Citrus Heights Police Chief Christopher Boyd has suggested the region’s police and sheriff’s departments should share resources, and the Sacramento Bee agreed, editorializing that it should be a top priority among all of the six-county law enforcement bodies—and their locally elected officials. Not only do I wholeheartedly agree with that sentiment, I say: Why stop there? The recent admission by the city of Sacramento that it will face a $90 million cashflow problem in the first half of 2011 should set off alarms across the region and open the dialogue among all interested jurisdictions to share services, facilities and personnel. In short, I’m talking about functional consolidation of c

Since the end of World War II, our fast-growing population led us to implement “modern” land use planning that included sprawling new suburban neighborhoods, super commutes by automobile and ultimately disjointed communities—miles from where we work, live, shop or play. The challenge in the 21st century of reconnecting our neighborhoods will be assisted by the new federal Sustainable Communities Initiative, or SCI. Before dismissing it as some bureaucratic scheme, I mention that it’s based upon grassroots work that started in communities all across America. One of the most successful and widely respected efforts began in our own backyard and has become a national model. In 2001, the Sacr

For the next wave of economic recovery, it’s imperative that the Sacramento Metro Chamber collaboratively identify indicators and driving forces that capitalize on local innovation, intellect and influence. Additionally, we must use up-to-date technology and advances to develop a healthy, more sustainable economy that we believe will ultimately improve our region’s competitiveness. Our old consumer-based economy was obviously unsustainable. Built on easy access to money and lax lending standards, the housing and financial markets over-bloated other parts of the economy. Downstream job growth swelled, and when the housing market shriveled, other sectors followed. We await signs that our e

In 2010, will our economy be half empty or half full? I view next year as a “transitional” year—a year in which our region’s economy will begin to grow and flourish again. But to move our economy forward, we need our friends in the public sector to do their part. They must create a more business-friendly environment that eliminates the stranglehold that our current political and regulatory atmosphere holds on businesses—large or small, privately or publicly held. And in turn, the business community must hold our elected representatives, at all levels, accountable for this kind of good governance. Recently, the Sacramento Metro Chamber held the Sacramento City Council accountable by suppo