 1824 IRIS AVE 417 ELEANOR AVE 3109 CLAY ST 798 ARCADE BLVD 1952 MIDDLEBERRY RD 1375 SONOMA AVE 1316 ARCADE BLVD 2968 PONDEROSA LN 2125 SURREY RD 2448 BEN ALI WAY 384 ELEANOR AVE 1925 KEITH WAY 939 DIXIEANNE AVE 2313 CANTALIER ST 1015 SANTIAGO AVE 2100 ROCKBRIDGE RD 566 BLACKWOOD ST

$275,000 $289,000 $298,888 $300,000 $320,000 $330,000 $335,000 $335,000 $337,000 $345,000 $350,000 $355,000 $365,000 $380,000 $390,000 $400,000 $410,000 $465,000

95816

1710 - 24TH ST $517,000 2531 RICE ALY $535,000 2231 C ST $539,000 3332 S ST $539,900 1546 - 34TH ST $545,000 2510 R ST $582,000 2609 C ST $597,050 1125 SANTA BARBARA CT $610,000 3212 DULLANTY WAY $689,000 2612 D ST $860,000 3301 MCKINLEY VILLAGE WAY $962,000 3566 N ST $965,000

95817

3217 - 44TH ST 3741 - 6TH AVE 3473 - 33RD ST 3434 SAN CARLOS WAY 3700 - 12TH AVENUE BYP 3409 SANTA CRUZ WAY 2740 - 42ND ST 6128 - 1ST AVE 3340 - 44TH ST 5417 V ST 4128 CATALA WAY 3956 - 2ND AVE 3980 COLONIAL WAY

95818

2643 CLEAT LN 2674 CLEAT LN 1718 V ST 2625 HARKNESS ST 674 - 4TH AVE

$315,000 $365,000 $375,000 $380,000 $393,000 $430,000 $489,000 $500,000 $525,000 $525,000 $555,000 $607,450 $653,077

$445,000 $464,000 $575,000 $590,000 $600,000

2784 RIVERSIDE BLVD $605,000 1841 - 2ND AVE $605,000 2028 - 20TH ST $650,000 1615 - 8TH AVE $660,000 773 SWANSTON DR $700,000 3361 CROCKER DR $725,000 1957 - 7TH AVE $840,000 2651 - 4THAVE $870,000 2414 MONTGOMERY WAY$1,000,000 1817 CASTRO WAY $1,065,000 2000 - 22ND ST $1,375,000 1415 - 8TH AVE $1,500,000

95819

1424 - 57TH ST 1565 - 49TH ST 1744 - 41ST ST 645 DITTMAR WAY 3754 ERLEWINE CIR 3759 ERLEWINE CIR 1648 - 48TH ST 1117 - 57TH ST 41 - 36TH WAY 3798 BREUNER AVE 540 SAN ANTONIO WAY 125 ADA WAY 107 TIVOLI WAY 618 - 52ND ST 4424 F ST

95821

$440,000 $533,000 $540,000 $550,000 $560,000 $575,000 $595,000 $628,500 $656,000 $675,000 $690,000 $710,000 $727,000 $799,000 $990,000

2521 FULTON SQUARE LN #20 $170,000 2119 WHIPPOORWILL LN $259,000 2829 EDISON AVE $295,000 2121 JULIESSE AVE $319,300 3608 DARLENE AVE $325,000 3262 BACK CIR $345,000 3349 HORSESHOE DR $350,000 2610 AVALON DR $368,000 2450 TOWN CIR $375,000 3625 MULHOLLAND WAY $375,000 3716 MARCONI AVE $400,000 3020 HAMPSHIRE DR $405,000 3004 SAND DOLLAR WAY $430,000 3621 NAIFY ST $430,000 3349 SAINT MATHEWS DR $430,000 2600 CATALINA DR $467,000 2816 BARBARELL WAY $501,000 4143 WHEAT ST $515,000 2840 VERNA WAY $522,000 4005 HANCOCK DR $540,000 3821 PASADENA AVE $608,000 4605 RAVENWOOD AVE $610,000 3201 BONITA DR $685,000 3110 SHASTA WAY $692,000

95822

2152 AMANDA WAY $276,000 7329 TILDEN WAY $308,000 6121 HERMOSA ST $335,000 1641 FLORIN RD $335,000 2716 WOOD VIOLET WAY $340,000 1445 MATHEWS WAY $355,000 7345 STOCKDALE ST $357,000 2232 - 62ND AVE $358,000 1957 - 65TH AVE $360,000 2520 - 37TH AVE $375,000 1721 FLORIN RD $390,000 7542 - 29TH ST $393,000 26 MIRANDA CT $396,000 2113 - 63RD AVE $400,000 6861 - 21ST ST $415,000 1631 OREGON DR $470,000 5101 VIRGINIA WAY $525,000 1440 - 34TH AVE $542,000 5721 HOLSTEIN WAY $620,000 4220 CUSTIS AVE $695,000 1224 - 41ST AVE $785,000 4510 CAPRI WAY $1,075,000

95825

1019 DORNAJO WAY #127 $156,000 600 WOODSIDE SIERRA #3 $189,900 1019 DORNAJO WAY #260 $215,000 2280 HURLEY WAY #6 $220,000 2438 LARKSPUR LN #297 $225,000 528 WOODSIDE OAKS #3 $235,000 514 WOODSIDE OAKS #1 $247,000 2466 LARKSPUR LN #353 $255,000 549 WOODSIDE OAKS #3 $262,900 2430 LARKSPUR LN #281 $273,000 2109 TEVIS RD $328,000 2209 BYRON RD $333,300 2032 JOAN WAY $338,000 2262 MONTE CASSINO LN $355,950 2020 DELMA WAY $370,000 2101 ETHAN WAY $374,900 2236 LOMA VISTA DR $402,000 2333 BARCELONA WAY $420,000 233 HARTNELL PL $435,000 2258 MONTE CASSINO LN $435,000 2490 AMERICAN RIVER DR $435,900 1908 UNIVERSITY PARK DR$450,000 204 RANCH RD $460,000 602 RANCH RD $475,000 2336 CORTEZ LN $480,000 891 COMMONS DR $480,000 2016 WOODSTOCK WAY $485,000 2925 MERRYWOOD DR $560,000

95831

7275 RUSH RIVER DR 7336 SOUZA CIR 628 CUTTING WAY 11 NAPLES CT 6713 LAKE PARK DR 10 NEIL CT 6825 BUENA TERRA WAY 71 RIO VIALE CT 7613 POCKET RD 7227 HARBOR LIGHT WAY 7131 FLINTWOOD WAY 8022 LINDA ISLE LN 982 BRIARCREST WAY 6975 RIVERBOAT WAY 42 STARLIT CIR 1228 EL ENCANTO WAY 6399 HOLSTEIN WAY 7504 MONTE BRAZIL DR 909 SUNWIND WAY 80 CAVALCADE CIR 1251 FAY CIR 1240 - 47TH AVE 15 RED RIVER CT 4 STONEFIELD CT 6705 FREEHAVEN DR

$395,000 $415,000 $420,000 $440,000 $468,000 $470,000 $475,000 $499,000 $500,000 $502,000 $515,000 $520,000 $525,000 $580,000 $585,000 $585,000 $600,000 $605,000 $625,000 $730,000 $735,000 $750,000 $792,000 $969,500 $727,500

95864

1416 SEBASTIAN WAY $302,000 1153 HAMPTON RD $310,000 3300 CHURCHILL RD $312,000 3412 WELLINGTON DR $343,000 1115 HAMPTON RD $345,000 3228 WINDSOR DR $350,000 3424 HUMBOLDT WAY $360,000 1328 SHADOWGLEN RD $413,000 4201 AVILA LN $432,000 4373 VULCAN DR $455,000 2441 BRIDLE PATH LN $480,000 3500 KERSEY LN $549,900 3908 ARDEN WAY $579,000 1840 NEPTUNE WAY $585,000 1029 ENTRADA RD $590,000 1716 ORION WAY $662,000 2910 HUNTINGTON RD $720,000 4341 SURITA ST $750,000 4317 SURITA ST $785,000 2642 KADEMA DR $855,000 659 LAKE WILHAGGIN DR $922,000 720 COLUMBIA DR $995,000 931 SAVERIEN DR $1,040,000 4291 ALTON CT $1,145,000 3341 ADAMS RD $1,260,000 4016 CRONDALL DR $1,455,187 3895 FAIR OAKS BLVD $1,675,000 631 MYSTIC LN $1,855,000

VISIT INSIDESACRAMENTO.COM FOR COMPREHENSIVE NEIGHBORHOOD REAL ESTATE GUIDES WITH 6 MONTH HISTORICAL SALES DATA

* BASED UPON INFORMATION FROM METROLIST SERVICES, INC, FOR THE PERIOD FEBRUARY 1, 2021 THROUGH FEBRUARY 28, 2021.

DUNNIGAN, REALTORS DID NOT PARTICIPATE IN ALL OF THESE SALES.

ILP/GRID n INSIDESACRAMENTO.COM

39

Boxed In CSA MEMBERS HARVEST THE BEST LOCAL FOODS

F

ew things beat picking a ripe tomato from the backyard or biting into a juicy pear from your own fruit tree. But for those without time or space for their own gardens, the next best thing is Community Supported Agriculture.

CSA is a partnership between a farm and a group of subscribing members, and creates a relationship between the production and consumption of farmed food. Members make a commitment to support the farm throughout the season and purchase a share of the harvest, which is usually delivered weekly to a convenient drop location.

A handful of local farms offer CSA programs with a variety of vegetables and fruits. Boxes are mostly organic and all seasonal and fresh. Following are six options, but note some may have limited

TMO

By Tessa Marguerite Outland Farm-to-Fork

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ILP/GRID APR n 21

supplies or no memberships available at this time:

HUMBLE ROOTS CSA An urban organic farm on one-half acre in West Sacramento, Humble Roots produces organic and biodynamic fruits, vegetables, herbs and flowers.

Families can explore the land, care for the animals and chat with a farmer. A “Cosmopolitan” membership is $34 a week. While a full year commitment is expected, payments can be made monthly. Visit westsacfarmer.com/ participate.

TERRA FIRMA FARM A 200-acre organic farm in Winters, Terra Firma has been growing vegetables and fruit for more than 30 years. About 1,200 households receive vegetables grown on 150 acres, while the other 50 acres produce fruits and nuts. Terra Firma produce can be found at Davis Food Co-op, Sacramento Natural Foods Co-op and Nugget Markets. Boxes range from $20 to $41.

Visit terrafirmafarm.com.

H&K FARMS A small group of farmers is dedicated to being fruitful in the community through agriculture. Members support H&K farmers and their agro-ecological methods. A variety of weekly food boxes are available from $29 to $702. Half shares range from $18.50 to $320 for veggies, fruits or honey and nuts. Visit agroecocsa.com.

who receive vegetables and fruit 48 weeks a year. Fruit, flowers and bread from Village Bakery in Davis are available. The Veggie Box is $220 for 12 weekly deliveries and contains seasonal, organic veggies and fruits. The Fruit Bag is $195 for 12 weekly deliveries of seasonal, organic fruit with occasional dried fruit and nuts. Flower bouquets are available at $105 for 12 weekly deliveries. Fresh bread is $40 for 12 weekly deliveries. Visit goodhumus.com.

EATWELL FARM Located near Dixon on 105 acres of organic farm and pasture land, Eatwell has provided members with fresh-picked produce and pasture-raised chicken eggs for more than 20 years. Members receive weekly boxes, and Eatwell grows 90 percent of everything that goes into its boxes. Anything else comes from local organic farms. A weekly newsletter describes the contents and features recipies. The family box is $32; the twoperson box is $24.50. Visit eatwell.com.

GOOD HUMUS An organic farm in Capay, Good Humus started in 1993 with 10 friends.

Now the farm has about 175 families

CREATE A CSA If you have a vegetable garden, fruit trees or even a few egg-laying chickens, consider creating your own CSA. Start by asking neighbors if they are interested in contributing, then decide which vegetables or fruits would be most appealing. Host a meeting or virtual gathering to determine the details. Start small and see how it grows.

Tessa Marguerite Outland can be reached at tessa.m.outland@gmail.com.

Previous columns can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

Lyon Real Estate LOCAL LEADERS WITH GLOBAL CONNECTIONS

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Stately Del Dayo home in a rare cul-de-sac location near the American River Parkway! Pristine 4BD, 3BA, 3379SF on a .34 ac lot. $1,250,000 DEBBIE DAVIS 916.213.2323 #01237920

Gorgeous 2-story custom Tudor home on highly sought-after cul-de-sac! This 4BD, 2.5BA, 2744SF home has been meticulously designed! $747,000 MARGERY BAILEY 916.764.7243 #01424222

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Land Park Ofĺce | 2620 21st Street, Sacramento | 916.453.3333 | GoLyon.com ILP/GRID n INSIDESACRAMENTO.COM

41

Snake Pit

A POSITIVE MESSAGE SHOULDN’T SLITHER

eople don’t always get my sense of humor. Unfortunately, my years as a hospital chaplain infected me with a touch of gallows humor, an ironic wit handy for hopeless situations.

Nevertheless, 10 years ago, I took that humor on a 90-day deployment to Panama with the Red Horse Squadron from Nellis Air Force Base, Las Vegas.

Red Horse is the Air Force version of the Navy Seabees (Construction Battalion). Both are trained to bulldoze the ground in warzones while defending the same ground with M16 rifles.

We were in Panama as part of Operation New Horizon to build schools, clinics and playgrounds. The endeavor gave our airmen experience to build a barebones base in a battle zone.

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By Norris Burkes Spirit Matters

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From Panama City, our crew drove the Pan American Highway to our campsite. The road stretches from Alaska to Argentina and is interrupted only by a 60-mile swath of swamp called the Darién Gap. We made camp in that gap.

Once settled, Col. Darren Daniels assembled us for a briefing. In the trees above, howler monkeys, sloths and iguanas eyed the proceedings with territorial suspicion.

Daniels gave us a sober warning that we would be working among dangerous paramilitary groups and drug traffickers.

“If anyone gets hurt,” he told us, “we are a long way from help.”

I’d been to Iraq the previous year, so I wasn’t too worried. Until, that is, Daniels mentioned the fer-de-lance viper.

I took a jumbo breath of swamp air and expelled an uneasy laugh.

Afterward, I retreated to the chapel tent to do an internet search.

Apparently, the fer-de-lance causes more human deaths than any other American reptile. Surprisingly, the next few days, my gallows humor was inflated with sobering viper facts.

I asked an airman constructing our showers if he knew the fer-de-lance injects 105 milligrams of venom in one bite.

His eyes widened. “Kind of a waste,” I added, “because it only takes 50 milligrams to kill you.”

At lunch that day, I asked the food services guy if he knew it was fer-delance birthing season.

He responded by throwing a heap of potatoes on my plate. “The mamas drop about 60 babies at once,” I said. “The little guys can climb tent walls.”

Each factoid brought the nervous chuckles I was looking for—until I took a lunchtime seat with Col. Daniels and his staff and shared my new knowledge.

Daniels picked up a biscuit and pointed it my direction. “Didn’t we bring you here to boost morale?” he asked.

The table went quiet, so he graciously softened his tone. “I’m just thinking the chaplain should be sharing good news, not scaring the hell out of us.”

He said it all with a chortle, but we both knew the Shakespearean axiom, “Many a true word is spoken in jest.”

My commander was right. His squadron would go on to build outposts in Afghanistan. Not all would come home whole. My job was to expose them to a faith that would build them up as they built our humanitarian project.

Spreading fear, even in jest, wasn’t the best way for me to share hope.

Neither is it the best way we can share our faith.

Yet there are Christians who think they should use fear to encourage people to take a step toward God. Fear doesn’t work. People have enough hell in their lives without us presenting an angry God who’ll make them suffer an apocalyptic hell.

Sharing our faith is the act of exposing people to hope, not to fear or hate.

The Apostle Paul said it best in his second letter to Timothy: “For God has not given us a spirit of fear, but of power and of love and of a sound mind” (1:7).

I encourage you not to share your fear, not to share your hate. Share your hope.

In the Darién Gap a few weeks later, a Panamanian soldier killed a fer-delance outside my chapel tent. It was a fitting end for one of those slithering things that has been interfering in God’s work since creation.

Norris Burkes can be reached at comment@thechaplain.net. Previous columns can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. Burkes is available for public speaking at civic organizations, places of worship, veterans groups and more. For details and fees, visit thechaplain.net. n

Here Comes the Sun SUNBURST PROJECTS THRIVES UNDER NEW LEADERSHIP

Jacob Bradley-Rowe Photo by Aniko Kiezel

Joe Wilson Photos by Aniko Kiezel

JL

By Jessica Laskey Meet Your Neighbor

S

unburst Projects’ new executive director Jacob BradleyRowe likes to say that he’s proud of his organization—a nonprofit that empowers children, women and families living with HIV—for always taking the extra step. The same could be said of Bradley-Rowe himself.

Bradley-Rowe has dedicated nearly two decades of his life to nonprofit work, both as a staffer and volunteer. The interest in giving back to his community was instilled in him from an early age—as the sixth generation of his family to raise cattle and sheep in Grass Valley, Bradley-Rowe spent his childhood deeply involved with 4H and FFA.

After studying at the University of London, King’s College, through UC Davis, Bradley-Rowe returned to Sacramento to work for Donate Life California, helping develop the “pink dot” organ donor network, which now boasts more than 10 million registered donors.

He’s also served on a variety of nonprofit boards, including Sacramento Pride, NorCal AIDS Cycle, Friends of the California State Fair, National FFA Foundation, Cultivating Change Foundation, Sacramento LGBT Community Center and Imperial Court of Sacramento, the oldest active LGBT organization in Sacramento. Bradley-Rowe’s alter ego, drag queen Precious Cargo, was the 35th Empress named to the court.

But Bradley-Rowe hasn’t just donated time and money to these nonprofits—he’s also planned and executed many of their fundraisers as the owner of event-planning company Royal Events. In its 12 years of existence, Royal Events helped raise more than $5 million for local charities. Bradley-Rowe closed the company in 2015 when he went to work for Tesla as business development director.

Bradley-Rowe first became aware of Sunburst Projects’ important work in 2008 when he helped organize the Capital City AIDS Fund’s Sacramento Valley AIDS Run Walk (Sunburst was one of many beneficiaries). He was asked to join the board, then he temporarily helped manage staff and programs as a volunteer when the former executive director vacated the position. After successfully seeing the nonprofit through the beginning of the pandemic, Bradley-Rowe was officially hired last May. “I inherited an organization rich in history, but with some struggles,” Bradley-Rowe says of the project initially founded in 1982 as a summer camp for children living with cancer. It then became the nation’s first therapeutically designed summer camp for children living with HIV. Sunburst Projects incorporated as a nonprofit in 1990 and now provides support services, counseling, case management and mental health services to those living with HIV. “COVID impacted us in the beginning, but we managed to do a complete 180, growing our programs and staff thanks to a new allocation from the (Health Resources and Services Administration’s) Ryan White HIV/AIDS Program grant, which provides the majority of our funding,” Bradley-Rowe says.

In addition to providing crucial services, such as counseling, Sunburst focuses on HIV/AIDS prevention and education, which Bradley-Rowe says is “just as big an issue as it was 20 years ago.” He explains that the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reported more than 37,000 new HIV infections in the U.S. in 2018—many of them in women and children.

“We’re seeing a demographic change in the age when kids first become sexually active,” Bradley-Rowe says. “It’s now 18 to 24, so we’re focused on reaching TO PAGE 45

ILP/GRID n INSIDESACRAMENTO.COM

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Time to Sell?

FOR KINGS OWNERS, IT’S A TEMPTING MARKET

E

arlier this year, a sports business site called Sportico estimated the Kings’ total value at $1.84 billion. That amount covers everything, from the team and its sponsorship deals to real estate.

As someone who has followed the Kings and laughed along with their failure since the early 1980s, I thought of two questions: If I owned the team, would now be the right time to sell? And might some Kings owners wonder the same thing?

The answer, according to people who study such matters, is a definite maybe.

RG

By R.E. Graswich Sports Authority

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ILP/GRID APR n 21

If you need cash and are tired of borrowing money and liquidating assets to support your team’s losses, then yes, you should sell. If you aren’t worried about cash flow and don’t mind the humiliation of owning a crummy NBA franchise in a small market where there’s no expectation or pressure to win, then sit tight. The value will only increase, along with the headaches.

Here’s the curious thing about owning the Kings. While the team enjoys epic leaps in value, the road to riches is littered with financial setbacks and disappointment for people who own a piece of the action.

The only time the Kings are profitable is when the boss hands over the keys and walks away. Until the day you sell your team, NBA ownership is a brutal business.

Consider history. In 1983, when several Sacramento land speculators bought the Kings from Kansas City investors, the price was $4.5 million in cash, $4.5 million in deferred payments and $1.5 million to leave Missouri.

Even at those prices, the new Sacramento owners soon squabbled over money. Team credit cards were maxed out and canceled. On paydays, Kings players and staff rushed to their banks, worried the checks would bounce.

In 1992, the exhausted owners sold 53 percent of the Kings to Los Angeles real estate developers. The Southlanders paid $20 million in cash and assumed $60 million in debt. They got control of the team, arena and land in North Natomas.

Within five years, the L.A. guys were running low on cash and patience. They needed a $73 million loan from the city to stay in Sacramento. By 1998, the L.A. crew was ready to bail.

A Las Vegas casino family bought 24 percent of the Kings for $37.5 million, then doubled its investment in 1999 and soon controlled 53 percent.

With a partner named Bob Hernreich, the Maloof family eventually held 65 percent (plus the $73 million city debt).

They lost money until the 2002 playoff run.

Which brings us to today. Battered by the Great Recession and forced to dump assets, the Maloofs and Hernreich sold their 65 percent to a Bay Area group for $348 million in 2013. The remaining 35 percent stayed with local owners, Sacramento boldface names such as the Benvenuti family, Dave Lucchetti and John Kehriotis.

The Bay Area investors, led by Mark Mastrov and Vivek Ranadive, offered shares to their pals from tech and manufacturing. Local investors, including Mark Friedman, Phil Oates and Kevin Nagle, bought smaller pieces.

Together they acquired Downtown Plaza and paid off the $73 million city loan. They built Golden 1 Center for $558.2 million (with a $223 million investment from the city). The partners sank $335.2 million into the arena, plus another $300 million or so on Downtown Commons and Kimpton Sawyer Hotel. Those bills add up.

Adopt an orphan who will steal your heart.

sacpetsearch.com sspca.org happytails.org saccountyshelter.net Brought to you by the animal lovers at

INSIDE SACRAMENTO Today, no one person owns controlling interest in the Kings.

Ranadive serves as managing partner.

He presides over an organization that has been financially devastated by the pandemic—a team with a history of losses on the bottom line and the court.

To stay afloat, the Kings have cut employees, borrowed from an NBA emergency fund and relied on $109 million in league revenue sharing.

Ticket and suite sales, concessions and sponsorships have been wiped out.

Want some good news? If you owned 1 percent of a team worth $1.8 billion, you could sell your piece for $18 million, right? Wrong. Minority shares are notoriously hard to price or sell. Fellow owners have first rights to your stock.

The NBA must approve all transactions.

Shares can’t be used as loan equity or collateral. Minority stock value is extraordinarily limited.

Looking ahead, if controlling interest in the Kings comes up for sale, no one should be surprised.

R.E. Graswich can be reached at regraswich@icloud.com. Previous columns can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

Time to get dirty!

Gardening books available 1st Saturday of the month: Super Saturday Sidewalk Sale 10am – 3pm

Crawford’s Books New | Used | Trade 5301 Freeport Blvd. #200 916.731.8001 CrawfordBooks.net Sue@CrawfordBooks.net

Tuesday – Saturday 10am – 6pm Curbside pickup available.

FROM PAGE 43 that demographic. The work that has to be done in this country is to get everyone tested. We can get to zero new transmissions if we push U = U.” U = U is Undetectable = Untransmittable, which indicates that if a person with HIV is on antiretroviral therapy medication with a consistently undetectable HIV viral load, the virus cannot be transmitted to a sexual partner.

“We have to try and look at things from different perspectives to continue to grow and reach more people,” Bradley-Rowe says. “I feel like all of my experience in fundraising, tech and grassroots ties to the community are coming together to give me the skills to lead this organization to a new place.

“I love knowing the work we’re doing is helpful. I believe I’m where I should be.”

For more information, visit sunburstprojects.org.

Jessica Laskey can be reached at jessrlaskey@gmail.com. Previous profiles can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

ILP/GRID n INSIDESACRAMENTO.COM

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Watercolor Incorrect

Jerald Silva Photo by Aniko Kiezel

JERALD SILVA’S GENRE-BENDING BRUSHSTROKES MAKE ART AN ADVENTURE

JL

By Jessica Laskey Open Studio

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A

cclaimed painter Jerald Silva fits many descriptions.

Here’s one he doesn’t fit: watercolorist.

“It’s not insulting. I just work so differently from persons who describe themselves that way, I don’t wish to

be misunderstood,” Silva says. “Mine is a different genre using the same materials.”

Silva’s style was developed by accident. As a young artist, he was using a friend’s studio while the friend was abroad. He ran out of

canvas. With necessity serving as the mother of invention, Silva noticed a roll of butcher paper. He decided to paint on that—until he discovered it was too porous for watercolor.

He then saw a gallon of Elmer’s glue, which he thinned and spread across the paper. He glued on a piece of cardboard for stiffness. The glue film allowed the paper to resist the water, which gave Silva a new surface to paint on, along with a new genre he called “watercolor incorrect.”

“This method of working is really an unexpected extension of the medium,” says Silva, whose lifelong pursuit of painting and drawing has included art studies at Sacramento City College, where he studied with Wayne Thiebaud and Amelia Fischbacher. He also attended the prestigious Chouinard Art Institute of Los Angeles (now part of CalArts), and earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees from Sacramento State.

“It offered me possibilities that nothing else did,” he says. “I’ve tried very hard to show other people how I do it—I think it’s really easy, but I’ve been doing it for 60 years. I love it because the style is unexpected. Every painting is an adventure.”

The 84-year-old is always up for an adventure, as evidenced by his huge body of work—he estimates he’s completed roughly 900 paintings— and extensive resume. He’s exhibited in his native Sacramento, plus Folsom, Rocklin, the Bay Area, Southern California, New York City, Ashland, Ore., and London when his family moved to England on a whim in 1968 after a successful show in L.A. “My wife had always wanted to live in England and she asked if the show had been successful enough for us to move there,” says Silva, who has three sons with his late wife, Susan.

“I said we could do it but it would be difficult. Well, in this family, if something is possible, it’s mandatory.

Ten weeks later we were on a freighter to England.”

Silva is quick to point out his success has been a product not just of talent, but timing. “The 1950s and early ’60s were a really good time for me to decide to be an artist because it was very stylish to be poor,” he says. “Nobody thought of BMWs,

fine houses or haircuts. We lived the life we were actually living—we were poor, but we didn’t feel poor.

When I lived was a miracle. Twenty years before or after, I couldn’t have done it. I can’t believe how lucky I’ve been.”

And he’s not done. He recently had a solo exhibition at artspace1616 on Del Paso Boulevard and plans to exhibit again in San Francisco and L.A., where his paintings fetch substantial sums. He’s still experimenting with his style—in fact, he’s painting in his Curtis Park studio as we talk.

“Now I’m doing odd landscapes with drawings on top as if in fog,” Silva says. He uses a technique called scumbling. A stiff brush scratches the color on, and he softens the material into what he calls a “vague painting”

by spraying the watercolor pigment with water, causing it to relax and float around. Then he marks the surface with his finger. The result is a ghostlike image that looks like it’s been drawn on a steamy window.

“I’m only ever playing,” Silva says. “I always want to face the unexpected—you don’t want to be caught boring yourself. Every day you wake up is an experiment. If it’s not, you’re not doing it right.”

For information on Silva’s work, visit jeraldsilva.com.

Jessica Laskey can be reached at jessrlaskey@gmail.com. Previous profiles can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

I’m only ever playing. I always want to face the unexpected—you don’t want to be caught boring yourself.

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a i h T p o T CURR P U H S I COCONUTS D

LU S P , IES

R O M

E

Photos by Linda Smolek

G

rowing up in Sacramento in the 1980s, I could easily count the number of Thai restaurants.

Today, keeping count is almost impossible. The region supports around 100 Thai places. And it’s not just a city thing. I’ve seen Thai restaurants in Susanville and Alturas.

It’s no wonder. Signature Thai flavors pull together sweet and savory, sour and bitter. Fresh vegetables and rich, pungent sauces deliver satisfying fare. Rice dishes, noodle dishes, curries

GS

and small bites create varied and exciting meals any day of the week.

One of the best local purveyors of Thai cuisine is The Coconut, with two restaurants—The Coconut on T and The Coconut River Park. Each demonstrates brightness of flavor and expert skills. A focus on local craft beer and wine doesn’t hurt.

The Coconut on T is located in quiet Southside Park at 11th and T streets. The corner has become a culinary cutout in a residential part of the grid. There’s Coconut and the wonderful South, purveyor of some of the finest Southern food this side of the Mississippi.

The Coconut River Park is at Carlson Drive and Lovella Way, the commercial heart of the neighborhood.

The shopping center has two other restaurants worth visiting: Mamma Susanna’s Ristorante Italiano and Rooster’s Breakfast & Mimosas. Both

Coconut locations offer efficient to-go options and limited outdoor dining.

At Thai restaurants, I usually don’t look much further than the curries.

Coconut has a wide variety: yellow, red, avocado, pumpkin and Panang style.

Each has its own flavor subtleties and important adjustments of vegetables and spice.

I’m a sucker for Panang curry. The rich red curry mixed with peppers, green beans, carrots and meats makes for a satisfying dish. One note of caution: When asked what spice level you want, understand “mild” means “mildly hot” and “spicy” means “face meltingly spicy.”

Larb is another dish I love. I’m not sure why—maybe it’s the name—but I can’t get dining companions to share my devotion to this Thai favorite.

It’s a fresh, spicy, exciting plate that combines lettuce or cabbage, ground chicken or pork and plenty of onions, dressed with spicy lime dressing.

Coconut’s larb is among the best I’ve tasted. I order it every time I visit a Thai restaurant. Give it a try.

At both Coconut locations, you’ll find perfectly executed versions of Thai classics pad Thai and pad see ew.

The first is a combination of pan-fried noodles, eggs, sprouts, onions and ground peanuts in a sauce that shares almost no elements with any other edible substance on the planet. The second is a satisfying fried flat rice noodle with meats, egg and veggies.

Pineapple fried rice is served only at River Park. The recipe is novel.

Combining curried rice, pineapple chunks, meat or tofu, with cashews and dried fruit, this dish goes beyond the usual Thai restaurant presentation. I love it and can’t wait until the next time I get to devour more than is probably healthy.

Finally, I’ll say this: Thai food is one of the easiest cuisines to accommodate meat eaters, vegetarians and vegans

By Greg Sabin Restaurant Insider

SIGNATURE THAI FLAVORS PULL TOGETHER SWEET AND SAVORY, SOUR AND BITTER.

48

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EAT YOUR VEGETABLES

WITH A SIDE OF DESSERT AT SELLAND’S JOIN US OR ORDER ONLINE FOR CURBSIDE PICKUP OR DELIVERY ORDER ONLINE AT SELLANDS.COM

(or gluten-free eaters). The majority of Thai food uses no wheat and little meat (which can be easily swapped for tofu).

A meal from either Coconut can satisfy nearly every food plan in the house.

The exception is nut allergies. If you have a nut allergy, avoid Thai food.

Peanuts fly around the kitchen.

The Coconut on T is at 1110 T St.; thecoconutthai.com; (916) 822-4665. The

Coconut River Park is at 5489 Carlson Drive; coconutriverpark.com; (916) 993-8942.

Greg Sabin can be reached at gregsabin@hotmail.com. Our Inside Sacramento Restaurant Guide and previous columns can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

WE’RE LOOKING FOR INTERESTING HOME ART STUDIOS & OFFICES During these days of sheltering at home, Inside Sacramento is looking for creative home art studios and offices to feature in upcoming editions of Open House. Send recommendations to Cathryn Rakich at crakich@surewest.net.

Mon-Thurs: 11a-9p | Fri: 11a-9:30p | Sat: 10a-10p | Sun: 10a - 9p

1110 Front Street | 916.442.8226 | riocitycafe.com ILP/GRID n INSIDESACRAMENTO.COM

49

Youth, Interrupted PANDEMIC MAKES KIDS GROW UP FASTER

Zoë Dixson Photo by Aniko Kiezel

BY NATALIE MICHAELS

B

efore the pandemic, Yolanda Melchor was a regular at the 12th and R streets Starbucks.

Since lockdown, the sophomore at The Met Sacramento abandoned what was once a frequent stop on her way to and from school and her internship. She wonders if the baristas will still recognize her when normality returns. She reminisces, “I wonder if they’re still there. I hope they’re safe and healthy, but I don’t know.”

Melchor decided to sacrifice her Starbucks trips to respect COVID-19 safety guidelines, curbing personal desires as she serves the needs of her family. Her father’s ill health exacerbates the threat of the virus.

“Every family has to assess the risk level they’re willing to take,” Melchor says.

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Melchor’s story describes the experience of many adolescents and young adults as they adapt to life in a pandemic. Young people have been pushed into uncertain terrain, forced to calculate the risk and reward of every decision, aware that their actions carry health consequences for family, friends and even strangers.

Dr. Margaret Bezmalinovic, a psychologist in Sacramento, notes adolescents have “no point of comparison” when it comes to determining how to conduct themselves during the pandemic. Every decision about safety must be made individually and circumstantially, a perpetual cycle of recalibration amid trauma.

For some, like Zoë Dixson, the definition of risk has been drastically altered. A junior at Kit Carson International Academy, Dixson once believed “dangerous and risky things”

were obvious threats to her personal safety. Now, danger extends to “the simplest things, like going to the grocery store,” she says.

For Dixson, the definition of responsibility expanded to include the well-being of others because the virus impacts every action with the risk of communal harm.

Skyler Manfull, a second-year student at American River College, is the virus safety consultant for his friend group. After getting the coronavirus early in the pandemic, he decided to change his behavior. He informed his friends that he could not participate in their bubble if they did not follow safety guidelines. He receives calls from bubble members who want to confirm whether their behavior is appropriate.

For Manfull, virus-related responsibilities extend beyond adherence to safety protocols.

Manfull has taken on new roles in his household, primarily as a schooling assistant for his younger sister. While his mother and older sister work, he attends fourth-grade Zoom calls and manages his younger sister’s assignments. He says, “I’m with her from 8 to 4 every day, sometimes for longer.” Despite recognizing the strain of new expectations, Manfull says, “I know other people have it way worse.”

Just as it’s difficult to determine who has it “worse” in terms of the pandemic, it’s not easy to weigh how much benefit young people receive from having to manage pandemic risks and responsibilities. Dr. Stacey Peerson, a psychologist with the UC Davis Child and Adolescent Psychiatric Services Clinic, says she can “argue both sides.”

Referring to youth and young adults such as Manfull, who have taken on more responsibility at home, Peerson says, “Yes, they’re learning more responsibility, but it’s not their job at certain ages to take on a lot of responsibility.”

Dr. Paula Kenney, a marriage and family therapist with a private practice in Sacramento, says added pressures can cause internal dissonance for teens.

She says, “There’s a lot of stress when their normal, natural inclination is to be with others and be free.”

The loss of a brief but meaningful connection with local Starbucks baristas is significant, Kenney suggests. She says the loss of “little interactions, which you might not recognize unless you don’t have them” has only underscored the feeling of loss that pervades the pandemic.

Natalie Michaels is graduating this year from Heritage Peak Charter School. She can be reached at nataliermichaels@gmail.com. n

ACROSS 1 A rubber ducky floats in one 5 Crunchy deli side 9 Irish VIP who banished snakes 14 Four-time Grammy winner India.___ 15 “Ooh” or “tra” follower 16 “Too bad!”

17 Rodriguez of “Jane the Virgin” 18 Iowa State’s home 19 Where work piles up 20 Trivia expert’s nickname?

23 Like leftover phone minutes 24 Hot chocolate container 25 Fuel efficiency stat 28 Napkin’s place 29 Dived (for) 32 Loudly razz 33 Type of salami 34 ___ opposites 35 Takes out frustration on iPads?

39 Toot one’s own horn 40 50-50 41 Highlands lake 42 Thumbs-up kin 44 Choose

47 Disapproving syllable 48 Whiz 49 Pic taken with a stick, perhaps 51 Composer’s new health spa venture?

54 Analyze for purity 57 Pinocchio, at times 58 Champagne name 59 A poem like this clue / Although perhaps not quite as / Abominable 60 “Frozen” princess 61 Great Plains tribe 62 Seller of TV spots 63 Like an optimist’s outlook 64 Email button DOWN 1 Amount of toys in Santa’s sack 2 Grammy winner Grande 3 1996 golf movie starring Rene Russo 4 Warms 5 Flashy move from a Sun 6 Dalai ___ 7 Obi Wan Kenobi portrayer Guinness 8 Message on a dusty car

10/5

Ex-change by Alan Massengill

9 Bee’s attack 10 Synonym and anagram of “note” 11 Place for a pint 12 Earlier in time 13 Letters of gratitude in a text 21 Choose 22 Birth control option, briefly 25 Tuna ___ (cheesy sandwich) 26 Small ingredients in a potpie 27 (You’re trespassing!)

30 Nyet and nein, in English 31 Billionaire Bill 32 One of the Coen brothers 33 Deep wound 34 Smoothing machine

35 Apt rhyme for “pursues” 36 Computer break-in 37 EPA pollution stat 38 OFF! offering 39 Crunchy deli sandwich 42 Tolkien beast 43 Big name in bathroom fixtures 44 Distinguished 45 Air mail option?

46 Ran an experiment on 48 “Fork it over!”

50 Prom rides 51 Use an oven 52 Farm tower 53 Mouth off to 54 “Eureka!”

55 Feeling like :-( 56 “Aaron Burr, ___” (“Hamilton” song)

PREVIOUS PUZZLE ANSWER

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COLDWELL BANKER SOLD HEART OF LAND PARK! Charming Duplex with some lovely updates on a great street! Investor opportunity! $803,000 WENDY KAY 916.717.1013 CalRE#: 01335180

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LAND PARK COTTAGE 2BR/1BA w/beamed ceil, stained glass, newer water heater & HVAC. $660,000 SUE OLSON 916.601.8834 CalRE#: 00784986

PENDING FLEXIBLE FLOOR PLAN Wonderful 1-story, 3 br/2 ba home w/ kexible koor plan options galore, many upgrades + a 2yr-old owned solar system. $399,999 SABRA SANCHEZ 916.508.5313 CalRE#: 01820635 SPACIOUS IMMACULATE BEAUTY IN THE HEART OF RIVER PARK Updated 3bd,2bth light jlled home w/ large family room. STEFFAN BROWN 916.717.7217 CalRE#: 01882787 SOLD SIZE WILL SURPRISE! Impressive 1br/1ba condo w/ vaulted ceilings create a sense of quiet and warmth, kitchen has a great vibe! $175,000 ROZA & KIRSCH GROUP 916.730.7705 or 916.548.5799 CalRE#: 01483907/01365413 SOLD SPACIOUS DELIGHT! 3BR/3BA, 1717 sqft remodeled in 2012 w/ jreplace.

Formal dining area, travertine koors & dual pane windows. ROZA & KIRSCH GROUP 916.730.7705 or 916.548.5799 CalRE#: 01483907/01365413

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PRESENTING RIVER ACRES In Didion School District; steps to Sac River. Spacious bkyrd! $742,000 RENEE CATRICALA 916.203.9690 CalRE#: 01077144

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THE BLUFFS! 2BR/2BA Expansive American River and valley vistas like none other. A true splendor. $550,000 BOB LEVIN (916) 802-3633 CalRE#: 00768628 LUXURY CORNER PENTHOUSE! 2100 sf urban condo, 2 BR/2BA w/balcony. $1,890,000 MICHAEL ONSTEAD 916.601.5699 CalRE#: 01222608

ARDEN PARK GEM! 3br/3ba, 2316 Sq ft w/hardwood koors, new HVAC/ ADU for guests. $1,000,000 TIM COMSTOCK 916.548.7102 CalRE#: 01879462

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Access to lake, security & common areas. $626,000 RENEE CATRICALA 916.203.9690 CalRE#: 01077144

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