The Case Against Sprawl

By Julie Padilla

Sacramento needs to set the standard when it comes to air quality, transportation, and well-planned development that does not promote sprawl.

Given the rate of expansion that Sacramento is currently experiencing, issues of transportation and public safety are extremely important. First of all, I do not condone the current method of incorporating our expanding population into Sacramento by pushing our development boundaries farther out (as we are currently experiencing in North Natomas).

My mantra: INFILL HOUSING. We don't need to take over every last inch of open space in the City when we have thousands of available building sites WITHIN the built-out portions of our city. These sites don't need new roads, power lines, sewers, schools, or other expensive community infrastructure items. Vacant lots do not contribute to our tax base like they could. They cost city resources to keep clean of rubbish and debris. They diminish the value of homes near them. They allow criminals to access the backsides of properties that would otherwise be unavailable. In short, they are a cancer that I will devote myself to eliminating until the last vacant lot in the City of Sacramento is developed.

We need to further work with the County and surrounding areas and establish a plan with which everyone is in agreement that would put an end to sprawl-style development.