About two miles from the State Capitol, tucked in a heavy-traveled corner of Sacramento (off 16th Street as it turns into 160), is the Dreher Tract neighborhood. I had the chance to spend nearly an hour with the neighborhood association there tonight, before I went live on Univision, Channel 19.
Residents had their more than their fair share of complaints: an increasing homeless population that camps out in front of their homes, drug dealing, prostitution, car robberies, and lack of police protection. But what struck me most was their unified agreement on one thing: that their representatives in City Hall didn’t care about them. One resident told me his city councilor ignores his calls. And the Mayor has been totally unresponsive to their needs.
Yet, there they were, about 40 strong, fighting to take their neighborhood back. Despite mounting problems, they liked the access to freeways and the bike trail, the easy commute to downtown, and the fact that they talked to each other and had a real “neighborhood.”
Their efforts to make their neighborhood work inspired me. It’s that same spirit that I’m seeing across our city. No matter how often they are blown off by uncaring city officials, they haven’t given up.
I told them they’d have a voice in City Hall elected, and I asked them to hold me accountable on this pledge. It’s one I’m making across the city, because that’s what I believe in: a city that works for everyone.