Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson recently sent out an email with an update on lots of information on what the Sacramento City Council has been up to:
Much excitement will be generated today as the City Council looks to move a step closer to a new Entertainment and Sports complex with the selection of a “most qualified bidders” list for the parking monetization plan.
The new civic center means 4,100 jobs and $7 billion in economic investment over 30 years.
But another, smaller event today is just as important for our neighborhoods.
Today, the City Council will take a major step toward keeping many of our community swimming pools open, thanks to the “Help Save Mart Save Our Pools” program.
Sacramento was facing the prospect of having to close and padlock all 12 city pools this summer during the hottest months of the year. Budget cuts left the city no choice.
Thankfully, there’s a solution — Save Mart grocery stores stepped forward and promised to help with matching donations if the community can raise $500,000 to save our pools.
The combined goal of $1 million will open six pools for the summer, plus five wading pools.
It’s an eight week campaign that will require help from every corner of Sacramento. And it will show how cities and corporate partners can join together for community benefit with “outside the box” thinking when times are tough.
“Help Save Mart Save Our Pools” can become a “best practice” for other cities to follow. We’ve already shown we can work together on other projects.
Just last month, with Council Member Steve Cohn’s leadership, we raised $45,000 to keep the Clunie Clubhouse open in East Sacramento. And last year, Ygrene announced a $100 million private investment to help create 1,500 jobs.
The Greenwise initiative is another prime example of collaboration between public and private. Other models at the Mayor’s Office include Volunteer Sacramento, One Day to Prevent Homelessness, and Winter Sanctuary, plus the For Arts’ Sake program involving the Kennedy Center, Any Given Child.
And the entertainment and sports complex, of course, will be a public-private partnership at a different level.
It takes partnerships of all types and sizes to make a great city. From pools to event centers, today is an excellent example of how working together can make Sacramento a City that Works for Everyone.
