Admittedly, I know very little about Sacramento.

Robert Stark • June 21, 2024

I recently spent a day and a half in Sacramento, on a road trip throughout Northern California. I was impressed by how urban Sacramento has become, especially since the last time I visited about 15 years ago. There is continuous walkable urbanity from Midtown to Downtown and the Waterfront. There has also been a lot of urban renewal projects over the past two decades.

Sacramento feels a bit like a Midwestern or Southern river city, like St Louis or Memphis, transplanted in California. The Old Town district along the Sacramento River is especially charming, and I was surprised to hear seals that far inland.

Sacramento’s appeal is its balance, as it has enough urban amenities without the hustle and bustle of LA and the Bay Area. Sacramento is California’s only decent midsize city besides San Diego, which is very expensive. The added appeal is Sacramento’s proximity to the Bay Area and Lake Tahoe.

Sacramento still has a strong middle class, in contrast with the very expensive and unequal Bay Area and SoCal, or impoverished Central Valley cities like Stockton, Fresno, and Bakersfield. Sacramento has been attracting a lot of remote workers from the Bay Area, and achieving a more trendy and cosmopolitan reputation. However, there is also growing homelessness in Downtown Sacramento, though not as bad as Downtown LA or San Francisco.

Sacramento: A Portrait of California's Mid-Size City

Greg

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