The future of Sacramento deserves energetic, informed, honest, true leadership. We need a person who embodies the very spirit of Sacramento’s future but can respect its past — someone who is willing to stand up for what is right, ask questions and expect the best. We need our next leader to be a person who will work for the future of our families, commit to our communities, and do what it takes to build a first class destination city where residents thrive and visitors enjoy a vibrant pallet of activity and ambiance that is second to none.
My vision for District One, and the City of Sacramento as a whole, isn’t mine alone — it comes from countless interactions and experiences from members and leaders of the community I live in and serve and will diligently represent on our city council.
Here are some of the principles with which I will serve the people of District One:
- Crime & Safety – No neighborhood can thrive when people are in fear. Keeping people safe isn’t just a priority, it’s an obligation. Being one of the state’s most dangerous and underpoliced cities is unacceptable. No one in Sacramento should live in fear of being a victim. We must address crime rates, community empowerment, collaborative efforts and staffing of public safety entities. Nothing else matters if people are not safe.
- Fiscal Accountability – I am a fiscal conservative who believes in partnerships, volunteerism, collaboration and working together to address and prevent budget problems. It is time to prioritize, reduce spending and balance expenditures with financial resources.
- Children & Teens – As a Mom, I feel strongly that children need opportunities to be a part of their community. Many kids do so by playing sports or getting involved in other organized activities like Girl Scouts and theater or music. But what happens when the schools can’t provide these outlets? What happens when families can’t afford football registration fees? What do we do to provide for the children of our community? Sacramento must be a partner in creating innovative solutions for supporting our youth, like working with housing providers, educators, church groups, non-profits and anyone else interested in partnering for successful outcomes.
- Community Service – There are many ways to serve your community. It can be one day or one year – every minute counts and every person has something to offer. Just being involved, knowing your neighbors and caring about your community is a major step in the right direction.
- Affordable Housing – As a single mom who lived in a low-income apartment complex in the district not too many years ago, I can attest to the need for affordable housing. But to focus solely on increasing the quantity of low income apartment units without considering residents’ need for services, good management, public safety resources and the impacts to surrounding neighborhoods is an unmitigated disaster which is exactly what has happened in Natomas. Our district must have a strong leader who recognizes the mistakes of the past and is committed to taking an active role in fixing the damage, while maintaining opportunities for safe, stable, low cost housing throughout Sacramento.
- Environment – In all that we do to build and grow and develop we must keep a watchful eye on how we are impacting our own surroundings. We need open spaces, wildlife preserves, clean air and water. It is imperative that we respectfully plan for the future being careful to balance our relationship with the environment.
- Development – Our district is the largest new growth area of the city, where many people have decided to live, start families, retire, open businesses, enjoy life, and be a part of a region on the rise. We also have the largest urban infill and renovation projects in the Railyard, Township 9, Downtown K Street, and along the Sacramento Riverfront. We must advance responsible development in these areas with credible, energetic, and decisive leadership.
- Transportation – Infrastructure that is outdated, insufficient, in disrepair, or late in promised delivery can no longer be tolerated. I support revisiting light rail alignment options, along with consideration of cost effective, environmentally friendly alternatives that can bring long awaited viable mass transit to district one as soon as is fiscally reasonable.
- Economic Development – We need to send a strong signal that Sacramento is open for business. We must attract quality employers, vibrant retailers, and visionary developers to cultivate opportunities for economic growth and job opportunities in our district and our city. We must responsibly compete and partner with with fellow municipalities so that we no longer lose premier shopping and employment opportunities to outlying areas without a fight.
- Flood Protection – Natomas has a history of flood related issues. Investments in strengthening levees in the late 1990s were believed to be sufficient, but Hurricane Katrina’s damage revealed dramatic insufficiencies in our potential flood protection system, leaving homeowners worried about safety and required to pay for mandatory flood insurance. A $618 million project is underway to bring Natomas up to a 200-year flood protection level. We can accept nothing less and we must apply as much pressure as possible to meet and exceed deadlines to finish securing the levees that protect over 70 thousand Sacramento residents.
- Fire & Paramedics – It is completely unacceptable that there is still no fire station west of Interstate-5 in North Natomas – after ten years of development. North Natomas is now plagued with the longest fire and paramedic response times in the entire city. That’s why I helped to lead a community effort to ensure constructing and equipping Fire Station 43 at the corner of Arena Blvd. and El Centro Road using developer fee dollars already collected. Natomas residents will not soon forget our city’s failure to provide fundamental public safety services and I intend to do all I can to deliver on broken promises of the past.
Sacramento has the chance to be an amazing place to live and visit. We are responsible for choosing the right leaders who will help us reach our potential. I believe that we can do better. Please join me as we usher in a new day in district one and welcome a vision of safe, vibrant, thriving neighborhoods throughout our beautiful city.