Broadway Bridge DEIR: ECOS Comments

On August 23, 2021, ECOS submitted a comment letter on the Draft Environmental Impact Report for the Broadway Bridge in the City of Sacramento.

Below are our comments.

ECOS supports the concept of a bridge connecting Broadway in Sacramento to West Sacramento, near 15th Street. This should facilitate infill development near both sides of the Sacramento River and provide a connection between the two cities south of US 50. Development potential is especially promising on the West Sacramento side, since I-5 is not a barrier there. We encourage significant infill development, which would be facilitated by the removal of old facilities such as fuel storage tanks and the railroad tracks serving the Port of West Sacramento. Once a definitive alignment is selected and necessary property acquired, the bridge would serve as a vital link for transit, bicycles and auto traffic. As mixed-use development near the bridge increases (on both sides of the river), the number of pedestrians and bicyclists would also increase greatly.


Photo by Masha Raymers from Pexels

Sacramento City Council embraces ‘slow streets,’ electrified buildings to fight climate change

August 26, 2020

Members of the Sacramento City Council Tuesday embraced the recommendations of the Mayors’ Commission on Climate Change and voted to move forward immediately on 10 first-year action items, including creating ‘slow streets’ for pedestrians and people-pedaled vehicles only and crafting an ordinance to require future buildings to run entirely on electricity.

Click here to read the full blog post from Mayor Steinberg’s office.

Share Your Ideas with the Mayors’ Commission on Climate Change

If you live in the City of Sacramento or the City of West Sacramento, you have the power to voice your opinions on climate change action! It’s quick and easy, just fill out the comment form here.

Mayor Steinberg and Mayor Cabaldon are leading the Mayors’ Commission on Climate Change to develop a common vision and set of strategies for both cities to achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions, referred to as Carbon Zero, by 2045. Follow this link for more information.

Editor’s note: A bridge to somewhere

By Foon Rhee
May 23, 2019
Sacramento News and Review

The I Street Bridge is 108 years old and rusty, and it rattles when a train passes over it. So, yes, a new span over the Sacramento River is way overdue. But the new bridge is not just another important transportation link between Sacramento and West Sacramento. It’s also an opportunity to make a design statement for the region.

The current I Street Bridge will stay open. The lower deck will continue to be used for passenger and freight trains, while the upper deck will be closed to vehicles and be converted into a pedestrian and bike path. The new bridge is just up river and will connect Railyards Boulevard on the edge of downtown Sacramento, and C Street in the Washington neighborhood in West Sacramento.

Click here to view the full article.

City Light Impacts on Declining Salmon Populations

March 21, 2017

ECOS submitted the following letter with concerns about outdoor lighting on the Sacramento riverfront and its effects on local salmon populations, such as the endangered Sacramento River winter-run Chinook salmon, which are particularly important among California’s salmon runs because they exhibit a life-history strategy found nowhere else on the West Coast.

Read the full letter by clicking here.

New Cohousing Planned for West Sacramento

November 15, 2016

Called Washington House (formerly known as Renaissance Village Homes), the project will be a 4- to 5-story cohousing condominium building at 4th and G Streets in West Sacramento. The site is a block from the Sacramento River and River Walk, 3 blocks from Raley Field, 6 blocks from The Barn, about 10 blocks from West Sacramento City Hall and Carol’s Restaurant. Being less than a half-mile from Tower Bridge, the site is also within easy walking distance of downtown Sacramento, including the new Golden 1 Center.

A co-housing community is one where every household has its own private living space, and the group shares large areas of common spaces, usually including an industrial-strength kitchen and dining area, “club [multi-purpose] room”, and a unique arrangement of additional amenities as determined by the planning group. There are usually 2-4 common meals a week, and other shared resources. In the case of an urban community like this one, shared bicycles, and perhaps even a car or two, are distinct possibilities. It’s all up to the core group of members/planners who begin the project.

Typically, a small number of households (6-12) form the core of the community and they are the ones to obtain the land, hire the developer/architect(s), obtain the entitlements and arrange for construction financing and completion. Other participants can buy in at any time, with all funds being credited toward the final purchase price of the private unit upon project completion (usually 2-3 years). In addition, there are often incentives for early buy-in, such as an additional credit toward purchase (some fraction of the amount, possibly up to 100% at various points in the process), to provide up-front capital. These early members also have first choice of the private units.

This project is intended to be adult-oriented, but not age-restricted. While it will not have playground equipment or other child-oriented amenities, families with children are welcome to join if they wish. They anticipate a mixture of retired and working families, and diversity in all its dimensions will be welcomed. The first phases of the group planning process, during which the power and promise of cohousing emerge, are scheduled to begin in November and December, so this would be a great time to explore the possibilities!

Contact Alex Kelter at akmd@mac.com for more information.