Alleys with Names

As reported by the Sacramento Bee, a very good—though long overdue—move by the city council; gives a little more flavor and character to our fair city’s downtown/midtown neighborhoods.

An excerpt, with a map at the jump.

“From now on, the best way to navigate through midtown Sacramento might be to hop onto Kayak. And someday soon, there might be people living on Eggplant or dining at a hip cafe on Jazz.

“After years of dead ends, the City Council voted Tuesday night to name the alleys of the central city grid. The new names will be a nod to Sacramento's history and character.

“As a result, alleys in most of midtown and downtown will begin with the letter of the street to its north. For example, Blues Alley will run between B and C streets and Victorian Alley will run parallel to V and W.

“City officials are beginning to develop the grid's alleys and hope to one day have cafes, housing and shops lining some of the corridors. In order to develop the passages, the city had to give them names.

"Sacramento's alleyways now have names that reflect their distinctive and fanciful character, helping to further brand the central city," said Councilman Rob Fong, who represents the midtown and downtown areas.

“In addition to aiding in the development of the central city, naming the alleys will help police officers and firefighters respond quickly to emergencies in corridors that until now didn't have names, city officials said.

“Some of the names include:
• Solons Alley, a reference to the minor league baseball team that once called Sacramento home.
• Tomato Alley, named for the city's most recognized agricultural product.
• Democracy and Government alleys. The city is, after all, the capital of California.”

Capital Mall Beautified

Well, yes, of course, it is a great idea floated in the Sacramento Bee, but how many great ideas to beautify Downtown Sacramento have gone aborning in the past several years.

Perhaps current public leadership, with the new changes in place, will actually do this, and that would be wonderful.

An excerpt.

“Capitol Mall could use a makeover, city officials are saying. They're thinking … Paris.

"We can make it our own Champs-Elysées!" said an enthusiastic Sacramento City Councilman Steve Cohn.

“Cohn, who's pushed the idea for years, is part of a city-sponsored group looking at enlivening what many say is a beautiful, yet oddly bland boulevard.

"It has beautiful vistas, but there's hardly anybody on it," said Cohn.

“He envisions cafes and restaurants on extra-wide, tree-shaded sidewalks, clanging trolley cars and a big fountain at the west end to mirror the one in front of the state Capitol.

“It would mean getting rid of those do-nothing grass medians in the middle of the street, he said.

“Others are talking about a museum, new art and performance spaces, and even some stores.

“In 2009, the public will be invited to offer ideas. Officials then hope to launch an international design competition, inviting architects to create visions of what Capitol Mall could become.”