Inside Pocket Nov 2020 by Inside Publications

NOVEMBER 2020

POCKET

HAPPY 100TH BIRTHDAY WAYNE THIEBAUD

POCKET • GREENHAVEN • SOUTH POCKET • LITTLE POCKET • RIVERLAKE • DELTA SHORES Our Other Editions Serve: East Sacramento • Land Park/Grid • Arden/Carmichael

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HAPPY 100TH BIRTHDAY WAYNE THIEBAUD

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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

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

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COVER ARTIST

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

info@insidepublications.com PUBLISHER Cecily Hastings

WAYNE THIEBAUD “Three Prone Figures,” oil on canvas, 14 inches by 18 inches, 1961. Image is courtesy of Crocker Art Museum and the artist. The Crocker Art Museum’s “Wayne Thiebaud 100: Paintings, Prints, and Drawings,” a retrospective of Thiebaud’s achievements—coinciding with his 100th birthday— runs through Jan. 3, 2021. For information, visit crockerart.org.

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

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NOVEMBER 2020 VOL. 7 • ISSUE 10 6 8 10 12 18 19 20 22 24 26 28 30 32 33 34 36 38 42

Publisher's Desk Pocket Life Pocket Beat Out & About City Beat Giving Back Chief Complaint Building Our Future The Essential Workers Camped Out Meet Your Neighbor Garden Jabber Sports Authority Open Studio Restaurant Insider Spirit Matters Open House Nine Bosses

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New Centurion CITY DREW WINNING HAND WITH WAYNE THIEBAUD

nyone who reaches 100 and is still active has mastered the art of aging. But to reach an advanced age and work every day, stay sharp, physically active and self-sufficient puts you in another

CH By Cecily Hastings Publisher’s Desk

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category—what gerontologists call “superagers.” Sacramento artist Wayne Thiebaud is the ultimate super-ager of today’s art world. He’s famous around the world for creating colorful paintings and drawings of commonplace objects—pies, lipsticks, paint cans, ice cream cones, pastries and hot dogs—and for landscapes and figure paintings. Thiebaud uses heavy pigment and exaggerated colors. His work features well-defined shadows characteristic of advertisement. Early on, he embraced freedom—the right to paint whatever he found interesting. It worked. This summer,

his mesmerizingly austere 1962 painting, “Four Pinball Machines,” sold at Christie’s One auction for $20.1 million. Thiebaud was born in Mesa, Ariz., but grew up and graduated high school in Long Beach. One summer he apprenticed at Walt Disney Studios for $14 a week, drawing “in-betweens” that allowed Pinocchio, Jiminy Cricket and Goofy to move in animation. After studying at a Los Angeles trade school, he worked as a cartoonist and designer in California and New York. He came to know Sacramento when he served in U.S. Army Air Forces at Mather Field during World War II. In 1949, he enrolled at San Jose State College and transferred to Sacramento State, earning a bachelor’s degree in 1951 and a master’s in 1952. He soon began teaching at Sac City College. On a leave of absence during 1956– 57, he spent time in New York City, where he became friends with abstract impressionists. He began to paint small images of foods displayed in windows. Returning to California, Thiebaud co-founded the local Artists Cooperative Gallery, now the Artists’ Collaborative Gallery, and other art cooperatives. He was largely unknown in 1959 when the architectural firm Dreyfuss + Blackford selected Thiebaud to create a massive mural—the 250-foot “Water City” tile installation that wraps around SMUD headquarters in East Sacramento. An $83 million building update last year rejuvenated the mural, Thiebaud’s only large-scale public installation. In 1960, he became an assistant professor at UC Davis and had his first solo show in San Francisco, along with gallery shows in New York. Acclaim was growing. But Thiebaud was mostly

"Boston Cremes," 1962, Wayne Thiebaud, oil, 14x18

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Wills•Trusts•Probate & Special Needs Trusts interested in teaching. He worked at UC Davis through 1991 and recently said he still sees himself as “just an old art teacher.” Friendships were always important. In 1961, Thiebaud became friends with a New York art dealer named Allan Stone. Their friendship and professional relationship continued until Stone’s death in 2006. Stone summed it up: “I have had the pleasure of friendship with a complex and talented man, a terrific teacher and cook, the best raconteur in the West with a spin serve, and a great painter whose magical touch is exceeded only by his genuine modesty and humility. Thiebaud’s dedication to painting and his pursuit of excellence inspire all who are lucky enough to come in contact with him. He is a very special man.” In 1959, after a divorce from Patricia Patterson, Thiebaud married filmmaker Betty Jean Carr. A year later they had a son, Paul LeBaron Thiebaud, who became an art dealer. The couple bought a home and settled into Land Park, where Thiebaud lives and works today. Paul took over as his dad’s art dealer after Stone’s death. Paul died in 2010 at 49. Betty Jean passed away in 2015 at 86. Thiebaud’s daughter-in-law Karen and her two children live nearby. His adopted son, Matt Bult—an accomplished artist—also lives in Land Park with his wife, Maria. I met Thiebaud playing tennis at our club. He’s played his whole life and still plays several times a week. A few years ago I had the honor of working alongside him on an art selection panel that developer Phil Angelides set up to help choose public art for the McKinley Village development. I saw firsthand: Thiebaud is a very humble, soft-spoken, generous and thoughtful man. When he voiced an opinion, we all listened! Still working every day, Thiebaud reflects a prestigious group of artistic

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Lambtrust.com super-agers around the world. Paul McCartney writes music and performs for several hours straight at 78. Mick Jagger energetically prances at 77. Roger Angell is a senior editor and staff writer at the New Yorker magazine. He turned 100 in September. Pablo Picasso created art until his death in 1973 at 92. So did Georgia O’Keefe, who died in 1986 at 98. The most astounding super-ager ever was Michelangelo di Lodovico Buonarroti Simoni, who died in 1564 at 88 and practiced painting, architecture and sculpture until the end. He doubled the average life expectancy of his era and left one of the greatest bodies of personal artistic achievement in history. Gerontologists study the secrets of super-agers. Why do some older people remain mentally nimble while others decline? Research has identified a key finding: Work hard at something. The critical brain regions increase in activity when people perform difficult tasks, whether the effort is physical or mental. You can help keep these regions thick and healthy through vigorous exercise and strenuous mental effort. The road is difficult. These brain regions have an intriguing effect: When they increase in activity, you tend to feel bad—tired, stymied or frustrated. Super-agers seem to excel at pushing past temporary unpleasantness of intense effort. Studies suggest the result is a more youthful brain that helps maintain a sharper memory and greater ability to pay attention. As people get older, research shows, they cultivate happiness by avoiding unpleasant situations. But if people consistently sidestep the discomfort of mental effort or physical exertion, the restraint can be detrimental to the brain. All brain tissue gets thinner from disuse. If you don’t use it, you lose it. Wayne Thiebaud has suffered losses among family and friends. He has

"Betty Jean Thiebaud and Book," 1965-1969, Wayne Thiebaud, oil, 36x30

outlived his son, two wives, and dear friend and fellow tennis player Burnett Miller, who passed away in 2018 at 95. But Thiebaud never wavered at working hard at his craft every day. His profession allows him to continue working. The art world and our local community are so much richer as a result. Sometimes a city gets lucky when someone special chooses it as their home. That’s the story with Sacramento and Wayne Thiebaud.

have never been shown publicly. For information, visit crockerart.org.

OUR COVERS THIS MONTH We’ve been honored to present Wayne Thiebaud’s work on our covers in previous years. This month, we’ve been given permission to display artwork from his upcoming exhibition on all four of our covers.

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THIEBAUD 100 The Crocker Art Museum’s “Wayne Thiebaud 100: Paintings, Prints, and Drawings,” a retrospective of Thiebaud’s achievements—coinciding with his 100th birthday—runs through Jan. 3, 2021. The exhibition—the largest survey of Thiebaud’s work in more than 20 years—spans his career with 100 objects made between 1947 and 2019. The exhibition represents the artist’s achievements in all media, with pieces drawn from the Crocker’s holdings and Thiebaud family—many of which

Please sign up for our Inside Sacramento weekly newsletter with even more local news than we deliver in print. Also, consider an Inside membership starting at $19.95 a year. Visit insidesacramento.com/shop. And TAKE THE 100% LOCAL PLEDGE! Cecily Hastings can be reached at publisher@insidesacramento.com. Previous columns can be read and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram: @insidesacramento.com. n

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TIME TO EAT POCKET RESTAURANTS DODGE PANDEMIC

we’re still holding off with indoor dining,” she says. Adjustments have been difficult, with restaurants temporarily laying off employees and reducing hours and menu options. But two new restaurants recently opened: Kings Hawaiian BBQ (South Land Park Plaza) and Homero’s Mexican (Promenade Shopping Center). All local restaurants look forward to seeing our masked faces. They appreciate the community’s support. And remember to welcome the new kids on the block.

Device Brewing Company Photo by Aniko Kiezel

andemic and social-distancing protocols have slammed the restaurant industry. Fortunately, our neighborhood dining establishments have weathered the challenges somewhat better than their Downtown counterparts. No restaurants shut for good in Pocket. When indoor dining was prohibited, all offered takeout or delivery options. Some, such as Vientos and Caffe Latte, had space to provide outdoor dining.

CM By Corky Mau Pocket Life

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In June, the city launched the Farm to Fork Al Fresco Grant Program to help restaurants build or expand outdoor dining spaces. Eight Pocket restaurants received grant funds. They used the dollars to purchase outdoor furnishings, personal protective gear for employees and safety barricades. Katie Kinner-Kerksieck, co-owner of Cacio, says they began outdoor dining in the middle of September. “I think the city did a great job with this grant program,” she notes. “The application process was smooth. An added bonus was that for an additional low fee, we’re able to serve alcoholic beverages in our new outdoor space.” If you are tired of takeout or cooking at home, visit these local restaurants for outdoor dining experiences: Caffe Latte, Cacio, Subway, Baskins-Robbins, The Beijing Garden, Banzai Sushi, A Taste Above and Device Brewing Company. “These grants are making it easier for restaurants affected by the pandemic to support themselves and their communities,” says City Councilmember Rick Jennings, who represents Pocket and Greenhaven. “I’m happy to hear

that restaurant owners are appreciative of the program and we are all rooting for their continued success.” The dining situation improved in late September when county officials allowed indoor dining at 25-percent capacity. The news was a welcomed step, but some owners, such as KinnerKerksieck, were hesitant to return to old habits. “Out of caution for our guests, employees and our own health,

WAYS TO VOTE Residents have several ways to return ballots this election season. You can mail your ballot to Sacramento County elections officials in the postage-paid return envelope or take the ballot to a Ballot Drop Box. Bel Air grocery stores on Florin Road and Rush River Drive have drop boxes. On Election Day, Nov. 3, the boxes will be available from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. The Robbie Waters Pocket-Greenhaven Library has a drop box. It’s available from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Tuesdays through Saturdays. On Election Day,

Cacio Photo by Aniko Kiezel

Age in Place Comfortably and Happily with Home Care Assistance Championing Our Way Through Change... you can drop off your ballot from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. You can authorize someone to return your ballotâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;but make sure to fill out the authorization section on the outside of the ballot envelope. From Oct. 31 through Nov. 3, you can vote in person at a designated Vote Center. There are two sites in our neighborhood: Elks Lodge from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. and the Robbie Waters library from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. On Election Day, both locations will be open 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.

Return your ballot early to avoid the rush. To track the status of your ballot, visit BallotTrax, a free ballot tracking and alert system in California, at ballottrax.net/voter. Corky Mau can be reached at corky. sue50@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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What’s In a Name? WHY POCKET HONORS A SPORTS WRITER

verybody makes mistakes, including local governments when they give names to parks, schools and streets. Sometimes those mistakes get fixed. Jedediah Smith Elementary School south of Broadway became Leataata Floyd Elementary in 2012. Smith, an early 19th century frontiersman and slave owner, was scrubbed for a neighborhood volunteer. Sometimes they get it right the first time. Pocket is home to a 21-acre park called the Bill Conlin Youth Sports Complex, filled with soccer and baseball fields, picnic areas, the Lynn Robie dog park and a new playground that opened this summer. The sports complex is a fine tribute to a legend of Sacramento journalism. Bill Conlin spent 60 years reporting, writing, editing and enlightening for

RG By R.E. Graswich Pocket Beat

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two Sacramento daily newspapers, the Bee and Union. He died from cancer in 1997 at 84. Conlin was best known for sports columns and friendships with legends such as Joe DiMaggio, Al Davis and Charles Finley. But his columns covered more than personalities. He dug deep into the business of sports. He questioned motives and impact. “Always check ticket sales and parking receipts,” he told me. In the 1960s, Conlin served as news editor of the Union. Under his leadership, the Union nearly caught the Bee in a circulation war that defined a swashbuckling journalism era unimaginable today. Competition between the two local newspapers was relentless. Smaller than the Bee and poorly financed, the Union hunted for scoops. When the newsroom heard complaints of Sacramento Police beating up and robbing vagrants and drunks, a Union reporter volunteered to test whether the allegations were true. Conlin was not inclined to let a reporter make himself a police victim. Conlin knew the journalist risked serious injury. But the reporter insisted. He headed Downtown with a wallet full of cash, drank heavily at several bars and encountered the cops. Taken to the old Hall of Justice on Sixth Street, he

was shoved into an elevator, relieved of his wallet, beaten and thrown into a cell. The Union had its scoop—a story that shocked readers and forced authorities to address police brutality and thievery against the city’s most helpless. The reporter won acclaim and a nickname: “Bird,” short for jailbird. Conlin saw no humor in the affair. He moved back to sports, immersing himself in baseball, football, boxing and horse races. In 1976, he was named sports editor of the Bee. To the end of his life, he wept when telling the story of Bird’s courage. Here’s how the park was named for Conlin: The idea originated with Jean Runyon, the most influential public relations person in town. Soon after Bill’s death, Jean asked me to help memorialize our friend. Bill was my mentor. I instantly agreed. I worked for the Bee then, but the Bee had lost interest in Conlin. Fortunately, City Councilmember Robbie Waters admired Bill’s legacy. He agreed to support the project. The big hurdle was finding a park that wasn’t already named. There was a new, expansive, unnamed park in Waters’ district, a South Pocket site near Interstate 5 planned for soccer, baseball fields, playgrounds and picnic

areas. Conlin wasn’t from Pocket— he lived in Land Park—but Waters believed the new park on Freeport Boulevard presented a fine way to honor an iconic Sacramento newspaperman. We created a campaign to highlight Conlin’s unmatched journalistic accomplishments. I made presentations at Parks Commission and City Council meetings. The “yes” votes were unanimous. We raised money for signage to honor Bill and help with park development. Jean Runyon died in 2009 at 82. The Little Theater at Memorial Auditorium is named for her. Robbie Waters died this July from coronavirus at 84. His name lives on at the Robbie Waters Pocket-Greenhaven Library. Also this summer, Bill’s son, William Conlin III, died from cancer at 68. Years pass and people die and names become blurs, even names on parks, schools and streets. It’s nice to know some names are worth remembering for good reasons. R.E. Graswich can be reached at regraswich@iclould.com. Previous columns can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

It’s time to give your health care a checkup. This year is anything but normal. As we juggle family and work, and keeping those we love safe, there is one thing we know for certain: Our health has never been more important. That’s why having a health care team you depend on means everything. At Dignity Health, we take pride in establishing long-lasting, trusted relationships with our patients. And, while we’re always focused on meeting their needs, in these unprecedented times, we’re more committed than ever. So this year during Open Enrollment, make sure you’re getting the most out of your relationship with your doctor. Choose a health plan that connects you to Dignity Health hospitals and our affiliated doctors—such as Anthem Blue Cross, Blue Shield and Western Health Advantage. For a complete list of insurances accepted, and our affiliated medical groups and doctors, visit DignityHealth.org/OpenEnrollment.

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Join thousands of virtual runners for this year’s Run to Feed the Hungry. Photo courtesy of The Sacramento Bee.

The Run Lives On THANKSGIVING DAY TRADITION GOES VIRTUAL

ven though Run to Feed the Hungry, the country’s largest annual Thanksgiving Day fun run, can’t be held in person this year, the event will still be “run” online. Run to Feed the Hungry brings in nearly $1 million each year for Sacramento Food Bank & Family Services, which is being hit particularly hard this year. The nonprofit organization is currently feeding more than 300,000 hungry people per month—a 100-percent increase since the pandemic began. Every $1 raised purchases five meals for a family in need.

JL By Jessica Laskey Out & About

Virtual participants can run the race anytime and will receive an official T-shirt and bib number. Avid runners can even submit their 5K or 10K time results through an official results webpage. This year, families and friends are encouraged to work together to create virtual teams for fundraising. Packet pickup will be held at Fremont Presbyterian Church at 5770 Carlson Drive from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Saturday, Nov. 21, Sunday, Nov. 22, and Wednesday, Nov. 25. At the time of registration, participants will select a 30-minute pickup time slot. Adults are $35 and youth (17 and younger) are $20. Those who make a donation of $50 or more at the time of registration (and while supplies last) will received a Run to Feed the Hungry facemask. For more information or to register, visit runtofeedthehungry.com.

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school at Stanford University, Anspach eventually relocated to Sacramento and served as chief of radiology at Sutter General Hospital. In 1970, he helped convince then-California Gov. Ronald Reagan to support the plan for what would one day become the museum.

REMEMBERING DR. ANSPACH Dr. Denny Anspach, beloved member of the California State Railroad Museum

Foundation Board of Directors, passed away at age 86 on Sept. 20. The passionate rail enthusiast was instrumental in the creation of the California State Railroad Museum, which opened in 1981. After graduating from medical

Dr. Denny Anspach was instrumental in creating the California State Railroad Museum. Photo courtesy of the California State Railroad Museum and Melanie Tran.

Paulette Bruce offers her Good Eats Cooking Classes online.

“There is no question that we would not have the California State Railroad Museum without Dr. Denny Anspach— he was truly the ‘Founding Father,’” says Cheryl Marcell, president and CEO of the museum’s foundation. “He was my guide, my historian and my counselor in all things as I stepped into my (current) role.” Anspach was also the founding president of the Sacramento Trust for Historic Preservation and was the primary author of the nearly 200-page master plan for the museum. In 2014, he was presented with the Railway & Locomotive Historical Society’s prestigious Gerald M. Best Senior Achievement Award. Anspach remained active on the museum foundation’s board of directors until his death.

CITY ARTS GRANTS Nearly 300 arts and culture organizations and individual artists have been selected to receive reimbursement grants from Sacramento’s Creative Economy

Recovery program (funded by the $89 million the city received from the federal CARES Act). “I’m thrilled that these arts organizations and creatives will be able to breathe a little easier because of the help we’re providing,” Mayor Darrell Steinberg says. “The COVID-19 shutdown has hit the creative economy hard, and we recognize that our city will not thrive unless arts and culture does as well.” Awardees were scored and selected by the Arts, Culture, and Creative Economy Commission, part of the city’s Office of Arts and Culture. Scores were based on a proof of impact and loss from the pandemic. One of the 300 organizations that received funding is the Brazilian Center for Cultural Exchange of Sacramento, which runs a senior and homeless food service program called Lean on Me. The program provides pre-portioned healthy meals to identified senior housing and homeless encampments on a regular schedule. With support from the CARES grant, the Brazilian Center expects to

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secure, nine-month leases of no more than $500 per month in apartments or homes close to campus secured by community partners.

Molly Wiese is named Saint John’s Community Mother of the Year.

serve 400 meals per week. Learn more at braziliancentersac.org.

GOOD EATS Sacramento foodie Paulette Bruce has reinvented her popular in-person Good Eats Cooking Classes (which she’s taught for more than 30 years) in an online format to help home chefs learn their way around the kitchen. The one-hour classes are offered as part of a monthly $29 membership, which includes two live interactive classes via Zoom, two recorded classes, access to a private Facebook page, and weekly blogs with tips, techniques, recipes and more. “I love to bring people together and teach them something they never thought possible to do on their own,” Bruce says. “I’m invested in creating more confident and better cooks, and during this challenging time, members can achieve that in the safety of their own homes.” For more information, visit goodeatscookingclasses.com.

SAC STATE HONORS Sacramento State was recently recognized by Money.com as one of the best universities in the nation. The publication’s annual “Best Colleges for Your Money” study

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JUMP BIKES BACK Jump e-bikes and e-scooters have come back to Sacramento after shared-rideable companies voluntarily suspended their services in the city at the onset of the pandemic. Lime (the new owner of Jump bikes) has launched 200 bikes in Sacramento and West Sacramento, and plans to increase up to 600 bikes based on demand. Jump bikes are available to ride through Lime and Uber apps. E-scooter companies Bird and Spin also have relaunched their services. All shared-rideable operators have agreed to the city’s new increased sanitation requirements, which include enhanced disinfecting protocols. They also encourage all riders to use sanitation wipes and hand sanitizer, and follow social-distancing and mask requirements.

analyzes more than 730 four-year colleges nationwide and ranks them based on their value to students and their families. Sac State placed in the top 10 percent of Best Colleges (overall value), No. 9 in the nation for Most Transformative Colleges and in the top 50 for Best Public Colleges. In fact, 15 of California State University’s 23 campuses landed in the top 100. Sac State’s fall 2020 classes are 95-percent virtual, with the remainder being held face-to-face in socially distanced classroom settings. For more information, visit csus.edu.

COLLEGE REHOUSING The College-Focused Rapid Rehousing Program—the $2.61 million state-funded community partnership among Sacramento State, California State University, Lutheran Social Services and Sacramento Self-Help Housing—is offering students facing homelessness affordable housing to be able to continue pursuing their education. Seven CSU campuses will receive funding for the program using money set aside in the state budget. The Sac State partnership will receive $870,000 annually for three years, which will go toward providing as many as 50 qualifying Sac State students with

ONLINE LEARNING Frustrated or confused by online distance learning? City community

The Sacramento Zoo welcomes a newborn Wolf’s guenon.

centers are now offering free structured academic support and enrichment programs through the Sac Childcare Learning and Student Support program using $1.46 million in CARES Act funding. The program aims to support vulnerable children struggling with online learning by providing Wi-Fi access, additional academic support and childcare. Students from area school districts are referred to the CLASS program based on need. A waitlist is now available and will open on a firstcome, first-served basis to targeted populations, including low-income, English language learners and students with disabilities. The program will operate Monday through Friday, 7 a.m. to 6 p.m., at Joe Mims, Jr. Hagginwood Community Center (3271 Marysville Blvd.); Oak Park Community Center (3425 Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd.); George Sim Community Center (6207 Logan St.); and Sam & Bonnie Pannell Community Center (2450 Meadowview Road). To sign up for the waitlist, email Scott Jensen at sjensen@cityofsacramento. org.

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LEADERSHIP AWARD Social entrepreneur and accomplished executive Scott Syphax was recently awarded the prestigious Mort Friedman Civic Leadership Award in recognition of his exemplary public service. Named for the late prominent local businessman Mort Friedman, the award honors outstanding individuals who demonstrate a strong commitment to public service through their work and community leadership. Syphax is president of Syphax Strategic Solutions, and producer and host of KVIE’s “Studio Sacramento.” He also is former chair and CEO of Nehemiah Companies, a social enterprise and real estate development firm, as well as founder of the Nehemiah Emerging Leaders Program, which aims to develop a diverse leadership pipeline in the capital region. The award allowed Syphax to direct a grant from the Mort Friedman Civic Leadership Endowment at the Sacramento Region Community Foundation to NELP. “I am honored and humbled to receive the Friedman award,” Syphax says. “Mort Friedman’s legacy and contribution to Sacramento’s civic life continue to inspire those seeking the betterment of our region.”

MOTHER OF THE YEAR Saint John’s Program for Real Change, Sacramento’s largest residential program for formerly homeless women and children, has selected Molly Wiese as its 2020 Community Mother of the Year.

“Each year, we thoughtfully and carefully select the community member that we feel best exemplifies the seven core values that we instill in our clients: community, courage, effort, gratitude, growth, love and respect,” says Sasha Wirth, Saint John’s vice president and chief development officer. “Molly is the personification of these values, as a woman, as a community leader, and most importantly, as a mother.” An experienced attorney and mother of three, Wiese has supported Saint John’s for years and served on multiple event committees. The lifelong Sacramentan’s philanthropic contributions have also included support for Jesuit High School, St. Francis High School, Sacred Heart, American Cancer Society and Society for the Blind.

NEW ZOO ANIMALS Over the past few months, the Sacramento Zoo has welcomed several new animals, including a group of squirrel monkeys, newborn Wolf’s guenon and baby giraffe. The three male squirrel monkeys— Blaze, Taco and Arlo—were added to the zoo’s bachelor troop as part of the zoo’s work with the Association of Zoos & Aquariums’ Squirrel Monkey Species Survival Program. The zoo also welcomed a baby Wolf’s guenon, born to five-time parents Mimi and Eddie. Wolf’s guenons are listed as a vulnerable species and are not commonly found at zoological parks. The zoo also announced that Shani, a 10-year-old Masai giraffe, gave birth in September to a female calf, the 12th

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calf born at the Sacramento Zoo since the species was first housed at the park in 1964.

SSPCA BENEFIT AUCTION The second annual Sacramento SPCA Benefit Auction will be held live online from 9 a.m. Thursday, Nov. 19, to 9 a.m. Thursday, Dec. 3. Local auction house Witherell’s will run the online auction featuring a diverse array of collectibles, fine art, jewelry and decorative arts to raise money for SSPCA. All net proceeds from the sale will benefit the nonprofit, fullservice animal welfare organization. For more information, visit sspca.org.

DÍA DE LOS MUERTOS Día de Los Muertos California, a new project from Sol Collective and other cultural groups, connects community members to local Day of the Dead festivities across the state. “Día de los Muertos is not a celebration of death, nor something to fear, but rather a celebration of life, an occasion to remember our loved ones who have passed away,” says Sol Collective founder Estella Sanchez. “As long as there is someone who

remembers them, they remain amongst the living. With the pandemic, we thought it was important to provide a way for people to safely continue this important and meaningful tradition.” The project features a new usergenerated statewide digital ofrenda (or altar) to provide a COVID-19-free space. Californians can find local events and upload a photo of a loved one on the new digital ofrenda at diadelosmuertosca. com.

PEAK ADVENTURES Though there are fewer students around this fall, Peak Adventures— the outdoor recreation program of Associated Students, Inc. housed on the Sacramento State campus—is still open for business. Featuring a full-service bike shop, equipment rentals, on-campus ropes course and array of adventure outings, Peak Adventures provides year-round entertainment in the great outdoors. On Saturday, Nov. 21, take the hands-on bike maintenance class to learn how to give your bike a tune-up before hitting the trails. For more information, visit peakadventures.org.

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Isaac Serwanga will participate in United Way’s Young Leaders Society’s REMIX speaker series.

WATERFRONT WHEEL

DANCE ON FILM

Get a bird’s eye view of the Old Sacramento waterfront from the new 65-foot Waterfront Wheel, now open through Jan. 31 in front of Rio City Café at the newly activated Waterfront Park. Hours of operation are Monday through Thursday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m., Friday through Sunday from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m., with special holiday hours from 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. (Nov. 25–29, Dec. 20–Jan. 3 and Jan. 15–18). Lines will be physically distanced, carts will be sanitized regularly, and contactless payment and admission will be available. The cost is $6 per rider. To add to the festive spirit, the 60-foot holiday tree will return to Front and K streets with a special Holiday Tree Lighting ceremony, which will be live-streamed on the Old Sacramento Waterfront Facebook page on Thanksgiving Eve, Nov. 25, at 6 p.m. The tree will remain in place through the New Year. For more information, visit downtownsac.org.

Imagery, the contemporary ballet company by former Sacramento Ballet artistic director Amy Seiwert, will present SKETCH FILMS: Red Thread, a new documentary dance project in celebration of SKETCH’s 10th anniversary. Featuring world premieres by SKETCH alumni, the series seeks to foster innovation in ballet-based choreography with commissioned works by women, dance makers with disabilities and choreographers of color. The dance pieces, usually performed in intimate live venues, have been filmed this year due to the pandemic and will be released online through Eventbrite. Stephanie Martinez’s film will premiere Thursday, Nov. 5, at 6:30 p.m. Ben Needham-Wood’s film will premiere Friday, Nov. 20, at 5 p.m. For tickets, visit sketchfilm-seiwert.eventbrite.com. For more information, visit asimagery. org/sketchfilms.

FALL AT MANETTI SHREM

REMIX SPEAKER SERIES

The virtual fall programs at UC Davis’ Jan Shrem and Maria Manetti Shrem Museum of Art will include prominent artists, writers and curators whose works illuminate issues of race, identity and representation. On Wednesday, Nov. 4, from 4–5:30 p.m., UCD professors will discuss Claudia Rankine’s new book “Just Us: An American Conversation.” On Thursday, Nov. 12, from 4:30–6 p.m., artist Njideka Akunyili Crosby will give a Betty Jean and Wayne Thiebaud Endowed Lecture on how her collage and photo transfer-based paintings negotiate the cultural terrain between her adopted home in America and her native Nigeria. Nov. 12–24, the DHI Human Rights Film Festival will screen five films about local and global human rights issues, followed by Q&A sessions with filmmakers and scholars. On Thursday, Nov. 19, from 4:30–6 p.m., museum founding director Rachel Teagle will provide an inside look at the upcoming Wayne Thiebaud exhibit and the artists he inspired in “Wayne Thiebaud Influencer: A New Generation.” For more information, visit manettishrem.org.

United Way’s Young Leaders Society is hosting REMIX, a virtual speaker series meant to inspire and connect young professionals during the pandemic. Members of the Young Leaders Society volunteer and fundraise for United Way’s Square One Project, which seeks to significantly increase the number of students in the region who graduate from high school. The group’s annual REMIX speaker series will culminate Tuesday, Nov. 17, with a virtual presentation by Isaac Serwanga, a TEDx-featured speaker, best-selling author and founder of Inform & Inspire. Tickets are $15 for general admission and $10 for Young Leaders Society members. For tickets and more information, visit youngleadersuwccr.org.

NOVEMBER AT ARCHIVAL Archival Gallery in East Sacramento will present Corey Okada and Laureen Landau with Marilyn Kuksht and Linda Nunes from Nov. 5 to Dec. 5. Okada will present solo works and collaborative pieces with the late Landau in “News From Home,” which will share gallery space with sculptures by Kuksht and encaustic works by Nunes.

“The Green House” by Linda Nunes is on display at Archival Gallery.

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"Yolo Reﬂections" by John Nichols is part of Bucks for Ducks live auction.

shop.boglewiner y.com There will be no public Second Saturday reception. Visitors are welcome during normal business hours with no appointment needed. Masks are required at all times. For more information, visit archivalgallery.com.

BUCKS FOR DUCKS Yolo Basin Foundation’s 30th annual Bucks for Ducks Fundraising Gala will be held virtually from Nov. 9–15. The weeklong event raises funds to support Yolo Basin Foundation’s education programs and activities to improve and sustain the Yolo Bypass Wildlife Area. On Monday, Nov. 9, an online auction featuring art and photography celebrating California nature and agriculture opens at 9 a.m. and runs through Nov. 15 at 5 p.m. On Tuesday, Nov. 10, watch a series of videos about the wetlands. On Wednesday, Nov. 11, learn about the foundation’s education

programs with Yolo Basin staff and volunteers. On Thursday, Nov. 12, and Friday, Nov. 13, hear from Bucks for Ducks artists and photographers. On Saturday, Nov. 14, log on to the live showcase event from 5:30–7 p.m. to hear highlights from the past 30 years and bid on live auction items. For more information, visit yolobasin.org/ bucksforducks.

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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POWER

GRAB

STRONG MAYOR PROMISES ALREADY COLLAPSING

eople are finding many reasons to vote against Measure A, the strong mayor proposal devised by Mayor Darrell Steinberg. Accountability, neighborhood influence and transparency will dwindle under strong mayor. But there’s something less obvious that makes strong mayor a bad bet. In August, Steinberg proposed strong mayor as a way to direct extra dollars into historically underserved communities, such as Meadowview, Oak Park and Del Paso Heights. But evidence indicates if Steinberg becomes strong mayor, those communities shouldn’t expect much. Barely a month after Steinberg rolled out strong mayor and presented himself as a champion of neglected neighborhoods, he opposed a plan by community activists to divert $15 million from the city budget under protocols called “participatory budgeting” or “ballot box budgeting.” The city’s Measure U Community Advisory Committee floated the $15 million proposal. The committee is a group of local residents appointed by

RG By R.E. Graswich City Beat

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Steinberg and the City Council after the 2018 passage of Measure U, a permanent 1-cent sales tax. In the Measure U campaign, Steinberg sold himself a powerful advocate for community oversight and inclusiveness. But once voters approved the tax hike, he pivoted. He seemed to abandon any serious interest in community inclusiveness and participatory budgeting. When the coronavirus shut City Hall and moved public meetings online, the city quickly forgot about the community advisory committee. The group was dropped from city agendas, banished to oblivion. Despite his bully pulpit and majority grip on the City Council, Steinberg was silent about the disappearance of the advisory committee. He did nothing to help restore the group until its members publicly complained. They shamed Steinberg and City Hall into acknowledging them. In September, the resurrected advisory committee announced its proposal to extract $15 million from the current budget and let the public decide where to spend it—the foundation of participatory budgeting. The committee wrote, “If we really want to support inclusive economic development, then in addition to creating a portal and process for funding programs and people, we also must begin to radically reimagine

how we structure our funding and how ‘inclusive’ we are of Sacramento residents who live in disadvantaged communities in shaping funding priorities.” With the strong mayor campaign underway, Steinberg might have been more sympathetic to the community advisory committee and its proposals. After all, the strong mayor play depends on making people believe Steinberg will cut through red tape and deliver extra money where it needs to go—unlike City Council members who tend to divide up dollars and spread money around local neighborhoods. But Steinberg wasn’t sympathetic. He chopped the advisory committee’s proposal down to what he calls a “discreet” number, $5 million. The money had been set aside for vacant city jobs. Steinberg insists he believes in participatory budgeting. He wrote a $40 million annual community handout into Measure A. But his behavior with the advisory committee indicates his interests are selfish. He wants to control the budget—and the handouts. Why would Steinberg say he loves community inclusion if he doesn’t mean it? Consider his background: He spent the bulk of his political career—14 years—climbing greasy poles in the state Assembly and Senate, where he became

leader. Senate corruption reached embarrassing levels under Steinberg. Senators were jailed. State legislators have zero interest in allowing citizens behind the curtain to interfere with a system dominated by political contributions and lobbyists. That’s Steinberg’s world. If not for term limits, he would still be there. And that’s why people who know Steinberg recognize the cynicism of his strong mayor campaign. That’s why City Council members who represent two historically underserved communities—Allen Warren of Del Paso Heights and Larry Carr of Meadowview—oppose strong mayor. That’s why Katie Valenzuela, newly elected progressive councilmember from Midtown, is against strong mayor, along with the chair of the Measure U Community Advisory Committee, Flojaune Cofer, plus retired city leaders Mayor Heather Fargo and Councilmember Darrell Fong, among others. That alone should be enough to defeat strong mayor Measure A on Nov. 3. R.E. Graswich can be reached at regraswich@icloud.com. Previous columns can be found and shared at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

Brandon Cheng Photo by Linda Smolek

Wheels of Fortune AMERICAN RIVER BIKE PATROL IS HERE TO HELP

he next time you’re on the American River bike trail and you see someone ride by in a red Bike Patrol jersey, make sure you wave and say hi. That rider might just be Brandon Cheng, one of the friendly volunteer trail ambassadors for the newly formed American River Bike Patrol. “If you need anything, let any of us know—we’re always happy to help,” says Cheng, a senior at Del Oro High School in Loomis who started volunteering as a junior patroller after learning about the program from his

JL By Jessica Laskey Giving Back: Volunteer Proﬁle

dad Jim, a veteran of the National Ski Patrol (which oversees the local Bike Patrol). “Whether you’re lost, injured or need a repair, pull us over, chase us down, get our attention. Never be nervous to ask for help. We never say no.” The idea for a bike patrol along the American River Parkway has been in the works for years, but it wasn’t until recently that the program entered its final approval stage. The American River Bike Patrol officially hit the trail in June and now boasts roughly 50 volunteer members who ride up and down the 32-mile trail providing directional advice, equipment assistance, safety insights, and basic first aid and CPR. “Safety is our No. 1 priority,” says Cheng, who got to drop “junior” from his patrol title after turning 18 in September. “People are generally very well-mannered on the trail and good about the rules, but if you don’t know

something or need help, we’re there for you.” Cheng explains that people interested in joining the Bike Patrol are put through eight hours of training, which includes education in outdoor skills, trail etiquette and traffic flow, followed by basic first aid and CPR training so patrollers know what to do in situations both minor (like a scraped knee) and serious (like a bike crash or heat stroke, in which case the first thing they do is call 911). After earning certification, patrollers meet in Folsom to do a “checkoff ride,” a series of activities that Cheng describes as “almost like a driver’s test” to make sure they know how to use the trailside call boxes and can locate emergency centers and mile markers. Once they’ve succeeded, they’re ready to patrol—often with at least one other person until they get the lay of the land. (Pre-COVID-19, teams of eight often rode together, but now patrol teams have a maximum of six riders.)

Patrollers can set their own shift hours—as Cheng puts it, “Got spare time? Get on your bike!”—and are asked to fulfill 48 hours or more of service per year, which Cheng says is quite easy to log once patrollers realize how much fun they have. When not on the trail, Bike Patrol members can also help out at events (as the pandemic allows) and recruit new members. “Being a patroller is a great way to spend some time outside on your bike, get some exercise and help everyone in the community stay safe,” Cheng says. “It’s a fun activity, but it’s also very gratifying.” For more information, visit americanriverbikepatrol.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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Chief Complaint POLICE CAN’T SUCCEED WITHOUT HELP

BY DANIEL HAHN

am a Black man, a cop and honored to be Sacramento chief of police. I hold this job at a perilous time. Countless progressive chiefs across the country, many Black, are being removed. They are collateral damage in the Black Lives Matter movement, scapegoats for a racist reality they didn’t create. In a recent op-ed in the Bee, I discussed our police department’s response to summer protests that spread across the country. The response from retired law enforcement officials, and others, was immediate. Emails, letters, voicemails and social media posts were critical of SPD’s strategy and me personally. Some said I was appointed chief only because I’m Black. Others said I’m childish for speaking my opinion. And I should resign because I failed to uphold my oath by not using more force with protestors. Some said Black Lives Matter brings down good Black people.

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I don’t disagree with the sentiment behind Black Lives Matter. The purpose is rooted in righteous cause. Police are biased about race. But so is every other segment of American society. If anything, the Black Lives Matter target is too narrow. Research reveals prosecutors often over-charge Black suspects. Judges often hand down more onerous sentences to Black offenders. The list of people who have contributed to unrest in Sacramento extends beyond the criminal justice system, deep into history. For generations, the real estate industry would not sell houses to Blacks in stable White neighborhoods, depriving people of home ownership. City planners razed communities of color in the name of slum clearance. They barricaded Black and Brown people behind freeways, in government-created slums with no grocery stores but crumbling infrastructure and liquor stores on every corner. Growing up in Oak Park, I saw the results.

Unions refused to admit Black tradesmen. In factories, when Black workers were promoted or given a chance at prosperity, riots broke out. Lawmakers historically criminalized minority populations and poverty. We can’t talk about law enforcement’s ancestry of slave patrols without recognizing that Black people were legally enslaved and not considered complete humans. Newspapers advertised rewards for their capture. In 1964, a California initiative called Proposition 14 legalized race-based discrimination when selling or renting a home. It passed in Sacramento County by 62 percent. California has an ugly history of discrimination. We enacted laws against Native Americans, Chinese Americans and Japanese Americans and others. For generations, schools didn’t teach the complete history of the 120,000 Japanese Americans who were taken from their homes in World War II. History ignored the thousands of California Native Americans

massacred in the 19th century. We were not taught about Black Wall Street, redlining, block busting, discriminatory lending practices and “Sun Down” towns. Why? Cities somehow find ways to fund sports arenas and stadiums but can’t finance a decent mental health system, drug rehabilitation programs or affordable housing for the thousands who sleep on our streets. These actions produce tragic consequences. Here’s one example: A 27-year-old homeless Black male, mentally ill and drug addicted, has been cited, arrested or given a notice of trespass in our city numerous times. He has been cited at least 10 times in four months for indecent exposure, attempting to light fires, threatening people, throwing himself in front of moving cars, breaking windows, blocking traffic while ranting in the streets and trespassing. Police arrest and book him or place him on a mental health hold. He is fingerprinted, cited and released, again and again. There are hundreds of people like this poor lost soul, wandering our city. Such individuals need long-term mental health, drug treatment and stable housing. None are available. The situation declined after the economic collapse of 2008. The pandemic intensified the problems. Services that were inadequate before have largely disappeared. The Sacramento Mental Health Center closed a decade ago. Police are in an untenable position. However, as a city, there are ways we can improve our collective circumstances. Law enforcement leaders can be self-reflective and drive change. We can create affordable housing. We can provide mental health and drug treatment options for our most vulnerable, rather than let them languish on our streets. We can begin to fix inequity, pain and anger by acknowledging how we got here. How can we begin to heal if we don’t know what’s wrong with us? What can I do? I can recruit well-educated and diverse officers. Sacramento police officers must have a minimum of 60 college units. Many have bachelor’s degrees. I can ensure all officers have Implicit Bias Training

CHANGE

THE WORLD

FROM HERE

NURSING PUBLIC HEALTH TEACHING COUNSELING PSYCHOLOGY and take part in relational policing activities, such as our Walk in My Shoes program. (These programs can be found on our department website at cityofsacramento.org/police, under “Transparency.”) I have invited Stanford University, Washington State University, Center for Policing Equity, California Department of Justice and American Leadership Forum to review our department, teach implicit bias and history, evaluate training and provide recommendations on how we can better serve every segment of our community. I can create transparency. Sacramento was the first city in our region to require police body cameras—a reform some departments have not implemented. SPD often releases footage of an officer-involved shooting within a week. Video footage is placed on our department’s website within 30 days, often sooner. Sadly, what do we get for transparency? Mostly derision. Sacramento police officers who seek promotions are required to read “Post Traumatic Slave Syndrome,”

a book about the generational legacy of slavery. The goal is to give officers insight into the daily indignities suffered by Blacks, regardless of income, education or social status. I’ve assigned “Blindspot: Hidden Biases of Good People,” which explores unconscious biases. Beyond firearms training and rules of arrest, we require recruits to spend a day with a resident of our challenged communities. The recruits get to walk the streets and form relationships. We invite community members on ride-alongs. Why do we do this? An eager young recruit may never have experienced a close relationship with a Black person. When recruits are sent to protect the streets of diverse communities such as Meadowview, Oak Park and Del Paso Heights, they need to know something about those communities and their residents. Should we defund the police? No police chief would suggest such a thing—if only because defunding disproportionately impacts the communities we must lift up.

At the same time, we can’t fail to financially support the social programs we desperately need to keep our city safe. We must provide comprehensive historical perspectives to high school and college students. We must pay for social workers and mental health staff, and build affordable housing, homeless shelters, and drug and alcohol rehabilitation facilities. We need laws that allow someone other than police to place people suffering from acute mental distress on mental health holds longer than 72 hours. We must change personnel rules to allow more transparency when an officer is terminated. Our communities must know whether police departments hold members accountable. Police cannot keep the peace and improve quality of life without help. Give us the help we need. Daniel Hahn is Sacramento chief of police. He can be reached at (916) 808-0819. n

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WALLS STAND

TALL MURALS MAKE CITY COME ALIVE

Danny Sandoval and Christian Garcia Photo by Aniko Kiezel

hil Serna, a local politician known for straight talk, was up to no good. He had just lied to an old friend and lured him Downtown under false pretenses. All was soon forgiven, however, because the Sacramento County supervisor brought his pal, local saxophone virtuoso Danny Sandoval, to 10th Street and Jazz Alley for the surprise of a lifetime. Serna, who plays with Sandoval in the blues-flavored band UnSupervised, used some of his district’s discretionary public art funding to commission a

GD By Gary Delsohn Building Our Future

POC NOV n 20

sprawling mural of Sandoval in this year’s popular Wide Open Walls—aka WOW—mural-painting festival. The meticulously painted portrait of one of the region’s most popular musicians was a precious gift for Sandoval. Gazing up at his likeness on a Downtown building bowled him over. “This is a tremendous honor,” he said with a tear in his eye. “I’m flabbergasted. I’m speechless.” Luckily for those around to witness the moment, Serna cajoled Sandoval to bring his saxophone. Sandoval sweetly serenaded the crowd. This mural in the heart of Downtown was a gift to the people of Sacramento from Christian Garcia. He’s the talented and self-taught young Chico artist who spent the last three years volunteering at the WOW festival so he could check out the world-class muralists. Now the 32-year-old is showcasing his skills in the signature Sacramento event.

“This is the first time I have done a portrait,” Garcia says. “I think I’ve kind of hit it on the mark. It looks like his picture. We’ve never met, but I hope he feels the same way.” Sandoval did feel the same way. There was so much joy at his discovery and Serna’s generosity that—after a grim summer of virus positivity rates, economic hardship and deadly wildfires—this was a welcome moment of grace. “Every time you walk by a wall with color and something beautiful like a representation of somebody’s ideas about art, it conveys a different message,” Garcia says. “It evokes a lot of emotion. It gives you a vibe and energy when you see it. People take ownership and pride in it.” David Sobon, the festival’s irrepressible founder and CEO, exemplifies that pride. He’s a successful auctioneer for nonprofit organizations, so he’s good at getting people to write checks for a cause. Art is a cause for him. Widely traveled and full of enthusiasm, Sobon got the idea for a mural festival a little more than five years ago. He started small. Within a few years, more than 400 artists from around the world were competing for a commission, with around 30 chosen each year by Sobon and a board of directors. This year, with so many entertainment and civic events canceled, WOW persevered and scaled back. More than 20 international artists had to be “uninvited,” Sobon says. But rather than wait for better times, a

decision was made to use local artists, scrap the travel and accommodations budget, and give Sacramento something to feel cheerful about. WOW and its diverse artwork have added color and character to the city’s core. From the towering painting of Johnny Cash on L Street to my favorite, the formidable California Republic Bear on the side of Jalapeños restaurant in Midtown by local artist Raphael Delgado, the WOW festival is another rich example of our city’s pre-COVID renaissance. It’s also a celebration of our diversity and eclectic personality. The murals have become a tourist attraction. How else to explain a glowing article last summer in the sometimes snooty San Francisco Chronicle under the headline “9 Must-See Murals in Downtown Sacramento”? Waiting for Serna, Sandoval and other bandmates, Sobon sits in his pickup truck with the Wide Open Walls logo on its side. He watches the nimble Garcia spray paint on the once-boring brick wall. “I can’t build a $40 million building or a $100 million stadium,” Sobon says while finishing a burrito. “But what our nonprofit can do is we can change what the city looks like. We can make the city we love a lot more lovable just by painting. And that’s what we’ve done.” 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

CEMETERIES • F U N ER A L H O M E S C R E M ATI O N • PRE PL A N N I N G

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The Essential Workers RECOGNIZING EVERYDAY HEROES WHO KEEP OUR LIVES ON TRACK

Stephanie McClain

HENRY CARPIO

s we cope with the unprecedented upheavals brought on by the pandemic, Inside Sacramento wants to recognize the essential workers who provide critical services and much-needed normalcy. How has the pandemic changed their workdays? How can the public make their jobs easier? How do they feel about providing essential services to our communities? Meet the bus driver, counterperson and recycle truck driver. We asked them to share their stories:

STEPHANIE MCCLAIN Microtransit Operator Stephanie McClain joined Regional Transit in March, right before the pandemic hit. She drives for SmaRT Ride, the dial-a-ride service. Her route includes neighborhoods surrounding Arden Way, Eastern Avenue and Fair Oaks Boulevard. Every day depends on the passengers. Typically, I have the same repeat riders

RT. They spoke so highly of Regional Transit that I wanted to be part of the family. It seemed like a great place to work and I found out it was. I can tell you that ridership has decreased because of the pandemic. We are all in a scary time. Everyone’s fearful of social interaction with other human beings. It’s so weird to see people afraid to be near other people, but for valid reasons. I think it’s a very important role we play. A lot of people didn’t know or didn’t look at essential workers in that way. Whether it’s COVID or normal, we have an obligation to the community to be out there. To help people get from point A to point B. The people who rely on public transportation have to get to work, to provide for their families, to go to doctor’s appointments. Getting people where they need to be safely is the No. 1 priority.

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who use the system. So it depends on where they are going that day, but they usually go to the same place—the grocery store, a doctor’s appointment. We pick them up and drop them off. But we can’t wait. They have to rebook it so it’s back on our tablet. Now it’s mandatory to wear a mask to ride. We have extra masks to give out to passengers. It’s mandatory for drivers too, except if you don’t have anyone on the bus—if you’re by yourself. My favorite part of the job are the people. Interacting with the public. I love that. I have an older woman—she’s a real sweetheart. She’s a senior. I love seeing her. She always has a smile. I see her almost every day. She has a son who reminds me of my son because my son has ADHD. They both have special needs. I know these children are special. You can’t help but love them. Her son likes to go out often. Whenever he wants to get out, she takes him out. I love RT. I am second-generation working for RT. My aunt and uncle both worked and retired as supervisors for

Counterman Henry Carpio has been serving customers at East Sac Hardware for

two and half years. He works 8 a.m. to 3 p.m. four days a week. This is a semi-retirement job for me. I live in Midtown, a little over 2 miles away. I bike to work. Keeps me in shape. I can retire fully right now, but it’s too boring. I like to keep busy. It’s perfect for somebody over 70, so it’s just right for me. I worked for the Macy’s Downtown part time. But I wasn’t having as much fun as I wanted to. Here I have fun. I interact with people. It’s just enough hours to keep me busy. I can take time off, and my wife and I can travel. I had told my wife if there was ever an opening at East Sac Hardware, I would love to work there. It’s such a neat place to be. Then they posted an ad on Craig’s List. I came in and interviewed with (Sheree Johnston, owner of East Sac Hardware) for about 10 minutes. I said you probably want some references. She said “No, I already Yelped you. You said you worked at Macy’s. Good reviews. You’re hired.” At the beginning of the pandemic, it was crazy busy here. People wanted masks and disinfectants. Stuff we couldn’t keep in stock. We are still

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having a hard time with masks and AC filters for homes. For a while it was hard to keep any cleaning supplies in stock. So many people are doing home projects now, we can’t keep up with the demand for mason jars for canning. I am usually at the counter. Greeting people. Directing people. Helping people find stuff. I meet 90 percent of the people coming through the door. I’ve always been a good people person. Sheree says I handle people really well. Even when they get out of hand and get a little testy, I can diffuse most situations. We had a funny incident about two weeks ago when this fellow said, “I work for COVID.” Those were his exact words. “We don’t have to wear a mask.” No, you’re wrong. If you refuse to wear a mask, you have to leave. He started arguing with us. We just said, there’s the door, please leave. We raised our voices a little, but we are always polite. We try not to lose our temper. We don’t want to lose our privilege of serving our community. There were five people waiting to pay for stuff. As soon as he started to walk out, they clapped and cheered for us. It was great. People backed us up. It’s not just us. It’s the customers. They want to feel safe here too. So we follow the rules. There are no exceptions. I don’t think it’s too much to ask.

MANUEL CASTILLO Integrated Waste Equipment Operator Manuel Castillo joined the city Department of Public Works, Recycling

& Solid Waste Division, as a recycle truck driver in 2017. Each day he services a different neighborhood, including River Park, Curtis Park, South Land Park, Meadowview and Sheldon to College Greens. We have a lot of interaction with the community. Since we are city workers, we are the go-to directory. As soon as we pull up to a house, they run out with whatever questions they have. And we direct them to where they need to go, who to call. 311 is the main directory. “I have a leaky pipe in my backyard.” 311 will direct you to utilities. I’ve had customers say, “I just received this parking ticket, where do I pay it?” We never turn them away—we try to guide them. Once you do the route long enough, you memorize your streets. We run our routes as we see fit as far as safety and efficiency. Next Monday, the can count (number of cans emptied into the truck) is about 1,400. I average 1,000 or more a day. Typically, I go to the dump two or three times a day. High winds make for a long, messy day. We try our best to clean up as much as we can. But I can pull onto a street and there will be seven cans knocked over and blowing down the street, and I can’t chase down every piece of paper. People can help by sorting correctly. They can break down boxes. Try to eliminate over-stacked cans because that’s one of the main culprits on tip overs. They are top heavy. Go to sacrecycle.org—there are steps and procedures they can follow. Educating

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Serving Sacramento for Over 16 years 6 years Best Furniture Store winner of KCRA’s A-List customers is definitely helpful. We have so many resources they don’t utilize. Every route has gotten heavier because everybody’s home. There’s a lot more waste. There’s a lot more online shopping, so there’s more recyclables. You can feel your truck is heavier than usual. In River Park, there’s a school right there. Before, I would work around the school time so I didn’t have to deal with traffic, kids, things of that nature. Now everybody’s home. They’re out in the streets playing, following alongside of us. There’s a lot of strollers, people on

the sidewalk. We have to be constantly scanning. There’s a big misconception that we are just pushing a button and snacking on chips, but it gets pretty hectic. The mirrors are our biggest friend, our biggest asset. The truck has six mirrors. I use every single one of them along with three cameras. Before that truck moves, I am checking all of them. Knock on wood—for three years I’ve been accident free, no incidents, nothing. n

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Camped Out CITY, HOMELESS DON’T CONNECT ON TENTS

Photo by Aniko Kiezel

he counter-intuitive correlation between money and homelessness continues to confuse Mayor Darrell Steinberg and city leaders. The correlation goes like this: The city raises money to house homeless people, yet the number of people living on the streets grows larger. More money equals more homelessness. Steinberg recently said Sacramento would receive about $28 million in state funds to combat homelessness. The dollars would become part of a $62 million campaign to convert old motels, manufactured homes and other sites into supportive units for unsheltered people. Meantime, homeless people and the lawyers, social workers and volunteers who help them say they need something else—something far less expensive than remodeled motels

RG By R.E. Graswich

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and new housing units. Something called “safe ground.” Safe ground is a tent-city concept, a place where homeless people maintain their own primitive domiciles with civic approval. It resembles an activity many middle-class people enjoy while on vacation—camping. In fact, homeless people often use the word “camping” when they refer to their tent city lifestyles. In the past decade, as homeless numbers have skyrocketed, unauthorized tent cities have become ubiquitous. They hide under the W-X freeway and along nearby streets. They mushroom on the north end of 12th Street. City officials and homeowners find them abhorrent. They lack sanitation, running water and electricity. They attract rats and other vermin. They negatively impact property values. Despite those problems, Sacramento is ready to compromise. City officials are open to a variation on safe ground, where access is controlled and illegal activities are discouraged, where sanitation is available, trash is collected and residence is temporary. None of this may work. If the city creates too many rules, homeless people may reject a sanctioned safe

ground and move their tents back onto the street. Talking to homeless people, I find many who cherish the freedom of tent cities. They feel safe and independent in their tents—far safer and independent than in shelters. I have met people who would rather camp out than move into the expensive transitional and permanent motel units Steinberg plans to deliver. Money won’t change their minds. And money doesn’t buy much. The $28 million state windfall comes from a program called Homekey. The city figures the money will provide around 210 permanent housing units. There’s another costly program called Project Roomkey, which involves temporary housing in motels. This summer, the city had about 650 people in Roomkey motels. If those numbers sound impressive, remember there were 5,570 homeless people in Sacramento County when the last headcount was conducted in January 2019. The next count, scheduled for January, will doubtlessly be higher. Steinberg recently signaled a positive turn toward a sanctioned safe ground. But he wants to spend $5 million on 500 “tiny houses” for homeless villages, not tents. Classic

Steinberg: Why spend $200,000 when you can spend $5 million? City Councilmember Jeff Harris, whose Third District includes the city’s skid row around 12th Street and Richards Boulevard, believes tent cities can work, minus the tents, trash, drugs and vermin. Harris prefers pallet shelters— portable, shed-like prefabs. He says, “A temporary safe ground is much needed, but not with tents. Pallet shelters are much better. They’re portable and can be cleaned. They give people some dignity. They cost about $5,000, which is much cheaper than other options. And service providers should be present in any safe ground.” Sacramento homeless people have pleaded 12 years for a sanctioned safe ground, one with sanitation and electricity. A place they can run themselves. Such villages, filled with pallets or tents, won’t cost anywhere near $5 million. Maybe that’s the problem. 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. n

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Courtney Bailey-Kanelos Photo by Aniko Kiezel

Vote of Confidence REGISTRAR OF VOTERS MAKES SURE ELECTIONS RUN SMOOTHLY

y the end of this month, Courtney Bailey-Kanelos is going to be ready for one epic nap. As the Sacramento County registrar of voters, Bailey-Kanelos is in charge of making sure elections go as smoothly as possible—and the preparation for this year’s presidential election Nov. 3 has been a doozy. “Preparing for an election is like planning a wedding—but for 800,000 people,” says Bailey-Kanelos, who, at 36, is one of the youngest registrars

JL By Jessica Laskey Meet Your Neighbor

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in the state. “I’m so impressed with everyone who works elections. I’ve never met a more dedicated group of individuals. When I was younger and I’d go to my polling place, I took for granted how much work had gone into it. It’s not just an 8-to-5 job. During big elections like this one, it’s not unusual for us to be here until midnight entering registration forms. We spend so much time together, we become like a tightknit family.” Bailey-Kanelos’ office is responsible not just for the visible aspects of an election, such as setting up polling places and recruiting and training poll workers, but also for ensuring people know where they can vote and making sure the election equipment is ready to process hundreds of thousands of ballots. In her former job as election manager for precinct operations, she helped the county transition from polling places

to vote centers as part of the Voter’s Choice Act in 2018. In non-election years, the registrar’s office is also responsible for maintaining voter files, making sure procedural updates are implemented in accordance with legislative changes, proofing and translating all instructions and signage into 13 languages as required by state law, processing initiative petitions from the community, and maintaining outreach and education programs to keep the public informed and engaged. “It’s a big job,” Bailey-Kanelos admits, though she was certainly prepared for it. The Woodland native grew up in a family of public servants—her dad worked for the state Legislature and her mom worked for the Woodland Police Department. She moved to Sacramento to attend City College with plans to become a history

teacher. In 2004, she saw a notice that the county elections office was hiring temporary workers for the upcoming presidential election, so she signed up— and never left. During the next 16 years, BaileyKanelos moved up the ranks, serving first as an election clerk, then election assistant, then election supervisor, then election manager for precinct operations, until she was hired as the county registrar of voters in 2018. “I didn’t initially apply (for the position) because I thought, ‘That’s a crazy job, I don’t want that,’” the Midtown resident recalls. “But I met with other election officials throughout the state and they were so supportive that it made the idea less scary. After I got a second interview, I called my mom and started crying. She asked if it hadn’t gone well and I said, ‘No, it went really well, and now I’m scared.’ But I

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got so much support from my peers at the county and state level that I decided to give it a go.” Two years into the job, BaileyKanelos is hitting her stride and making her mark. One of the issues that drives her most is access: making sure everyone in the community, regardless of physical ability or native language, can have their voices heard. “We all have the same goal in mind regardless of how you get there,” BaileyKanelos says of her Voter Registration and Elections colleagues. “We’re public servants, so we try to be as transparent as possible. Anyone should be able to watch what we do, ask questions and get the correct information to cast an educated ballot. “This is a stressful time and it can be challenging, but at end of the day, if we can help people understand what we do to maintain the security and integrity of our elections—that’s what keeps me going.” For more information, visit elections. saccounty.net. 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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It’s Personal FOR LOCAL CELEBS, GARDENING IS THE CURE

Bobbin Mulvaney Photo by Linda Smolek

DV By Dan Vierria Garden Jabber

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ardening holds hands with serotonin levels. It’s an organic neurotransmitter, relaying a sense of wellbeing after a few snips of hand pruners. During the darkness of pandemic and politics, we can discover peace among plants, solace in soil. What personal enjoyment do you harvest from time spent in the garden? Well, it’s personal, but a few folks opened their hearts. Bobbin Mulvaney is co-owner (with husband Patrick) of Mulvaney’s B&L

restaurant. She says, “I honestly feel best at 5 a.m. with my overalls on, a hose wrapped around my waist and out watering my pots and front yard. It’s the country girl in me that drives me to get up and irrigate!” Mulvaney’s backyard is small. Pots are her friends. Five citrus trees are grown in large containers. There are meditation gardens with succulents, herbs and whimsical mosaics crafted from broken restaurant dishes. She started a bonsai during COVID-19 downtime and adds, “We also have a

sweet little chicken coop I call Cry Baby Ranch.” Her summer specialty this year was cherry tomatoes. She says, “We had all different types of cherry tomatoes. I think it makes the boys laugh when I come into the kitchen with my 2- or 3-pound harvest when we buy about 40 pounds a week (for the restaurant).” Kayte Christensen-Hunter is Sacramento Kings TV game reporter, studio analyst for NBC Sports California and former WNBA player. Her husband built four raised beds for their home two years ago and added a shade structure this past summer. “There is so much I love about gardening,” she says. “Maybe my favorite part is just being able to get my hands dirty and dig in the dirt to grow something to feed my family. “I love that I am still learning how to make my new garden work for our family, whether it’s growing tomatoes to make homemade spaghetti sauce in the summer or growing five varieties of winter lettuce. It is soothing, relaxing and peaceful to me. And with a busy work schedule and two small children, that’s always welcome!” Don Nottoli has been a Sacramento County supervisor for south county District 5 since 1994. Nottoli admits his wife Brenda has the darker green thumb, but the politician appreciates the transition from dealing with land use, water issues and budgets to fruit, flowers and pruning. “My main contributions are pruning, mowing and planting,” he says. “There’s a sense of calm and accomplishment when you work outdoors. We are blessed here in Sacramento with plenty of sunshine. There is always motion and the change of seasonal color. With our busy lives, we’re offered an appreciation of nature.” The Nottoli property is home for new raised vegetable beds, fig, peach and lemon trees, and several blue and valley oak trees started from acorns many years ago. He deals with water issues at home too. Some trees suffered a setback this past summer when a critter chewed through the drip-system tubing during an August heat wave. He patched the damage and water was restored. Beth Ruyak is a longtime broadcaster and former host of “Insight” on Capital Public Radio. She’s working on her master’s degree at Sacramento State and creating documentaries for her company, Ruyak Media. Ruyak and husband Mike McWhirter tend what she calls an “urban farm.” “Hours and hours disappear for me in the garden,” she says. “It feels like

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a living oxygen bar. I practice yoga, accidentally, when I reach and crouch and bend and pull. Time seems not to matter. I clear dried, fallen leaves and kneel to deadhead flowers. I trim and stir up the dirt and replant where necessary. The garden is refreshed and so am I.” Most satisfying is the flavor of a justplucked black cherry heirloom tomato, a lemon cucumber or a white peach, ripened in late summer. “It is the reason we love growing our own, and the reason we love sharing it too,” Ruyak says. “It is the gift of deliciousness and good health.”

Dan Vierria is a University of California Cooperative Extension Master Gardener for Sacramento County and former Home & Garden writer for The Sacramento Bee. He can be reached at masterg29@gmail.com. For answers to gardening questions, contact the UCCE Master Gardeners at (916) 8765338, 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

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Partner Problems Photo by Mark Rakich

CITY HOPES KINGS’ FINANCES DON’T IMPLODE

he big problem with the Kings isn’t their history of failure, their dumb trades, mystifying draft choices, chronic mismanagement, clueless owners or inability to hire and retain people with the brains and talent to compete in the NBA. The big problem is their potential to drag the city of Sacramento toward bankruptcy. Can the Kings hurt the city’s fiscal stability? For decades, that’s been a mostly abstract question. Now the threat is real. The city’s vulnerability began 23 years ago, grew slowly and gained speed in 2015. Today, in an economy convulsed by pandemic, warning signs flash red. In 2015, the city took out loans of $212 million to help the Kings build

RG By R.E. Graswich Sports Authority

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Golden 1 Center. City Hall relies on rent paid by the Kings, plus parking revenue, to make the loan payments. If the Kings reduce their payments—which is already happening—the city must make up the difference. That means tapping reserves or the general fund. Which potentially means cutting into basic services such as parks and public safety. “I have a very difficult time accepting the fact that the Kings are just going to stiff us on the amount of money they owe us,” City Councilmember Steve Hansen says. Sacramento can only hope he’s right. The city became financially entangled with the Kings in 1997. Team owner Jim Thomas, a Los Angeles property developer who bought the Kings as a rich man’s diversion, was soon losing $5 million a year on his hobby. The Kings frustrated Thomas with habitual failure and their inability to produce bountiful dollars that flow from playoff appearances. His investors, including L.A. development partner Rob Maguire and billionaire homebuilder Eli Broad, quickly lost enthusiasm for covering the losses. Pushed to his limits, Thomas turned to the city and asked for a $73 million loan. The request wasn’t extortion, but

it was close. Thomas would consider moving the Kings if the money wasn’t forthcoming. The City Council agreed to deliver the cash. The loan was secured with the deed to Arco Arena and surrounding acreage. The Thomas loan worked out fine. The debt was retired when Golden 1 Center was built. But the new arena required a second entanglement—an arrangement far deeper and more expensive. This time, the city became full partners with the Kings and their current owner, Vivek Ranadivé. Golden 1 Center cost $535 million— about $223 million more than Ranadivé and his partners wanted to spend. The city made up the difference. It sold bonds worth $212 million and tapped parking and development funds. Today, the city owns the arena. Ranadivé runs it. He collects tickets and concession dollars and pays rent to the city, which the city uses to pay debt service on the bonds. Everything worked fine until the pandemic struck and lawyers checked the fine print. Under their agreement with the city, the Kings don’t have to pay full rent if NBA games are canceled or moved elsewhere. In 2015, what were the chances of that?

When the NBA canceled its remaining games in March, the Kings got a rent break. Between the rent break and lower parking revenues, City Treasurer John Colville says the city is about $6.1 million short of the money it needs to pay bondholders on the arena mortgage. That’s $6.1 million for this year. Next year is anyone’s guess. Colville advised the City Council to tap reserve funds from two rainyday pots—one for bonds, one from the general fund. And pray the NBA resumes traditional play soon. Meantime, the Kings have lost millions of dollars from canceled games and concerts. Staff has been laid off. The Kings still receive a cut of NBA television revenue, which keeps the team afloat, but most NBA owners balance their budgets with playoff income. The Kings haven’t reached the playoffs in 14 years. No, Sacramento should not count on the Kings for anything. R.E. Graswich can be reached at regraswich@icloud.com. Previous columns can be found and located at InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @ insidesacramento. n

D The

Music Man

avid Link recently had an epiphany. At 64 years old, he’s served as the Canon for Music at Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Midtown for almost half his life— which, by Link’s calculation, makes him the second longest-standing organist of an episcopal church in the country. During his nearly 36-year tenure, Link has overseen not only an expansion of the cathedral’s choir offerings, but also the complete restoration of the church’s Reuter pipe organ—which Link plays at least three hours a day now that the pandemic has temporarily slowed church proceedings. Link grew up in a musical family. His mother was a public school music teacher. His father, a Presbyterian minister, was a singer and classical music enthusiast who moved the family from Southern California to Sacramento when Link was 14 to take a job at a church in Rancho Cordova. Link started piano lessons at age 5 and majored in it in college, but admits he was “lazy about practicing.” He also admits that, even though he grew up singing in church choirs, he was never really a fan. “I actually hated choir for the longest time,” says Link, who, incidentally, expanded Trinity’s Cathedral Choir and also founded the less traditional Celebration Choir in 1990. “My parents would listen to the Mormon Tabernacle Choir every morning while they were getting ready and I didn’t like the sound—it was very heavy. When a friend gave me a record of hymns sung by the Choir of King’s College, it stopped me in my tracks. I thought, ‘Wow, you can understand what they’re saying and they’re singing in tune!’ It was a total revelation.” Link’s musical tastes have always been diverse. In high school, he played in a “really bad” garage band and performed in the jazz band at Sacramento City College. But it wasn’t until trying the pipe organ that Link found his musical match.

David Link Photo by Linda Smolek

CATHEDRAL CANON CELEBRATES MORE THAN 35 YEARS AT TRINITY

JL By Jessica Laskey Open Studio

“My dad’s friend was hounding me to try the pipe organ,” Link says, “so to get him off my back, I went to a little Catholic church in Land Park and played theirs—and fell in love with it. I seemed to have a natural knack for it.” Though Link considers his playing a “late start” (at age 20), he dove headfirst into studying what many consider one of the most difficult instruments. Pipe organs can have two to five keyboards in addition to a 32-pedal foot keyboard that must be played simultaneously. After completing a summer of study at the Royal School of Church Music in England, Link began playing at local churches for services and choir rehearsals. Link realized he might have a knack for choir direction as well, so he started a madrigal choir with some friends and eventually served as a choir director before being hired by Trinity Cathedral in November 1984. In his first two years, he whipped the Cathedral Choir into such good shape he had them send an audition tape to cathedrals in England that accept visiting international choirs. The Trinity choir was invited to sing at three cathedrals in 1990 and has since made four more “choir pilgrimages” to cathedrals, including Winchester, Lincoln, Norwich, Truro, Southwark, Peterborough, Canterbury, York Minster and Westminster Abbey. They were planning a return trip this summer, but due to COVID-19, they’ve delayed their travel plans until next year. Link also founded Trinity’s popular Cathedral Music Series and Annual Diocesan Choir Festival, served as music director for the consecration and installation of three Diocesan Bishops— and climbed Mt. Kilimanjaro, the highest mountain in Africa, in 2004. “The wilderness is my respite,” says Link, who also road cycles, backpacks and hikes near his Greenhaven home. “After Christmas and Easter, I run away to the hills for a few days. It keeps me sane.” But each time he roams, he’s always happy to come back. “I’m all about our community,” Link says. “We have a very diverse congregation. That’s why I’m still here after 35 years—the community has kept me here.” Jessica Laskey can be reached at jessrlaskey@gmail.com. Previous profiles can be found and shared at the all-new InsideSacramento.com. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram: @insidesacramento. n

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PIZZA Please! 3 NEW JOINTS BRING EXCITING PIES TO SACRAMENTO

e are, as a city, spoiled when it comes to pizza. From the beautifully precise Neapolitan pies of Masullo to the old-fashioned beauties at Luigi’s, the New York-style greasegorgeous slices at Giovanni’s Old World Pizzeria, the California cuisine pizzas of Zinfandel Grille, the new American masterpieces of OneSpeed Pizza and the perfect family pies of Roma II Pizzeria, all make Sacramento a pizza-pie wonderland. Is there room, then, for newcomers to the pizza landscape? Is there space in

GS By Greg Sabin Restaurant Insider

POC NOV n 20

our stomachs and hearts for new slices and squares? Of course! Why would we even ask such silly questions!

PIZZA SUPREME BEING Tucked away in a sleepy Downtown intersection, yet only a half block from Capitol Park, Pizza Supreme Being has been putting out pies, slices and squares for a little over a year. In that short time, founder Ben Roberts has garnered quite the reputation. Before COVID, the shop would sell out of pies most evenings or even in the late afternoon. I asked Roberts where the name came from and he was refreshingly frank. “There’s nothing really special to the name,” he said. “Simply put, we wanted something that would be one of a kind. Finding a web domain and social media handles is hard. It is a play on words that didn't exist anywhere and I thought that was perfect.” The rest of the operation is tonguein-cheek as well, from the witty social media posts featuring Garfield the cat and retro ‘80s flair, to the riffs on wellknown pizza chains and their popular

specialties. For example, a recent special, barbecue chicken pizza, was a takeoff on the California Pizza Kitchen offering that’s now ubiquitous in frozen grocery aisles. Supreme’s pie, however, bore little relation. With sharp notes of heady parmesan over smoked chicken and roasted onions, this pizza was something special. During the pandemic, Pizza Supreme Being is only serving whole pies for takeout or delivery, with craft beer, natural wine and sometimes cookies. They are working on getting their bythe-slice protocols down. Also, Roberts occasionally makes pizza squares, sometimes known as Detroit-style or Grandma-style pizza. Keep an eye on his social media for those special occasions. Pizza Supreme Being is at 1425 14th St.; pizzasupremebeing.com; (916) 9175559.

MAJKA PIZZERIA + BAKERY Not too many blocks away, you’ll find an even newer pizza joint, Majka Pizzeria + Bakery. The elegant

Slim & Husky's Photos by Linda Smolek

creations put out by husband and wife team Alex Sherry and Chutharat Sae Tong are something special. Both are alumni of Berkeley’s famed The Cheese Board Collective. And both are alumni of UC Berkeley. Go Bears! Serving only naturally leavened sourdough pizzas, all made from their “mother” starter, gives Majka a deliciously interesting crust unlike any that I’ve had before. The toppings are equally novel, from corn and sour cream to butternut squash and brown butter. Also of note, Sherry and Sae Tong only make one kind of pizza per day, a nod to the Cheese Board’s same policy. However, additional items like salad, cookies, wine and beer are also available. At this time, only pickup is offered with ordering done online or over the phone. Sherry told me they will be putting together curated cheese boxes for the holidays, perfect to bring to any soiree. Given Sae Tong’s long experience with international cheese buying, I’m going to go out on a limb and say these cheese boxes will be something special.

Giving

Thanks California Love and Rony, Roni, Rone! pizzas from Slim & Husky's.

As far as the unique name goes, it’s pronounced “Mi-cah” and it is the Serbian word for “mother” (Sherry traces his family roots back to Poland and Serbia). Given how both Sherry and Sae Tong honor their mothers’ cooking with everything they make, and that everything they bake relies on their mother sourdough starter, the name seems like a perfect fit. Majka Pizzeria + Bakery is at 1704 15th St.; majkabakes.com; (916) 572-9316.

SLIM & HUSKY’S PIZZA One more pizza joint to add to the mix is Oak Park’s Slim & Husky’s Pizza. The small chain (six locations) out of Nashville serves baked-while-youwait small pies with a host of creative ingredients and sauces. Featuring a hip-hop theme and spacious patio along Broadway, S&H brings some energy to the space that formerly housed Oak Haus, the shortlived German restaurant by owner Dave Schnetz. Slim & Husky’s Pizza is at

3413 Broadway; slimandhuskys.com; (916) 744-7546. No matter where you turn in this town, you’re bound to find good pizza. If you’re eating bad pizza, it’s your own fault! Get out and support our local pizzerias and their exceptional pies.

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CORRECTION Last month I wrote that Mr. Rogers shared a pool with his postman. My good friend and local personality, Peter Petty, reminded me that it was Rogers’ local police officer, played by actor and singer Francois Clemmons, and not his postman, with which he shared a cooling foot bath. My apologies. 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

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Leaving California? Sacramento

Southern Utah Las Vegas My name is Lance Casazza and I was born and raised in California. After 49 years in this amazing state, I made the decision to relocate to Summerlin, Nevada. Now I specialize in helping others make the move to the Las Vegas area. With deep roots in Sacramento, I spend half the month here to meet with potential clients to answer all their questions about the incredible beneﬁts of moving to Nevada. When Lance Casazza, Realtor® you’re ready, let’s sit down and let me show you all the California and Nevada things Vegas has to oﬀer! 834-3699 (916) 834 3699 Hi my name is Jill Roundy. I was born and raised in Las Vegas and spent my summers in beautiful Utah. I work with buyers and specialize in relocations, summer homes, cabins, investment properties and second homes. If you are looking to make a move or invest, I can show you some amazing options. Looking forward to earning your business! JJill ill Roundy, Roundy Realtor® Nevada and Utah (702) 526-0058

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Skip the Wait NOW IS ALWAYS BETTER THAN NEXT

ike most of you, I hate to wait in line. Truthfully, much of my 28 years in the Air Force can be summarized with the military oxymoron, “Hurry up and wait.” My distaste for waiting is placated only when I hear someone pronounce the word “next.” “Next” becomes my favorite word when it signals that the line in the auto parts store or at airport security is moving forward. It means I will soon command the undivided attention of the clerk or agent.

NB By Norris Burkes Spirit Matters

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My favorite kind of lines are those using number dispensers, such as in pharmacies, ice creameries and barbershops. I love holding that number as I listen to the clerk call each preceding one with the pleasant intoning of “next.” Next is a truly delightful place to find yourself, because it means you’ve arrived where you want to be. Even better, it means you’ve finally vacated the place you were and loathed (i.e., the waiting line). But this pandemic presents us with a much different version of the dreaded que line. It’s become the most godforsaken and sadistic kind of wait— the line to illness, disability or even death. Perhaps I’m spending too much time reading the stories of people who’ve lost their child, spouse or parent. It’s tragic to see that waiting line surpass 200,000 U.S. deaths. I know that if I let fear possess me, I will be gripped with a sense of being the

next person in line to know heartbreak. It makes me want to search the Bible for a promise that I won’t have to be next or that I can skip the line. Of course, there is no such promise. The truth is there will never be any guarantee about what comes next in our world. I know this to be true because I’ve often been at the front of an airport line only to see it close. I was next, but then suddenly transferred into a new line. That’s life. So instead of worrying about what may be coming next, I’m trying to refocus on what remains true in the present. For now, we have quarantine, unemployment and illness. But I also must remind myself that I have family and friends who are still living with me in the here and now. That presents me with a choice. Do I sit around waiting for the next bad thing to happen? Or do I remain present to the people I love in my life right now? I think you know my answer. Now is always better than next.

If I choose the now, I’m rewarded with the knowledge that God promises to wait with us in the now, as well as in all the struggles to come. It is a promise made to us in Matthew 28:20, “I am with you always, even to the end of the world.” I look at it this way: On some future day, my “next” will transform into my “now.” That day will surely come too soon. In the meantime, I will fight the struggle to live the life where God has placed me—in a life filled with the joy of the now. 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

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URBAN DWELL R STREET APARTMENT HAS ALL THE AMENITIES AND MORE

he Carlaw, one of the newest additions to Sacramento’s vibrant R Street Corridor, is a 26-unit building with apartments above and offices and retail below. The complex is across from Fox & Goose Public House and Arthouse Gallery & Studios, and walking distance from Warehouse Artist Lofts and Ice Blocks, both with abundant shopping, dining and entertainment. “I pretty much have been a part of this community for a long time,” says David Saalsaa, who moved into a studio apartment at The Carlaw this past August. “I have always been impressed with how they developed the R Street corridor.” Born and raised in Sacramento, Saalsaa managed University Art on J Street for

CR By Cathryn Rakich Photography by Aniko Kiezel OPEN HOUSE

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David Saalsaa

more than 22 years, stepping away in January to start his own business as an independent contractor specializing in art installation. “I love the artist community,” he says. “My giveback has been to promote local artists through the storefront gallery at University Art. I’ve installed well over 250 shows over the years. Artists of all walks of life— both established and emerging.” Moving from a 3,000-square-foot home off Garden Highway, where he and his ex-wife raised three children, to a 575-square-foot apartment has many upsides. “I was desiring to live in The Grid in a newer dwell that would have all the amenities,” including designated parking and an in-unit laundry space, he says. Saalsaa calls the move “serendipitous.” He was living in West Sacramento—and ready to find a new abode—before

moving to The Carlaw. “I happened to be installing artwork in the lobby and I met Nancy Cordano” (James J. Cordano Co. is The Carlaw’s developer). “I was inquiring about how things were going here. She said, ‘Would you like to see a couple units?’ “The one-bedroom was more appealing because of the size.” But Saalsaa decided to commit to the smaller studio. “It just really appealed to me. And now that I’ve been here, I am perfectly content.” Situated on the top floor of the three-story building, Saalsaa’s studio apartment is bright, contemporary and spacious, with 10-foot ceilings and ample natural light. A large dual-paned window with a glass door leads to a private balcony enhanced with a variety of potted plants. The floors are “luxury vinyl” in a wood-plank pattern. The galley kitchen features white quartz countertops and matching backsplash in a natural stone pattern. The sleek cabinets—pale grey below and white above—are soft-closing with brushed-nickel hardware. A full-size oven/range, microwave and refrigerator make the kitchen “very functional,” Saalsaa notes. A “laundry closet” houses a stacking washer and dryer. The HVAC unit, installed in the ceiling and operated via remote control, has oscillating louvers. “It’s so efficient,” Saalsaa says. Saalsaa’s love of art extends to his own living space, which is enhanced by an impressive collection of work by local artists, including Jaya King, Vinay

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Sharma, Gale Hart and Sue Torngren. A handblown glass sphere—a prototype from the Brian Valenzuela sculpture suspended in the lobby of Golden 1 Center—has a prominent place in the living room. Saalsaa purposely kept the apartment’s artwork to a minimum. “I wanted to keep it simple,” he says. “I didn’t want it to get too cluttered.” Recessed ceiling lights are adjustable so they can be directed toward the art. “At nighttime, it’s really beautiful.” The building’s common areas are also enhanced with local artwork, such as a giant round metal dish by Sacramento artist Marc Foster, hanging just inside the entrance. Access to the building is app-based with an entry keypad at the entrance. Via the keypad “you dial in. That rings to my phone. I see you and let you in,” Saalsaa says. Interior bike storage on the ground floor is hidden behind a decorative barn door. The Carlaw’s red brick façade was retained as a tribute to John and Andrew Carlaw, brothers specializing in masonry who arrived in Sacramento

POC NOV n 20

from Scotland in the 1880s and were responsible for many of the area’s historic structures. For Saalsaa, the building’s location could not be better, with personal favorites like Shake Shack, Beast & Bounty, Philz Coffee and Market 5-One5, his neighborhood go-to grocery store, all within walking distance. Does he miss a yard? “Yes and no. That was that chapter. In the future, I will likely have a yard again. But right now, I’m just liking the urban dwell.”

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. 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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Howard Chan

Nine Bosses CITY MANAGER REFUTES CLAIM ABOUT POWER

BY HOWARD CHAN

n times of crisis, trust is the city of Sacramento’s most valuable commodity. This is true when it comes to fires, floods or COVID-19. Residents put their trust in city officials and staff to respond quickly, efficiently and effectively to help people in need. As city manager, I am proud of the work the city has done to protect and support all Sacramentans during one of the most challenging chapters in our history. Since the onset of the pandemic, the city has successfully rolled out nearly $80 million to assist our community. We have distributed more than 1.2 million masks to local businesses, organizations, hospitals and schools, and served nearly 280,000 meals to seniors. We are providing forgivable loans to 1,400 local businesses and free internet to 10,000 households to

POC NOV n 20

assist with online education. We are offering workforce training to 11,000 people whose jobs have been affected by the pandemic. In partnership with Sacramento County, we have sheltered more than 1,200 people experiencing homelessness. These are just a few examples of what the city has accomplished over the past six months. (For more information about the dozens of programs Sacramento has launched in response to the pandemic, visit sacramentocovidrelief.org.) Which brings me back to trust. Trust is a relationship built over time, one that relies on words aligning with actions and deeds. I am hopeful that the city’s comprehensive response to the coronavirus—led by the City Council and executed by city staff—has furthered community trust in local government.

But what is the best form of government for Sacramento, both in times of crisis and blue-sky days? Is the current City Council-City Manager structure the right one? Or should the City Charter be amended to provide more executive power to current and future mayors, the only city official elected citywide? Residents now have a chance to weigh in on these questions when they

vote on Measure A, also known as the Sacramento Mayoral Accountability and Community Equity Act of 2020. The pros and cons of this measure are being debated in the pages of many publications, including Inside Sacramento. I will leave it to others to make arguments for and against. I have been asked many times where I stand on Measure A. My answer has been consistent: As city manager, I am focused on the urgent issues at hand and leave it to the people of Sacramento to decide what form of governance is best for them. However, in the spirit of trust, I feel compelled to make one point that pertains to my position. A recent Inside Sacramento op-ed supporting Measure A stated, “… under our current system of governance, the buck stops with the city manager, who is not elected by the voters, rather than the mayor.” This simply is not true. As city manager, I report directly to all nine councilmembers, which includes the mayor. They can direct me in any way they see fit, and they do so on a regular basis. They hired me and they can fire me. I am accountable to them. That is the system. To suggest my actions do not represent the will of the council or that the council is not the highest authority not only does a disservice to the councilmembers, it does a disservice to voters as well. Truth and transparency are essential to trust. They are also core values of the city of Sacramento. I encourage everyone to participate in our democracy and cast their vote on this measure as well as other important issues facing our city. Howard Chan is Sacramento city manager. He can be reached at hchan@ cityofsacramento.org. n

AS CITY MANAGER, I REPORT DIRECTLY TO ALL NINE COUNCILMEMBERS, WHICH INCLUDES THE MAYOR. THEY CAN DIRECT ME IN ANY WAY THEY SEE FIT, AND THEY DO SO ON A REGULAR BASIS.

ACROSS 1 Genre popular in Seoul 5 Like some primaries 9 Pinot noir, par exemple 12 Word said twice after “que” 13 Great, to a ’90s rapper 14 ___ precedent 15 Focus on imparting exam-related knowledge 18 Biblical rescue ship 19 Bunch of hair 20 Indian noble 21 Like Beethoven, mostly, when he composed “Symphony No. 9” 23 Baby babble sounds 26 Person who may go pro? 28 Indecisive sounds 29 Hither’s partner 30 Do concerts in many places 31 Attribute 33 On a team with us 37 Where to leave tips for nail extensions 38 Tide type 40 Agcy. with auditors 4/6

43 Beret’s Scottish cousin 44 Govern badly 47 Giant’s chant in “Jack and the Beanstalk” 50 And others: Abbr. 51 Inventive thoughts 52 Berry in some smoothies 54 “Eeew!” 55 So-so, to Coco 59 Kitty starter, in poker 60 Response to a backstabber 61 Petri dish gel 62 Preﬁx for “realism” 63 Proﬁt’s opposite 64 Blue, on many faucets DOWN 1 Washington lobbyists’ thoroughfare 2 Game that amuses babies 3 “... cup ___ cone?” 4 Formal agreement 5 Choose 6 Instagram upload 7 “Dig in!” 8 Degree preceder? 9 MTV host 10 “Full steam ahead!”

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36 Of sailing 39 Sign of protests? 40 Promise qualiﬁer 41 Made over 42 Appear that way 44 Kind of membrane 45 Muslim prayer leader 46 Yellowstone beast 48 It may be ﬂeeting 49 “Stubborn things,” per John Adams 53 Apple product that can have 3TB of storage 56 Animation frame 57 Midori who landed a historic triple axel 58 Selfimportance

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