City of Sacramento
Welcome
From Michael Jasso, the City of Sacramento’s
Assistant City Manager
I
t’s becoming more apparent every
day: Sacramento has hit a sweet
spot. It’s a large enough city to at-
tract national attention by The New
York Times and Thrillist but small
enough to remain fleet-footed, nimble and
responsive.
These are critical qualities to have to
get things done in a municipality, espe-
cially in a region of 2.5 million people, and
when the paradigm of cities competing
against each other is long over. Rather, we
see that regions are the true heavyweights
of market capacity, and the City of Sacra-
mento is at the very heart of a dynamic,
growing urban center.
With the assistance of organizations
such as the Greater Sacramento Economic
Council and the Sacramento Area Coun-
cil of Governments, Sacramento and its
neighbors continue to coalesce around this
regional perspective.
The world is taking notice. Countries
like China and Germany are approach-
ing the city for partnerships. But is that
enough to ensure our success?
Moving to Sacramento from Chicago a
little more than a year ago, I met a group of
local leaders committed to better aligning
the city’s trajectory with the opportunities
and promise that California long has repre-
sented. I quickly became part of a shared
desire to solve a problem that has vexed
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other cities and kept them from prosperity
for all residents.
I am talking about the issue of equity
and inclusion in economic development.
The Sacramento area has world-class
educational institutions, cutting-edge
technology and abundant agricultural pro-
duction. It is the capital of a state with the
fifth-largest economy in the world. Yet, if
one takes a hard look at our neighborhoods
and geography, we have yet to achieve the
interconnectedness needed to be success-
ful at the highest levels.
Nevertheless, we are laying the foun-
dation. Sacramento’s leaders, partners
and community clearly see the wisdom of
broader investment in its neighborhoods
and workforce.
Funds generated by the recently
passed Measure U sales tax are signaling
a new era of resource deployment. Fed-
erally designated “opportunity zones” are
attracting investors and breathing life into
overlooked spaces. Innovative collabora-
tions such as Aggie Square are propelling
economic growth and creating jobs at a
variety of economic levels.
We are living at a time when old orders
are falling, new orders are rising, and “busi-
ness as usual” means widening wealth
gaps and strained fiscal budgets. However,
if a city can remain true to its identity, val-
ues and role within a regional ecosystem,
it can find itself in an advantageous, even
enviable, position in terms of affecting real
economic transformation and growth.
Sacramento is in that position. How we
leverage it will determine our success for
decades to come.
With this in mind, I invite you to ex-
plore, experience and invest in our rapidly
evolving city. You won’t be disappointed.
Michael Jasso
Assistant City Manager
City of Sacramento