April 13, 2026

IMPORTANT UPDATE

The Board of Supervisors has tentatively scheduled a vote on the Upper Westside Project for Tuesday, April 28 at 2 pm.

They will meet in Board Chambers at 700 H Street Sacramento. The vote will be on the EIR and the Project. We will send another email confirming the meeting when the Board agenda is published on about April 24, 2026.

Take Action

1. Send a Comment to BoardClerk[at]saccounty[dot]gov
2. Attend the meeting. You can make a two minute verbal comment.
   For written or verbal comment ideas, see Comment Ideas, below
3. Sign our Upper Westside Petition
4. Contribute. Your donation helps us oppose this project
5. Share this information and ask others to join our mailing list.

Background

The County Board of Supervisors has scheduled the vote to approve or deny this project which will rezone over 2,000 acres of farmland to enable residential and commercial development, thus destroying the Natomas Basin Habitat Conservation Plan.

The fundamental reason to oppose this project is that the County should not build an unincorporated city, the size of Galt, on land next to the Sacramento River. It will destroy valuable farmland and wildlife habitat, and, without improving main transportation arteries, increase traffic and congestion by adding over 20,000 people to Natomas. This project also flouts long-standing agreements between the City and the County. The City and the Natomas Basin Conservancy have retained counsel and sent strongly worded letters to the County explaining how proposed rezoning will destroy the Natomas Basin Habitat Conservation Plan. You should help us to oppose this project.

Comment Ideas

Email a comment to BoardClerk[at]saccounty[dot]gov. Include “Upper Westside Specific Plan” in the subject. Providing your contact information is optional. Or, you can mail a comment to the County Board of Supervisors at 700 H Street, Suite 2450, Sacramento, CA 95814

Points for your comments could include the following. You don’t need to use them all – which ones are the reasons for your opposition?

• The City’s opposition – The City Council passed a resolution against UWSP. The City’s excellent letter is here.
• There will be irreversible and fatal impacts to the Natomas Basin Conservancy, the Swainson’s Hawk and the Swainson’s Hawk Zone. Two excellent letters from NBC are here.
• Traffic impacts to I-5 and I-80, West El Camino, and Garden Highway.
• There is no viable source of water. The urban water rights do not exist for these parcels and water reliability is diminishing with climate change.
• Total disregard for 3 decades of planning for flood/fire prevention and habitat preservation — conflicts with the Urban Services Boundary (County’s ultimate boundary for growth) and the Natomas Basin Conservancy
• Millions of square feet of new commercial space will pull business from existing businesses in Natomas and downtown.
• Increased congestion creates dangerous evacuation conditions in case of flooding or other emergencies.
• Excessive and unhealthy air quality emissions are not sufficiently addressed. The EIR identifies significant air quality impacts that can’t be mitigated: there are conflicts with the air quality plan during project operation, emissions of key air pollutants and precursors during project operation, and exposure of sensitive receptors to toxic air contaminants during project operation. It also did not assess the ultrafine particulate emission health impacts of the project.
• This project does not address the region’s affordable housing need and includes very few affordable housing units. Our housing need is for low and moderate income housing which also is a minor part of this project. More importantly, plenty of land is already zoned for housing. The housing crisis is now – construction on this project will not begin for many years and our housing needs will be completely different then.

Join Us!

• April 26, 2026 – Come to Sacramento Earth Day at Southside Park, 11- 4. Come by to say hi and talk about protecting open space in the Sacramento Region.
• April 28, 2026 – Come to the Board of Supervisors meeting and possible vote on Upper Westside. Voice your opposition. 2 pm at 700 H St, Sacramento. We will send another email to confirm that the vote will occur on April 28.

Upper Westside Board of Supervisors FINAL VOTE

We have been told by county staff that the final vote for the Upper Westside Specific Plan (UWSP) and its flawed Environmental Impact Report (EIR) will take place at the end of April, probably April 28 or 29, 2026.

• Please hold those dates and prepare to voice your opposition. We will email when the agenda item and time are confirmed. Be prepared to send an email comment to BoardClerk[at]saccounty[dot]gov. Include “Upper Westside Specific Plan” in the subject. Providing your contact information is optional. Or, you can mail a comment to the County Board of Supervisors at 700 H Street, Suite 2450, Sacramento, CA 95814

Talking points could include

• The City’s opposition – The City Council passed a resolution against UWSP. The City’s excellent letter is here.
• Fatal impacts to the Natomas Basin Conservancy, the Swainson’s Hawk and the Swainson’s Hawk Zone. Two excellent letters from NBC are here.
• Traffic impacts to I-5 and I-80, West El Camino, and Garden Highway.
• No viable source of water and loss of farmland and habitat.
• Total disregard for 3 decades of planning for flood/fire prevention and habitat preservation — conflicts with the Urban Services Boundary (County’s ultimate boundary for growth) and the Natomas Basin Conservancy  
• Millions of square feet of new commercial space will pull business from existing businesses in Natomas.
• Increased congestion creates dangerous evacuation conditions in case of flooding or other emergencies.
• The EIR identifies significant air quality impacts that can’t be mitigated: conflicts with the air quality plan during project operation, emissions of key air pollutants and precursors during project operation, and exposure of sensitive receptors to toxic air contaminants during project operation. It also did not assess the ultrafine particulate emission health impacts of the project.

Provenance AKA Grand Park at Natomas CPAC

ECOS and nearby neighbors testified at the March 11 meeting of the Natomas Community Planning Advisory Council (CPAC).

Unfortunately only one member of the CPAC attended. The developers gave a presentation of a nice planned community that is in the wrong location. They never mentioned habitat or the Natomas Basin Conservancy, and misrepresented the prior plans for the area.

We have asked the County staff to host meetings IN Natomas so more neighbors can attend. We will let you know when they are scheduled.

ASIP Annexation Approved

On March 4, LAFCO approved the annexation of the Airport South Industrial Project. ECOS has filed suits against both the City and LAFCo over their faulty environmental review. In the meantime, meetings will hopefully be arranged to allow neighbors and developers to discuss design issues and additional mitigation. The North Natomas Community Coalition is taking the lead in setting up these meetings.

Board of Supervisors Elections – Primary June 2, 2026

Districts 1, 2 and 5 will hold primaries. Natomas is in District 1. Learn about the District 1 Candidates: Tim Riley, Eric Guerra, Flo Cofer, and Deborah Ortiz.

1. Sacramento League of Women Voters Candidate Forum for Sacramento County Supervisor, District 1 – Coloma Community Center 4623 T Street Sacramento, CA. Thursday, April 9 – Doors Open 5:30 Forum is 6 pm – 7:30 PM
2. Link to video interviews of the four candidates for District 1, by Kent Lacin. The interviews focus on environmental issues.
3. Not sure of your district? Enter zip code or see a map to find your district and supervisor.

For Your Calendar

April 9 – Attend the League of Women Voters Candidate Forum.
April 26 – Join us at Sacramento Earth Day.
April 28 or 29 – Possible vote on Upper Westside. We will share more information as soon as we have it.