Could this abandoned entrance to the old California Youth Authority one day become the center of Northern California’s next Silicon Valley? Many visionary developers think so.
Cap-to-Cap Takes300 SacramentoArea Leaders and the Power Inn Alliance to the Middle of the Ring
It may not be bigger than the Tea Party, but when over 300 Sacramento area leaders gather in Washington, D.C. they make a noise. There are no placards or funny costumes or speeches on the mall, but there are plenty of one-on-one meetings with key office holders and agency heads with the intention of finding support, favor and sometimes even funding for the betterment of the Sacramento five-county business area.
This is the purpose of the 40th consecutive Cap-to-Cap by the Metro Chamber, the largest such invasion of the nation’s capitol by any city in the U.S. And once again The Alliance will be represented by Executive Director Jerry Vorpahl, who sits on the “Jobs and Business Growth Team,” one of 12 specific teams, each championing its own list of needs. As an editorial in a recent SacBiz Journal put it, "One thing's for certain: The competition for federal dollars won't be won by a team that stays on the sidelines."
One of the big needs this year is to find initial funding for the futuristic “Innovation/Technology Village” proposal that would link SacState with the emerging technology companies in the Ramona Ave. area. Currently the under-zoned area is an assortment of open space, compost transfers, recycling centers and the rapidly deteriorating former CYA, now owned by SacState. “The Innovation/Technology Village could change all that,” says Vorpahl. The City has allocated $450,000 to do a Specific Plan and SARTA has relocated across Power Inn Rd.- clear testimony to the potential for creating what some have called a "Regional Innovation and Technology Zone” or “The RITZ.”
Vorpahl contends that this plot of ground, only seven minutes from the State Capitol, is the largest area left in Northern California with existing infrastructure and within walking distance to major tech and biomed educational and research centers. “Who knows,” he says, “SomedaySacState may be seen as our StanfordUniversity with Ramona Avenue as our Page Mill Rd.”
For a complete list of Cap-to-Cap activities, see the link below. Go to the end to read the various Team Issue Papers.
No business, small or large, wants its streets and cul de sacs littered with discarded trash an debris. It's the Power Inn Alliance Cleanup Crew that works daily to make sure that won't happen.
"Creating a Better Place, Business Improvement Districts Offer a Lot to Small Business, Keeping Neighborhoods Safe, Clean"
See the April 16 issue of the Sacramento Business Journal for an excellent article on how PBIDS (Property-based Business Improvement Districts), such as The Alliance serve small business. The Journal quotes CEO Vorpahl who said, "The key thing we do is to improve the area and make it better to attract more businesses."
