City in the News — Archives

These are the Archives of "City in the News". To find the latest "City in the News" items, follow this link.

May 8, 2009 - Gifts to Share, Inc. Announces Recipients of Special Youth Grants - Gifts to Share, Inc. (GTS) is pleased to announce that Phoenix Park "New Beginnings" After School Program, New Dimension Learning Academy and the Imani Foundation are the successful applicants for a $5,000 “Start Up” grant which is to fund a new initiative or project that involves Sacramento youth.

April 30, 2009 - City’s first ‘Green Street’ project gets underway -The City of Sacramento Department of Transportation is constructing the City’s first “Green Street” on Dixieanne Avenue, between Evergreen Street and the Swanston Light Rail Station. The project is sponsored by District 2 Councilmember Sandy Sheedy and the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency.

April 6, 2009 - Development Services Department changes hours of operation. 300 Richards Blvd. public counter will now be open: 9-12 & 1-4 Monday - Friday (excluding City holidays). The counter will be closed from 12-1 for lunch.

March 27, 2009 - Meet a Firefighter … take a tour! Open houses at City fire stations will be ongoing April thru September.

February 18, 2009 - Whistle-Stop Event for Docks Promenade Project Nearly 3/4 mile, 20-ft. wide pedestrian & bicycle path with benches, landscaping & a new 0.4 acre City park Kick-Off commemorates $5.4 million project to extend riverfront path & create new park.

February 14, 2009 - Amgen Tour begins in downtown Sacramento Celebrate Valentine's Day 2009 downtown by watching the 'prologue' event for the Amgen Tour. The race will begin and end in Sacramento. View the downtown race route, the California race locations or see photos of previous years' races.

January 30, 2009 - Office of Youth Development Receives $60,000 Grant Outreach Teams Positively Engage Youth & Link Them to Proven Community-Based Resources Kaiser Permanente to fund an innovative Street Outreach Program that keeps youth from joining gangs.

December 18, 2008 - Special Recognition Award Cities of Sacramento & West Sacramento The Sacramento Area Council of Governments gives its 'SACOG Salutes!' Special Recognition award to the Tower Bridge Pedestrian/Bikeway Improvements Project , for improving multimodal access and for exemplary government collaboration between the City Department of Transportation & the City of West Sacramento Department of Public Works.

August 8, 2008 - Sacramento is a Preserve America Community Sacramento Recognized for Preserving Its Historic & Cultural Resources Deputy Secretary of the Interior Lynn Scarlett recognizes Sacramento as a designated Preserve America Community. Designation as a Preserve America Community provides national recognition for the communityâ€™s achievements in preserving its historic and cultural resources, and will assist with the enhancement of heritage tourism and other economic development strategies.

SMUD Billing Error at Fairbairn Water Treatment Plant

In late 2006, the City of Sacramento Department of Utilities was notified by the Sacramento Municipal Utilities District (SMUD) of a possible billing error at our E.A. Fairbairn Water Treatment Plant. The City was unaware of a problem with its electric meter or bill prior to being notified by SMUD.

The error was investigated by SMUD and the City. In 2007, it was determined the error was caused by a faulty electric meter wiring connection. As a result, SMUD undercharged the City for electric service at the Fairbairn Plant for many years. SMUD has corrected the meter wiring and is now billing the Department of Utilities correctly.

Under State law, SMUD can only collect for up to 3 years of billing errors. After review of the billing and negotiations with SMUD, it was determined that the total amount the City is responsible for is $916,000. The agreement also allows the city to repay this amount over 3 years and provides incentives for the Department to install solar photovoltaic panels at its facilities.

The Department of Utilities is prepared to pay this back bill from SMUD. The first payment was calculated into the 2008/2009 budget presented to Council on June 10, 2008. Subsequent payments will be included in future budgets.

For additional information, contact Jessica Hess at 916.808.8260.

June 20, 2008 - Conference of Mayors $75,000 award Tree Foundation – Excellence for Community Trees The U.S. Conference of Mayors and The Home Depot Foundation announced Sacramento Tree Foundation as a winner of the 3rd annual Awards of Excellence for Community Trees at The Conference of Mayors' 76th Annual Meeting in Miami 6/20/08--6/24/08. The City and the Sacramento Tree Foundation won First Place and $75,000 in the Large City category (population 100,000+) for its Greenprint Initiative , a regional partnership between government agencies, nonprofit organizations and businesses to increase investment in urban tree planting, urban forest management and community education.

June 20, 2008 - Kiplinger Magazine Recognition City one of the 10 Best Places to Live, Work & Play in the USA Yahoo! Finance reports that Kiplinger Magazine has awarded Sacramento with the 8th ranking in best places to live. Note is made of the fact that "Sacramento owes much of its new cachet to downtown redevelopment". With particular emphasis in this year's comparisons on the proportion of the population engaged in creative work, at 34% Sacramento is exceeded only by three other members of the Top 10 in this key measure.

April 24, 2008 - Human Resources Award City Recognized for Workplace Excellence Leadership The Sacramento Area Human Resource Association (SAHRA - affiliated with the Society for Human Resource Management), recognizes the City of Sacramento at its sixth annual Sacramento Workplace Excellence Leader awards (SWEL). The City placed first in the "Governmental Agencies, Large" category for "extraordinary employers [who] provide exceptional benefits, programs, training and workplaces that promote employee health, safety, advancement, diversity and security. More than 95 companies were nominated by their employees for this unique recognition."

April 18, 2008 - Web Site Award City/County Emergency Preparedness Information recognized The California Association of Public Information Officials (CAPIO) recognizes the joint City of Sacramento and County of Sacramento emergency preparedness website sacramentoready.org. Whether the emergencies are Floods and Rain, Fog & Cold Weather, Fires & Wildfires, Terrorism, or Heat Illnesses, sacramentoready.org has all the information needed to survive and thrive in emergencies.

April 3, 2008 - In the News City of Sacramento Is One of 12 Cities to Receive Solar America Grant The City will receive $200,000 in direct funding and additional resources to support the advancement of solar energy over the next two years. The Mayor stated, "This grant provides us with an opportunity to increase the availability of locally and regionally produced renewable energy."

March 28, 2008 – Sacramento Business Journal City of Sacramento Building Department Goes From Last to First The Sacramento Business Journal has named the City of Sacramento number one in handling development applications in their annual survey of developers, contractors, architects and engineers. Acknowledging the difficulty of change in government, City Manager Ray Kerridge stated, “the basis of the whole thing is customer service”, a sentiment shared by the businesses participating in the survey.

March 27, 2008 – Public Relations Awards Department of Transportation Wins Six Public Relations Awards The Sacramento Public Relations Association awarded the City of Sacramento Department of Transportation six awards at its annual Cappie Awards dinner. DOT was one of only three among twenty-five organizations or public relations firms winning six or more. Cappies are awards for the “best of the best” in public relations plans and tools.

These are the Archives of "City in the News". To find the latest "City in the News" items, follow this link.