By CHRIS G. DENINA, Times-Herald staff writer
If you haven't been to Mare Island in a while, you may soon begin to notice some interesting changes.
For instance, if you need to use one of the old shipyard latrine shacks, you might be out of luck because some will be gone.
The same goes for some of the old bomb shelters.
Lennar Mare Island LLC on Wednesday presented those and other improvement ideas to the Vallejo Planning Commission as part of revised plans for converting the old base to civilian use. The documents were last updated in 1999.
Lennar officials even hinted at possible new ideas, including water taxis and a permanent ferry stop at Mare Island.
Many of the new proposals discussed Wednesday stem from the Navy's seemingly haphazard way of building out Mare Island.
"What the Navy did for 150 years doesn't translate well for civilian use," said Todd Berryhill, Lennar project manager. "They put buildings down literally anywhere they could."
The military built latrine shacks and bomb shelters with little regard to placement, sometimes too close to railroads, Berryhill said. Some roads were built too narrow to meet today's traffic needs. And some areas stored explosive and hazardous materials, leaving housing - as envisioned at the base's south end in 1999 - out of the question.
The updated plans show how Lennar intends to tackle those problems, Berryhill said. For example, the developer may tear down some latrine shacks and bomb shelters, leaving some of the historic resources for future generations to see.
Some roads may be widened to allow more cars. In the past, the Navy simply designated some roads as one-way streets for workers entering the base, and reversed the flow for commuters leaving at a shift's end. And plans now show that homes once proposed in the southern area, where explosives were stored, have been shifted north closer to other neighborhoods under construction.
In six years, Lennar also has done more work in figuring out how to improve such areas as infrastructure like water mains, Berryhill said. With a better idea of how many homes vs. non-residential uses will be developed, Lennar now knows better what kinds of pipes will best serve each area.
Lennar's also added plans for things the Navy never imagined 150 years ago.
"We're going to have fiber optics going into every home," Berryhill said. The technology allows service providers to provide better cable, telephone and Internet access. About 1,400 homes are planned and the first residents began moving in last month.
In all, Lennar plans to develop about 9 million square feet of such uses as industrial, office and warehouses, city officials said. That's nearly 3 million more than planned in 1999.
But more development also means some future issues the updated plans fail to address.
For instance, the Mare Island causeway drawbridge may need improvements to accommodate the added traffic expected as more people work and live on the old base, Commissioner Gary Salvadori said.
"The more traffic the water gets, the more the bridge goes up and down," Salvadori said. That means cars must wait for ships to pass, he said.
Building a new bridge is too expensive, Berryhill said. Instead, Lennar has restricted raising the drawbridge during commuter hours, he said. Lennar is interested in bringing a water taxi to Mare Island to give visitors another point of access, Berryhill said. Such a solution may also help alleviate some concerns by businesses that view a bridge as a turnoff to potential customers, he said.
"It's a real sort of psychological barrier," Berryhill said.
Lennar also hopes to convince the city to pick up ferry passengers from Mare Island, instead of having commuters drive to the mainland to use the service, he said.
As for Mare Island's future, Lennar wants city permission to develop the north end for such uses as office space.
Commissioner Charles Legalos questioned if that and Lennar's other plans for the old base could pull visitors from the downtown, which another developer hopes to renew.
The two projects shouldn't compete, Berryhill said. But with a water taxi, maybe Mare Island residents could shop in downtown and vice-versa, he said.
It may take a decade for Lennar to carry out its plans and to see if there is a conflict.
For now, Lennar's focus includes building more houses and vying for the contract to develop the base's northern area. "We're going to be pioneering," Berryhill said of Lennar's plans for the north end.
- E-mail Chris G. Denina at cdenina@thnewsnet.com or call 553-6835.
Mare Island goals include
- 1,400 units of single- and multi-family residential
- 7 million square feet of commercial space
- 8,000 jobs
- 1,400 homes
- a waterfront promenade featuring shops and restaurants
- open space such as parks
*Source: Lennar Mare Island LLC
Thursday, July 07, 2005
Tuesday, July 05, 2005
Bank of America will open in growing Green Valley
By Matthew Bunk
FAIRFIELD - Green Valley is about to get another bank.
Bank of America will open Aug. 1 next to Applebee's restaurant and discount retailer Costco in one of the faster growing areas of Solano County, a company representative said this week. There will be a reception Aug. 3.
Location in a high-growth area was a big part of the decision to open a branch in Fairfield's Green Valley, Bank of America spokesman Geoffrey Burbridge said.
"First of all, Fairfield is one of our most important markets in Northern California," Burbridge said.
"Then there's growth and a good location at a crossroads with dynamic retailers around it."
The 4,700-square-foot, stand-alone building is almost finished, and only some interior design work is left. Furniture went in last week.
The bank will be anything but the usual, with plasma televisions in the lobby, secured rooms for personal bankers and a James Bond-like hand scanner that screens access to safe deposit boxes, bank representatives said.
Bank of America calls it a Bank de Novo, which means the branch was built from the ground up and will start with no accounts.
"So if you're the first person there at 9 a.m. Aug. 1, you might be the first account," Burbridge said.
The branch, located at 5117 Business Center Drive, will have 12-15 employees.
Last year, Bank of America announced it would open there along with Applebee's and Pet Club. The 1.6 acres of land was originally owned by the city and was intended for freeway widening, but instead was sold to a commercial developer for $200,000.
Reach Matthew Bunk at 425-4646 Ext. 267 or mbunk@dailyrepublic.net.
FAIRFIELD - Green Valley is about to get another bank.
Bank of America will open Aug. 1 next to Applebee's restaurant and discount retailer Costco in one of the faster growing areas of Solano County, a company representative said this week. There will be a reception Aug. 3.
Location in a high-growth area was a big part of the decision to open a branch in Fairfield's Green Valley, Bank of America spokesman Geoffrey Burbridge said.
"First of all, Fairfield is one of our most important markets in Northern California," Burbridge said.
"Then there's growth and a good location at a crossroads with dynamic retailers around it."
The 4,700-square-foot, stand-alone building is almost finished, and only some interior design work is left. Furniture went in last week.
The bank will be anything but the usual, with plasma televisions in the lobby, secured rooms for personal bankers and a James Bond-like hand scanner that screens access to safe deposit boxes, bank representatives said.
Bank of America calls it a Bank de Novo, which means the branch was built from the ground up and will start with no accounts.
"So if you're the first person there at 9 a.m. Aug. 1, you might be the first account," Burbridge said.
The branch, located at 5117 Business Center Drive, will have 12-15 employees.
Last year, Bank of America announced it would open there along with Applebee's and Pet Club. The 1.6 acres of land was originally owned by the city and was intended for freeway widening, but instead was sold to a commercial developer for $200,000.
Reach Matthew Bunk at 425-4646 Ext. 267 or mbunk@dailyrepublic.net.
Vallejo Home sales tapering off
By RACHEL RASKIN-ZRIHEN, Times-Herald staff writer
A 'SALE PENDING' SIGN stands outside an El Camino Real home in Vallejo, where real estate professionals report a softening in the market for high- and low-end listings, but an increase in the number of houses for sale. Photo: Mike Jory/Times-Herald
Local real estate professionals say there are signs the Vallejo area's hot housing market may be cooling.
"It's taking longer to sell homes," said Mark Rogers of Realty World Silverado. "The shift in cycle may finally be occurring. There is at least the perception of change."
Rogers said real estate cycles traditionally last about a decade, and that the state is in the 10th or 11th year of a seller's market.
In Vallejo, however, the seller's market was interrupted by the 1996 closure of the Mare Island Naval Shipyard, he added.
"In Vallejo, it's a little different than the rest of the state," Rogers said. "The rising market started in 1999 here because of the recession caused by the base closure, which depressed the market in Vallejo for a couple more years."
Realtor Beth Brittenbach of Century 21 Schutjer Realty said that while it's too early to predict whether or how much the market will change, a shift does seem to be in the air.
"It seems that we are seeing some softening of prices at the higher end of the scale in our area, and, interestingly, also at the lower end," Brittenbach said. "Part of the reason is, we have the highest inventory we've had in about three to five years at the moment. It's like everybody decided to put their home on the market in May."
Brittenbach said that homes in the $400,000 to $450,000 range are getting some slight price reductions and are staying on the market longer.
The number of properties listed with Realtors in Vallejo this June was 26 percent higher than last year at this time - 248, up from 197. That's "a pretty big jump," Rogers said.
Rogers said this could be a function of older, original homeowners wanting to take their profits and retire elsewhere.
"A lot of Vallejo was built in the '50s and '60s, and a lot of the homes still belong to the original owners," he said. "They've lived here all their lives, and they're clearing out. Or maybe sellers are anticipating an end to the sellers' market, and are concerned that if they don't sell now, they could lose out."
Preliminary figures show the number of houses sold last June seems to be about the same as the number sold this year, Rogers said. The prices of homes sold in the Vallejo area in June also seemed to be equal to the list price, which is unusual, since the list price is usually higher, he added.
"Taken together, this could indicate some of the prices-are-continuing-to-rise psychology is dissipating. Maybe sellers are getting a little worried," Rogers said.
But whether or not the current local real estate situation indicates a shift in the market or a temporary blip, it will be a while before buyers or sellers can expect any major price changes. Any recent local price fluctuations are more like adjustments, Rogers said.
"The price of homes in Vallejo in June were 26 percent higher than they were last year, and they were 24 percent higher in Benicia," Rogers said.
He added that the numbers don't indicate a major shift in the local real estate market. At least not yet.
"Sellers are now realizing they have to lower the price to sell, but they're only lowering them to the market price, which is still ascending. I don't see the market dropping, but it may be slowing or leveling off," Rogers said.
Brittenbach agrees that any change that may be occurring will happen slowly. "The market remains good, and none of the experts expects a huge downturn," she said.
- E-mail Rachel Raskin-Zrihen at RachelZ@thnewsnet.com or call 553-6824.
A 'SALE PENDING' SIGN stands outside an El Camino Real home in Vallejo, where real estate professionals report a softening in the market for high- and low-end listings, but an increase in the number of houses for sale. Photo: Mike Jory/Times-Herald
Local real estate professionals say there are signs the Vallejo area's hot housing market may be cooling.
"It's taking longer to sell homes," said Mark Rogers of Realty World Silverado. "The shift in cycle may finally be occurring. There is at least the perception of change."
Rogers said real estate cycles traditionally last about a decade, and that the state is in the 10th or 11th year of a seller's market.
In Vallejo, however, the seller's market was interrupted by the 1996 closure of the Mare Island Naval Shipyard, he added.
"In Vallejo, it's a little different than the rest of the state," Rogers said. "The rising market started in 1999 here because of the recession caused by the base closure, which depressed the market in Vallejo for a couple more years."
Realtor Beth Brittenbach of Century 21 Schutjer Realty said that while it's too early to predict whether or how much the market will change, a shift does seem to be in the air.
"It seems that we are seeing some softening of prices at the higher end of the scale in our area, and, interestingly, also at the lower end," Brittenbach said. "Part of the reason is, we have the highest inventory we've had in about three to five years at the moment. It's like everybody decided to put their home on the market in May."
Brittenbach said that homes in the $400,000 to $450,000 range are getting some slight price reductions and are staying on the market longer.
The number of properties listed with Realtors in Vallejo this June was 26 percent higher than last year at this time - 248, up from 197. That's "a pretty big jump," Rogers said.
Rogers said this could be a function of older, original homeowners wanting to take their profits and retire elsewhere.
"A lot of Vallejo was built in the '50s and '60s, and a lot of the homes still belong to the original owners," he said. "They've lived here all their lives, and they're clearing out. Or maybe sellers are anticipating an end to the sellers' market, and are concerned that if they don't sell now, they could lose out."
Preliminary figures show the number of houses sold last June seems to be about the same as the number sold this year, Rogers said. The prices of homes sold in the Vallejo area in June also seemed to be equal to the list price, which is unusual, since the list price is usually higher, he added.
"Taken together, this could indicate some of the prices-are-continuing-to-rise psychology is dissipating. Maybe sellers are getting a little worried," Rogers said.
But whether or not the current local real estate situation indicates a shift in the market or a temporary blip, it will be a while before buyers or sellers can expect any major price changes. Any recent local price fluctuations are more like adjustments, Rogers said.
"The price of homes in Vallejo in June were 26 percent higher than they were last year, and they were 24 percent higher in Benicia," Rogers said.
He added that the numbers don't indicate a major shift in the local real estate market. At least not yet.
"Sellers are now realizing they have to lower the price to sell, but they're only lowering them to the market price, which is still ascending. I don't see the market dropping, but it may be slowing or leveling off," Rogers said.
Brittenbach agrees that any change that may be occurring will happen slowly. "The market remains good, and none of the experts expects a huge downturn," she said.
- E-mail Rachel Raskin-Zrihen at RachelZ@thnewsnet.com or call 553-6824.
Trailblazing Vacaville's Buckingham Charter Magnet High School
By Claire St. John
VACAVILLE - Lately, public schools have been taking a lot of heat for focusing too much on college-prep classes and not enough on vocational education. Not everyone wants to go to college, parents and students complain.
At the same time, it is essential to have college-prep classes available so students can continue their educations.
Vacaville's Buckingham Charter Magnet High School, which has been a part of the school district since 1994, has solved that problem by offering classes that aren't only college prep but college standard, as well as training in media and visual arts and information technology.
"The tools they work with are studio standard," principal Bob Hampton said. "Some of the things they do are off the charts. It's a very elite group."
Student films have been shown at film fests around the world, and yearly at Vacaville's Brenden Theatres. Students run a news program on campus with anchors, field reporters, cameramen and technicians.
The school's film department gives students hands-on experience in lighting, filming, directing, producing, editing and acting as grips, gaffers and sound recorders.
With all this experience, Buckingham's graduates have found themselves actively recruited, either by film schools, art schools or movie studios.
"The media/visual skills are comparable to those learned in college," Hampton said.
Trailblazing
Charter schools are becoming more and more inventive in their efforts to serve students. Buckingham Charter School, the state's 56th, has been working on its philosophy since it opened in 1994.
It started out as an independent study program for students from kindergarten to ninth grade, something the district didn't offer at the time.
"We were part of that first wave," Hampton said. "I've been very involved in the whole charter movement."
Hampton has a long history in education, but when legislation for charter schools in California was passed in 1992, he thought a charter would be a perfect fit for Vacaville.
"We were looking to service kids going out of the district," he said.
Two years ago, enrollment reached 1,200 students each of whom met with a teacher once or twice a week and did most of their work at home.
Soon after, Buckingham became an on-site, full-service high school that limited its numbers to about 400, to give students plenty of one-on-one instruction as well as the opportunity to explore their interests.
"No. 1, we're college prep," Hampton said.
And indeed, the school boasts 22 advanced placement classes, which are accepted as college credit at some universities.
"We've got more AP classes than anyone in the state," Hampton said.
Choice is a good thing
Buckingham students come from Vacaville as well as Fairfield, Suisun City and Dixon. If they felt like making the commute every day, students could come from as far away as San Diego or Crescent City. Anyone in California is eligible to attend a Californian charter school.
For Mary Soufi and her twins, Alexander and Basil, the flexibility of Buckingham is perfect.
Alexander and Basil were home-schooled, taking some college classes and traveling into Davis for other classes.
But when Buckingham Charter School became Buckingham Charter Magnet High School two years ago, the twins signed up.
"They like challenging academics, but they also like having the extra things that they are picking up there in the media arts," Mary Soufi said.
Soufi's philosophy is that no school is perfect, but because Buckingham offers a choice from districting, it is invaluable.
"I like the idea that everyone thinks about the choices there can be and not to assume there is not choice," Soufi said. "The reason I want people to know about Buckingham is so they know there is an alternative."
More freedom
Even though Buckingham is a charter school, and therefore has more freedoms than a standard high school, it still has to turn out the same, high standardized test scores required of all schools.
Many charters are magnet, meaning they offer special programs - such as Buckingham's visual and media arts and information technology - to attract interested students.
But some school districts - which are losing students to charters during a time of declining enrollment - accuse charters of pilfering students.
The main source of funding for schools is Average Daily Attendance. In other words, warm bodies in chairs equals cash. Losing kids means lay-offs, fewer programs and fewer services in schools.
"The battle is still very real and very bloody," Hampton said. "I think in the bigger picture of life, everyone knows choice is a good thing."
But when Buckingham made the switch from independent study to on-site high school, it dropped about 900 students.
When asked how the school managed that kind of financial hit, Hampton said, "We manage our finances very well. We planned the switch for two and a half to three years."
The school wants to stay small, Hampton said, topping out at about 400 students.
Tim Kruse, who manages Brenden Theatres, is a board member for the charter's foundation and has a 5-year-old and a 2-year-old. He said he's thinking about sending his daughters to Buckingham for high school.
"What I really like about (Buckingham) is the kids are around the teachers and the environment is much more creative and the energy level seems to be much more positive and driven toward success."
Reach Claire St. John at 427-6955 or cstjohn@dailyrepublic.net.
VACAVILLE - Lately, public schools have been taking a lot of heat for focusing too much on college-prep classes and not enough on vocational education. Not everyone wants to go to college, parents and students complain.
At the same time, it is essential to have college-prep classes available so students can continue their educations.
Vacaville's Buckingham Charter Magnet High School, which has been a part of the school district since 1994, has solved that problem by offering classes that aren't only college prep but college standard, as well as training in media and visual arts and information technology.
"The tools they work with are studio standard," principal Bob Hampton said. "Some of the things they do are off the charts. It's a very elite group."
Student films have been shown at film fests around the world, and yearly at Vacaville's Brenden Theatres. Students run a news program on campus with anchors, field reporters, cameramen and technicians.
The school's film department gives students hands-on experience in lighting, filming, directing, producing, editing and acting as grips, gaffers and sound recorders.
With all this experience, Buckingham's graduates have found themselves actively recruited, either by film schools, art schools or movie studios.
"The media/visual skills are comparable to those learned in college," Hampton said.
Trailblazing
Charter schools are becoming more and more inventive in their efforts to serve students. Buckingham Charter School, the state's 56th, has been working on its philosophy since it opened in 1994.
It started out as an independent study program for students from kindergarten to ninth grade, something the district didn't offer at the time.
"We were part of that first wave," Hampton said. "I've been very involved in the whole charter movement."
Hampton has a long history in education, but when legislation for charter schools in California was passed in 1992, he thought a charter would be a perfect fit for Vacaville.
"We were looking to service kids going out of the district," he said.
Two years ago, enrollment reached 1,200 students each of whom met with a teacher once or twice a week and did most of their work at home.
Soon after, Buckingham became an on-site, full-service high school that limited its numbers to about 400, to give students plenty of one-on-one instruction as well as the opportunity to explore their interests.
"No. 1, we're college prep," Hampton said.
And indeed, the school boasts 22 advanced placement classes, which are accepted as college credit at some universities.
"We've got more AP classes than anyone in the state," Hampton said.
Choice is a good thing
Buckingham students come from Vacaville as well as Fairfield, Suisun City and Dixon. If they felt like making the commute every day, students could come from as far away as San Diego or Crescent City. Anyone in California is eligible to attend a Californian charter school.
For Mary Soufi and her twins, Alexander and Basil, the flexibility of Buckingham is perfect.
Alexander and Basil were home-schooled, taking some college classes and traveling into Davis for other classes.
But when Buckingham Charter School became Buckingham Charter Magnet High School two years ago, the twins signed up.
"They like challenging academics, but they also like having the extra things that they are picking up there in the media arts," Mary Soufi said.
Soufi's philosophy is that no school is perfect, but because Buckingham offers a choice from districting, it is invaluable.
"I like the idea that everyone thinks about the choices there can be and not to assume there is not choice," Soufi said. "The reason I want people to know about Buckingham is so they know there is an alternative."
More freedom
Even though Buckingham is a charter school, and therefore has more freedoms than a standard high school, it still has to turn out the same, high standardized test scores required of all schools.
Many charters are magnet, meaning they offer special programs - such as Buckingham's visual and media arts and information technology - to attract interested students.
But some school districts - which are losing students to charters during a time of declining enrollment - accuse charters of pilfering students.
The main source of funding for schools is Average Daily Attendance. In other words, warm bodies in chairs equals cash. Losing kids means lay-offs, fewer programs and fewer services in schools.
"The battle is still very real and very bloody," Hampton said. "I think in the bigger picture of life, everyone knows choice is a good thing."
But when Buckingham made the switch from independent study to on-site high school, it dropped about 900 students.
When asked how the school managed that kind of financial hit, Hampton said, "We manage our finances very well. We planned the switch for two and a half to three years."
The school wants to stay small, Hampton said, topping out at about 400 students.
Tim Kruse, who manages Brenden Theatres, is a board member for the charter's foundation and has a 5-year-old and a 2-year-old. He said he's thinking about sending his daughters to Buckingham for high school.
"What I really like about (Buckingham) is the kids are around the teachers and the environment is much more creative and the energy level seems to be much more positive and driven toward success."
Reach Claire St. John at 427-6955 or cstjohn@dailyrepublic.net.
New Dixon sign grabs attention along I-80
By David Henson/Staff Writer
"Dixon" is in full red-white-and-blue bloom for this Independence Day.
Literally.
The city is unveiling a massive landscaped sign that spells out Dixon with bricks and patriotic-colored annuals.
Located on an grassy embankment along Inter-
state 80, the unique gateway sign presents eastbound commuters with a 25-foot-tall emblem of what city they are driving past and its civic pride.
"Instead of a sign, we wanted something as people go by that says 'Dixon,' " Public Works Director Dave Melilli dead-panned.
Because of the design - flowers planted within letters outlined in bricks, Melilli said the city can change the sign's floral arrangements along with the seasons.
For now, the letters boast a colorful array of red, white and blue blooms for the Fourth of July that will remain until Labor Day.
"It's kind of a tribute to the troops and to the city," Melilli said.
Much of the sweat put into building and landscaping the sign project came from California Department of Forestry crews. Last week, the orange-clad workers were busy with the finishing touches of the project, planting rows of red and bluish flowers.
"Everybody who helped with this was really into it," said Dave Ward, a city public works employee who led the project's construction. "They will have left a little mark in Dixon."
The bricks used to outline 'Dixon' were donated by the local Basalite Corp. plant, and the city's engineering and public works department designed the project.
The display, located between the Pitt School Road and Highway 113 exits along I-80, is part of an overall landscape improvement project along Dixon's frontage on the freeway.
Despite the sign's prominent position along I-80, the city has tried to keep the project quiet until it was completed.
The massive project has been in the works since late spring, and city officials had hoped to finish it by Memorial Day, but late spring rains frustrated those efforts.
City officials, though, are enthusiastic about the sign despite the delay.
"I hope people appreciate it," City Manager Warren Salmons said. "It illustrates the pride in this city."
David Henson can be reached at dixon@thereporter.com.
"Dixon" is in full red-white-and-blue bloom for this Independence Day.
Literally.
The city is unveiling a massive landscaped sign that spells out Dixon with bricks and patriotic-colored annuals.
Located on an grassy embankment along Inter-
state 80, the unique gateway sign presents eastbound commuters with a 25-foot-tall emblem of what city they are driving past and its civic pride.
"Instead of a sign, we wanted something as people go by that says 'Dixon,' " Public Works Director Dave Melilli dead-panned.
Because of the design - flowers planted within letters outlined in bricks, Melilli said the city can change the sign's floral arrangements along with the seasons.
For now, the letters boast a colorful array of red, white and blue blooms for the Fourth of July that will remain until Labor Day.
"It's kind of a tribute to the troops and to the city," Melilli said.
Much of the sweat put into building and landscaping the sign project came from California Department of Forestry crews. Last week, the orange-clad workers were busy with the finishing touches of the project, planting rows of red and bluish flowers.
"Everybody who helped with this was really into it," said Dave Ward, a city public works employee who led the project's construction. "They will have left a little mark in Dixon."
The bricks used to outline 'Dixon' were donated by the local Basalite Corp. plant, and the city's engineering and public works department designed the project.
The display, located between the Pitt School Road and Highway 113 exits along I-80, is part of an overall landscape improvement project along Dixon's frontage on the freeway.
Despite the sign's prominent position along I-80, the city has tried to keep the project quiet until it was completed.
The massive project has been in the works since late spring, and city officials had hoped to finish it by Memorial Day, but late spring rains frustrated those efforts.
City officials, though, are enthusiastic about the sign despite the delay.
"I hope people appreciate it," City Manager Warren Salmons said. "It illustrates the pride in this city."
David Henson can be reached at dixon@thereporter.com.
Highway 37 project in Vallejo nears completion
'Perserverance' at a high price
53 years after conception, project nears birth
By MATTHIAS GAFNI, Times-Herald staff writer
The Highway 37 project through Vallejo has overcome obstacles of almost Biblical proportions.
The route's plans had to endure an enormous earthquake, historic floods, a devastating oil embargo, and the pleas for an endangered mouse and bird. These events all transpired since transportation officials first discussed fixing the roadway - during Harry S. Truman's presidency.
The year was 1952.
Despite everything thrown in its path, that stretch of Highway 37, from Interstate 80 to the Napa River Bridge, will be completed this fall - more than 50 years, and 10 Truman successors - after officials first felt it was needed.
Major highway projects take money, political pressure, timing, luck and, well É money. This 3.8-mile stretch of roadway has had some of each over the half century, but not until recently did all those factors line up.
Vallejo Mayor Tony Intintoli Jr. dealt with the project along the way during his lengthy political career.
"The first conversation I participated in with respect to that roadway was some 20-plus years ago," Intintoli said.
"I'm just delighted to have it done. I'm just glad it's (nearly) completed," the mayor said.
Former Mayor Terry Curtola began his work on the project in the 1970s.
"I've been to six or eight groundbreakings since the early '70s," Curtola laughed. "It never seemed to get completed. But now it finally looks like it will.
"There was always some sort of delays, predominantly environmental," Curtola added.
There was never any question that the old highway, which runs through a major commercial section of the city, needed to be re-done. It has created decades of traffic headaches with its three stop lights.
"It'll cut so much time there," said Steve Cobb, Caltrans spokesman. "I think more people will start using the facility once they start realizing the time saved."
The overpass also will eliminate the busy and dangerous intersection of Highways 37 and 29.
The section became more and more outdated with recent growth, Cobb said.
"Solano County is growing and South Napa County is growing. American Canyon is now a city," Cobb said.
Long before the recent growth, lawmakers called for the stretch of roadway to be changed to a four-lane freeway.
During the 1950s and '60s, officials struggled to find a funding source for the highway expansion. But the project remained the county's top priority.
However, in the '70s, bad luck struck. The country suffered through an oil embargo and began withholding gas tax revenue to guard against inflation. Later that decade, Gov. Jerry Brown de-emphasized highway transportation and cut funding.
Mother Nature tried to kill the project in 1980, three years after a levee break flooded the White Slough area. The floods created protected wetlands and nearly insurmountable environmental concerns, including the protection of the salt marsh harvest mouse and clapper rail bird.
Then, the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake took most transportation funds and diverted them toward seismic retrofits of bridges and overpasses.
By the 1990s, officials found an environmental solution, and the project was OKed.
Now, with the final phase nearing completion, drivers will travel a route along an entirely different path, most of it raised over Vallejo. The main undertaking has been an overpass, eliminating the dangerous Highway 37 and 29 intersection.
"It'll affect Vallejoans. So many of us use that corridor. It will speed up traffic a lot and reduce the opportunities for road rage," Mayor Intintoli laughed. "It's pretty maddening going through there and it has been for a number of years."
Curtola foresees a rebirth for businesses along the freeway.
"The worst part in taking so long was letting a lot of that area decay," he said.
Former mayor Curtola can't believe the $124 million project will be completed by Thanksgiving.
"I'm going to be really tickled. It's going to be a tremendous asset for the city," Curtola said. "It was a long time coming, but perseverance pays off."
- E-mail Matthias Gafni at mgafni@thnewsnet.com or call 553-6825.
Red tape, disasters span 53 years
1952. State transportation officials study what then was known as Sears Point Road Freeway; lawmakers discuss turning Highway 37 into a toll road to fund it.
1955. Toll road idea scrapped when California Highway Commission agrees to make Highway 37 a four-lane freeway. The next year, Solano County enters into agreement on new highway.
Late 1950s. State says improvements on the Vallejo stretch of Highway 37 are Solano County's highest priority.
1965. Vallejo's Country Club Crest residents, who would lose their homes for the new route, protest that it should go through the golf course, then by Lake Chabot. Enough money is gathered to complete a small section, including Napa River Bridge to Sacramento Street, which becomes a four-lane freeway.
1970. Chief state highway engineer calls the future of road construction in Solano County "dismal." Federal government begins withholding gas tax revenue to guard against inflation. Later, Federal Highway Administration OKs a plan for that stretch of highway nearly identical to old plan.
1971. Vallejo officials sign agreement for a four-lane freeway. Officials target 1977-78 for construction, at a cost of $16.5 million.
Plans halted during most of 1970s, as inflation and oil embargo hamper state's ability to raise funds. Portion of four lanes, from Sage Street to Interstate 80, is completed.
1975-83. Then-Gov. Jerry Brown's administration de-emphasizes highway construction efforts.
1977. Heavy rains cause a Napa River levee to break, flooding 468 acres of developable land, an area now called White Slough. Once flooded, the area became protected tidal wetlands that Caltrans could not fill to widen the freeway in that area.
1980. California Transportation Commission kills the project. Caltrans is left with 50 parcels of land, under six feet of water from floods.
1982. Freeway resurrected, as state officials deem it a "long lead time" project. With no money to fund it, Caltrans studies it once again, and as it did decades before designating it as Solano's top priority project.
1983. Officials from more than 50 state, local and federal agencies meet to discuss White Slough area environmental and flooding impacts.
1985/86. Project is broken into two phases: Phase 1, costing $7.5 million, and Phase 2, $19 million. The next year, new estimates push Phase 1 to $8.9 million while Phase 2 rockets to $39 million.
Bay Conservation and Development Commission, a powerful environmental group, unveils a more expensive $73 million viaduct proposal. The alternative would have less impact on the wetlands, but provide no flood protection. The environmentally sensitive area includes endangered species such as the salt marsh harvest mouse and clapper rail bird. Plan is deemed unfundable.
1987. Funding improves, Caltrans anticipates bidding the first project out by 1989, and construction beginning. Phase Two expected to begin in 1990-91.
1989. Twelve years after the floods, deadly Loma Prieta earthquake forces diversion of major transportation funding toward seismic retrofitting of bridges and highway overpasses.
1990. Assembly Majority Leader Tom Hannigan, D-Fairfield, proposes widening Vallejo stretch of roadway to four lanes. Enacted plan avoids White Slough issue by offering 52 acres of wetlands mitigation in exchange for filling 13 acres of White Slough.
- With the relocation of Marine World Africa USA to Vallejo, the Highway 37 project is split in half. Vallejo officials get the section from Sage Street to Highway 29 converted to four lanes, along with an overpass at Fairgrounds Drive in 1992.
1995-99. Vallejo officials pass White Slough Specific Area Plan, but by then heavy debate begins on another section of Highway 37, referred to as "Blood Alley." The stretch, from the Napa River Bridge to Sears Point Raceway, shifts focus from the Vallejo section.
However, city officials see widening as a solution to traffic problems, access issues for Mare Island, habitat enhancement, flood control, public access and flood control measures. The 1995 project plans include an elevated roadway, a dirt-and-rock fill roadway or a combination of the two. An idea for a tunnel running under Vallejo is rejected.
An overpass at the Highway 29 and 37 intersection was added in 1997.
Funding problems again push any possible construction start date back to 1999, although Caltrans warns that could be pushed back three to four years.
Later in 1999, the City Council approves the White Slough compromise, and start date is pushed back to 2001.
2002-05. First phase of project is completed when Guadalcanal Village is converted to a working wetlands when about 9,350 cubic meters of fill brings the basin to the proper height.
Phase 2 includes a Sacramento Street overpass, a bike path along White Slough and the widening of that stretch to four lanes. All four lanes open in May 2005.
Phase 3 widens the remaining section to four lanes and includes an overpass over the 37-29 intersection.
November 2005. The $124 million project is scheduled for completion.
53 years after conception, project nears birth
By MATTHIAS GAFNI, Times-Herald staff writer
The Highway 37 project through Vallejo has overcome obstacles of almost Biblical proportions.
The route's plans had to endure an enormous earthquake, historic floods, a devastating oil embargo, and the pleas for an endangered mouse and bird. These events all transpired since transportation officials first discussed fixing the roadway - during Harry S. Truman's presidency.
The year was 1952.
Despite everything thrown in its path, that stretch of Highway 37, from Interstate 80 to the Napa River Bridge, will be completed this fall - more than 50 years, and 10 Truman successors - after officials first felt it was needed.
Major highway projects take money, political pressure, timing, luck and, well É money. This 3.8-mile stretch of roadway has had some of each over the half century, but not until recently did all those factors line up.
Vallejo Mayor Tony Intintoli Jr. dealt with the project along the way during his lengthy political career.
"The first conversation I participated in with respect to that roadway was some 20-plus years ago," Intintoli said.
"I'm just delighted to have it done. I'm just glad it's (nearly) completed," the mayor said.
Former Mayor Terry Curtola began his work on the project in the 1970s.
"I've been to six or eight groundbreakings since the early '70s," Curtola laughed. "It never seemed to get completed. But now it finally looks like it will.
"There was always some sort of delays, predominantly environmental," Curtola added.
There was never any question that the old highway, which runs through a major commercial section of the city, needed to be re-done. It has created decades of traffic headaches with its three stop lights.
"It'll cut so much time there," said Steve Cobb, Caltrans spokesman. "I think more people will start using the facility once they start realizing the time saved."
The overpass also will eliminate the busy and dangerous intersection of Highways 37 and 29.
The section became more and more outdated with recent growth, Cobb said.
"Solano County is growing and South Napa County is growing. American Canyon is now a city," Cobb said.
Long before the recent growth, lawmakers called for the stretch of roadway to be changed to a four-lane freeway.
During the 1950s and '60s, officials struggled to find a funding source for the highway expansion. But the project remained the county's top priority.
However, in the '70s, bad luck struck. The country suffered through an oil embargo and began withholding gas tax revenue to guard against inflation. Later that decade, Gov. Jerry Brown de-emphasized highway transportation and cut funding.
Mother Nature tried to kill the project in 1980, three years after a levee break flooded the White Slough area. The floods created protected wetlands and nearly insurmountable environmental concerns, including the protection of the salt marsh harvest mouse and clapper rail bird.
Then, the 1989 Loma Prieta earthquake took most transportation funds and diverted them toward seismic retrofits of bridges and overpasses.
By the 1990s, officials found an environmental solution, and the project was OKed.
Now, with the final phase nearing completion, drivers will travel a route along an entirely different path, most of it raised over Vallejo. The main undertaking has been an overpass, eliminating the dangerous Highway 37 and 29 intersection.
"It'll affect Vallejoans. So many of us use that corridor. It will speed up traffic a lot and reduce the opportunities for road rage," Mayor Intintoli laughed. "It's pretty maddening going through there and it has been for a number of years."
Curtola foresees a rebirth for businesses along the freeway.
"The worst part in taking so long was letting a lot of that area decay," he said.
Former mayor Curtola can't believe the $124 million project will be completed by Thanksgiving.
"I'm going to be really tickled. It's going to be a tremendous asset for the city," Curtola said. "It was a long time coming, but perseverance pays off."
- E-mail Matthias Gafni at mgafni@thnewsnet.com or call 553-6825.
Red tape, disasters span 53 years
1952. State transportation officials study what then was known as Sears Point Road Freeway; lawmakers discuss turning Highway 37 into a toll road to fund it.
1955. Toll road idea scrapped when California Highway Commission agrees to make Highway 37 a four-lane freeway. The next year, Solano County enters into agreement on new highway.
Late 1950s. State says improvements on the Vallejo stretch of Highway 37 are Solano County's highest priority.
1965. Vallejo's Country Club Crest residents, who would lose their homes for the new route, protest that it should go through the golf course, then by Lake Chabot. Enough money is gathered to complete a small section, including Napa River Bridge to Sacramento Street, which becomes a four-lane freeway.
1970. Chief state highway engineer calls the future of road construction in Solano County "dismal." Federal government begins withholding gas tax revenue to guard against inflation. Later, Federal Highway Administration OKs a plan for that stretch of highway nearly identical to old plan.
1971. Vallejo officials sign agreement for a four-lane freeway. Officials target 1977-78 for construction, at a cost of $16.5 million.
Plans halted during most of 1970s, as inflation and oil embargo hamper state's ability to raise funds. Portion of four lanes, from Sage Street to Interstate 80, is completed.
1975-83. Then-Gov. Jerry Brown's administration de-emphasizes highway construction efforts.
1977. Heavy rains cause a Napa River levee to break, flooding 468 acres of developable land, an area now called White Slough. Once flooded, the area became protected tidal wetlands that Caltrans could not fill to widen the freeway in that area.
1980. California Transportation Commission kills the project. Caltrans is left with 50 parcels of land, under six feet of water from floods.
1982. Freeway resurrected, as state officials deem it a "long lead time" project. With no money to fund it, Caltrans studies it once again, and as it did decades before designating it as Solano's top priority project.
1983. Officials from more than 50 state, local and federal agencies meet to discuss White Slough area environmental and flooding impacts.
1985/86. Project is broken into two phases: Phase 1, costing $7.5 million, and Phase 2, $19 million. The next year, new estimates push Phase 1 to $8.9 million while Phase 2 rockets to $39 million.
Bay Conservation and Development Commission, a powerful environmental group, unveils a more expensive $73 million viaduct proposal. The alternative would have less impact on the wetlands, but provide no flood protection. The environmentally sensitive area includes endangered species such as the salt marsh harvest mouse and clapper rail bird. Plan is deemed unfundable.
1987. Funding improves, Caltrans anticipates bidding the first project out by 1989, and construction beginning. Phase Two expected to begin in 1990-91.
1989. Twelve years after the floods, deadly Loma Prieta earthquake forces diversion of major transportation funding toward seismic retrofitting of bridges and highway overpasses.
1990. Assembly Majority Leader Tom Hannigan, D-Fairfield, proposes widening Vallejo stretch of roadway to four lanes. Enacted plan avoids White Slough issue by offering 52 acres of wetlands mitigation in exchange for filling 13 acres of White Slough.
- With the relocation of Marine World Africa USA to Vallejo, the Highway 37 project is split in half. Vallejo officials get the section from Sage Street to Highway 29 converted to four lanes, along with an overpass at Fairgrounds Drive in 1992.
1995-99. Vallejo officials pass White Slough Specific Area Plan, but by then heavy debate begins on another section of Highway 37, referred to as "Blood Alley." The stretch, from the Napa River Bridge to Sears Point Raceway, shifts focus from the Vallejo section.
However, city officials see widening as a solution to traffic problems, access issues for Mare Island, habitat enhancement, flood control, public access and flood control measures. The 1995 project plans include an elevated roadway, a dirt-and-rock fill roadway or a combination of the two. An idea for a tunnel running under Vallejo is rejected.
An overpass at the Highway 29 and 37 intersection was added in 1997.
Funding problems again push any possible construction start date back to 1999, although Caltrans warns that could be pushed back three to four years.
Later in 1999, the City Council approves the White Slough compromise, and start date is pushed back to 2001.
2002-05. First phase of project is completed when Guadalcanal Village is converted to a working wetlands when about 9,350 cubic meters of fill brings the basin to the proper height.
Phase 2 includes a Sacramento Street overpass, a bike path along White Slough and the widening of that stretch to four lanes. All four lanes open in May 2005.
Phase 3 widens the remaining section to four lanes and includes an overpass over the 37-29 intersection.
November 2005. The $124 million project is scheduled for completion.
Solano County welfare new computer system called CalWIN "goes live" Tuesday
County welfare computer system gets an overhaul
By Sarah Arnquist
FAIRFIELD - A new leader took over Solano County's welfare department just before the division embarks on the largest computer system conversion in the county's history.
Christiana Smith, the new employment and eligibility services director, said her experience as a welfare manager in Yolo County, where the new computer system was implemented in May, will benefit her as she guides Solano County through this major transition.
The new interactive computer system called CalWIN "goes live" Tuesday. County staff shut the former 30-year-old system down last week to prepare for the massive data conversion. Workers have to convert data from the existing 30,000 assistance cases that include MediCal, food stamps, CalWORKs and foster care cases, among others, into the new system.
Meanwhile, they continue handling new cases with paper applications. Staff are tired, but excited for Tuesday, Smith said.
CalWIN is the largest data transition in California's history, costing nearly $780 million. A consortium of 18 counties will adopt the new automated system this year. Smith knows the ins and outs of the CalWIN system because she helped develop it from its infancy five years ago as a consultant.
"It's exciting to see it become real after many years of work, preparation and effort," Smith said.
In the long run, the automated system should streamline the welfare application process and increase efficiency and accurateness, Smith said. She emphasized "in the long run," though, because managers and staff expect a steep learning curve and conversion complications to hold them up in the program's early days.
"When you're doing a transition this large there certainly will be some snags," Smith said.
Yolo County's snags are fresh in Smith's mind. Using that experience, Smith hopes to effectively guide Solano County through similar challenges.
People need to be patient, though, she said. "This is really a tough challenge."
Reach Sarah Arnquist at 427-6953 or sarnquist@dailyrepublic.net.
By Sarah Arnquist
FAIRFIELD - A new leader took over Solano County's welfare department just before the division embarks on the largest computer system conversion in the county's history.
Christiana Smith, the new employment and eligibility services director, said her experience as a welfare manager in Yolo County, where the new computer system was implemented in May, will benefit her as she guides Solano County through this major transition.
The new interactive computer system called CalWIN "goes live" Tuesday. County staff shut the former 30-year-old system down last week to prepare for the massive data conversion. Workers have to convert data from the existing 30,000 assistance cases that include MediCal, food stamps, CalWORKs and foster care cases, among others, into the new system.
Meanwhile, they continue handling new cases with paper applications. Staff are tired, but excited for Tuesday, Smith said.
CalWIN is the largest data transition in California's history, costing nearly $780 million. A consortium of 18 counties will adopt the new automated system this year. Smith knows the ins and outs of the CalWIN system because she helped develop it from its infancy five years ago as a consultant.
"It's exciting to see it become real after many years of work, preparation and effort," Smith said.
In the long run, the automated system should streamline the welfare application process and increase efficiency and accurateness, Smith said. She emphasized "in the long run," though, because managers and staff expect a steep learning curve and conversion complications to hold them up in the program's early days.
"When you're doing a transition this large there certainly will be some snags," Smith said.
Yolo County's snags are fresh in Smith's mind. Using that experience, Smith hopes to effectively guide Solano County through similar challenges.
People need to be patient, though, she said. "This is really a tough challenge."
Reach Sarah Arnquist at 427-6953 or sarnquist@dailyrepublic.net.
Vacaville Budget Benefit Residents
Budget should benefit residents
By Tom Hall/Staff Writer
With the approval by Vacacville leaders of a $110 million 2005-06 operating budget earlier this week, what does that mean for the city's residents?
All city departments will see spending increases for the fiscal year, which began Friday and ends June 30, 2006. The housing and redevelopment department, which is responsible neighborhood revitalization and the operation of Section 8 subsidy programs, will see the biggest financial jump.
Housing and redevelopment has a budget of $38.9 million this year. Cyndi Johnston, the department's acting director, said a good portion of the 24.8 percent increase is going toward three new full-time employees.
Johnston said the employees will be focused on increasing the pool of affordable housing in the city - something city leaders have targeted for several years as a goal.
"What it does, is it gives us the ability to really focus on improving the amount of affordable housing in Vacaville," Johnston said.
She said most of the focus will be on acquiring and renovating existing properties in Vacaville, and thus providing spaces for qualifying lower-income residents.
Johnston said recruiting for the new positions in going on right now, and they hope to add the staff - two project coordinators and an administrative clerk - in the next several months, as well as filling an existing project coordinator vacancy.
The city's public works department also will see a major spending increase of more than $5 million, or 13.6 percent over last year. Public works includes divisions focused on traffic engineering, maintenance, engineering services and utilities.
Despite the increase in the budget, maintenance staffing reductions made in the last several years will not mean a restoration of those positions this fiscal year. But the utilities divison will get four new employees to help address increasing workload, and that will contribute to the $230,000 increase in salaries and benefits department-wide.
The city attorney's office will also see a 13.6 percent budget increase over 2004-05. Most of it is the result of an $85,000 increase in salaries and benefits.
City financial manager Ken Campo said that a lot of the increases in salary costs are due to retirement costs and rising health-care premiums. He said the retirement cost increases are expected to flatten out soon, and health-care reform could help flatten the growth of costs in the next few years.
Campo said a big reason the city is in solid financial shape - there no are new taxes for Vacaville residents, he emphasizes - is that civic leaders have kept staffing costs down over the past decade.
Campo said that since 1992, Vacaville household population increased 24 percent. Meanwhile city staffing has increased 16 percent.
Looking even closer, Campo said, you can see that public safety has accounted for much of the city staffing growth. The number of public safety employees has increased 30 percent since 1992, while other the number of other city employees has increased only 7 percent.
Not everything hoped for in this year's budget was granted, however. Three firefighter positions and two maintenance worker positions that were not funded during budget cuts the last couple of years were not funded in this budget.
Campo said, however, that the firefighter positions are planned to be back in the 2006-07 budget.
Nonetheless, the fire department's budget was increased 6.7 percent for this fiscal year. The police department's budget rose 11.4 percent, and includes two previously vacant patrol officer positions and money for three officer positions previously funded by grants which are expiring.
Tom Hall can be reached at vacaville@thereporter.com.
By Tom Hall/Staff Writer
With the approval by Vacacville leaders of a $110 million 2005-06 operating budget earlier this week, what does that mean for the city's residents?
All city departments will see spending increases for the fiscal year, which began Friday and ends June 30, 2006. The housing and redevelopment department, which is responsible neighborhood revitalization and the operation of Section 8 subsidy programs, will see the biggest financial jump.
Housing and redevelopment has a budget of $38.9 million this year. Cyndi Johnston, the department's acting director, said a good portion of the 24.8 percent increase is going toward three new full-time employees.
Johnston said the employees will be focused on increasing the pool of affordable housing in the city - something city leaders have targeted for several years as a goal.
"What it does, is it gives us the ability to really focus on improving the amount of affordable housing in Vacaville," Johnston said.
She said most of the focus will be on acquiring and renovating existing properties in Vacaville, and thus providing spaces for qualifying lower-income residents.
Johnston said recruiting for the new positions in going on right now, and they hope to add the staff - two project coordinators and an administrative clerk - in the next several months, as well as filling an existing project coordinator vacancy.
The city's public works department also will see a major spending increase of more than $5 million, or 13.6 percent over last year. Public works includes divisions focused on traffic engineering, maintenance, engineering services and utilities.
Despite the increase in the budget, maintenance staffing reductions made in the last several years will not mean a restoration of those positions this fiscal year. But the utilities divison will get four new employees to help address increasing workload, and that will contribute to the $230,000 increase in salaries and benefits department-wide.
The city attorney's office will also see a 13.6 percent budget increase over 2004-05. Most of it is the result of an $85,000 increase in salaries and benefits.
City financial manager Ken Campo said that a lot of the increases in salary costs are due to retirement costs and rising health-care premiums. He said the retirement cost increases are expected to flatten out soon, and health-care reform could help flatten the growth of costs in the next few years.
Campo said a big reason the city is in solid financial shape - there no are new taxes for Vacaville residents, he emphasizes - is that civic leaders have kept staffing costs down over the past decade.
Campo said that since 1992, Vacaville household population increased 24 percent. Meanwhile city staffing has increased 16 percent.
Looking even closer, Campo said, you can see that public safety has accounted for much of the city staffing growth. The number of public safety employees has increased 30 percent since 1992, while other the number of other city employees has increased only 7 percent.
Not everything hoped for in this year's budget was granted, however. Three firefighter positions and two maintenance worker positions that were not funded during budget cuts the last couple of years were not funded in this budget.
Campo said, however, that the firefighter positions are planned to be back in the 2006-07 budget.
Nonetheless, the fire department's budget was increased 6.7 percent for this fiscal year. The police department's budget rose 11.4 percent, and includes two previously vacant patrol officer positions and money for three officer positions previously funded by grants which are expiring.
Tom Hall can be reached at vacaville@thereporter.com.
New national cemetery slated for Dixon; some say too far from Bay Area
Associated Press
DIXON, Calif. - Kyle Crowley's family brought him as close to home as possible.
His body now rests on a wind-swept slope surrounded by other fallen soldiers in San Bruno's Golden Gate National Cemetery.
His family buried him in April 2004, after the 18-year-old Marine from San Ramon was killed in a firefight in Iraq.
'We wanted him to be buried ... as close to home as we could get,' said his father, Mark Crowley, 47. 'I believe that being there would be very important to him.'
Crowley's search to find a veteran's cemetery close to home is one echoed by many other mourning fathers and mothers across the country.
The federal government currently is undertaking the largest expansion of the national cemetery system since President Lincoln created it during the Civil War. The expansion includes a new 541-acre cemetery near Dixon in Solano County, set to open next summer to provide long-needed grave sites for Bay Area veterans and their families.
Of America's 120 national cemeteries, nearly a third lack space for new grave sites.
The Bay Area's two national cemeteries, in San Bruno and San Francisco, have been virtually closed to interments for several decades. Among the few exceptions have been burials of those killed in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The new national cemetery near Dixon, on the former farm of a World War II veteran with space for about 185,000 interments, will help make more room for Bay Area veterans.
DIXON, Calif. - Kyle Crowley's family brought him as close to home as possible.
His body now rests on a wind-swept slope surrounded by other fallen soldiers in San Bruno's Golden Gate National Cemetery.
His family buried him in April 2004, after the 18-year-old Marine from San Ramon was killed in a firefight in Iraq.
'We wanted him to be buried ... as close to home as we could get,' said his father, Mark Crowley, 47. 'I believe that being there would be very important to him.'
Crowley's search to find a veteran's cemetery close to home is one echoed by many other mourning fathers and mothers across the country.
The federal government currently is undertaking the largest expansion of the national cemetery system since President Lincoln created it during the Civil War. The expansion includes a new 541-acre cemetery near Dixon in Solano County, set to open next summer to provide long-needed grave sites for Bay Area veterans and their families.
Of America's 120 national cemeteries, nearly a third lack space for new grave sites.
The Bay Area's two national cemeteries, in San Bruno and San Francisco, have been virtually closed to interments for several decades. Among the few exceptions have been burials of those killed in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The new national cemetery near Dixon, on the former farm of a World War II veteran with space for about 185,000 interments, will help make more room for Bay Area veterans.
Friday, July 01, 2005
Solano Housing Coalition Affordable Housing Awards presented
FAIRFIELD - The Solano Housing Coalition recently presented awards to members of the community who have worked to promote affordable housing in the region.
The awards went to David Burgess, a retired minister who has led the fight for affordable housing in Benicia; Lark Farrell, a city of Fairfield employee who was instrumental in the development of affordable housing units at Providence Walk and Peach Tree Estates; Dennis McCray, a nonprofit specialist who has been involved in the development of affordable housing for more than 30 years; and Steve Hanley, who owns Hanley Construction Co. and takes on projects for low-income homebuyers.
"Business Matters" is a regular column that runs Tuesdays and Fridays. If you know of a newsworthy business item or event, call the Business desk at 427-6934 or e-mail ccube@dailyrepublic.net
The awards went to David Burgess, a retired minister who has led the fight for affordable housing in Benicia; Lark Farrell, a city of Fairfield employee who was instrumental in the development of affordable housing units at Providence Walk and Peach Tree Estates; Dennis McCray, a nonprofit specialist who has been involved in the development of affordable housing for more than 30 years; and Steve Hanley, who owns Hanley Construction Co. and takes on projects for low-income homebuyers.
"Business Matters" is a regular column that runs Tuesdays and Fridays. If you know of a newsworthy business item or event, call the Business desk at 427-6934 or e-mail ccube@dailyrepublic.net
Solano County crime rate continues steady drop
FAIRFIELD - State Department of Justice officials delivered largely good news Thursday about crime across California and more specifically, Solano County.
The positive news is that violent crimes such as homicide, aggravated assault and rape declined across the state by 5.2 percent in 2004 over the previous year.
The bad news - and the area where a lot of police leaders are now turning their attention - involves property crime such as burglary and car theft. Statewide, these kinds of crimes edged up in 2004 over 2003 by 0.9 percent.
The data was contained in the state DOJ's annual report titled "Crime in California, 2004 Advance Release."
"This report tells a good law enforcement story," California Attorney General Bill Lockyer said in a press statement. "Despite budget deficits and limited resources, our communities and families are safer from violent crime."
Across Solano County, the statistical crime picture is even brighter.
Overall violent crimes in the county (homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault) show a 9.9 percent reduction in 2004 over 2003. These numbers were led by a 19.3 percent reduction in forcible rapes.
The numbers of property crimes in the county are rolling back, too, the DOJ statistics showed.
In 2004 fewer Solano County residents had their cars stolen. Car thefts dropped by 20.2 percent over the previous year.
DOJ numbers also showed there were fewer petty thefts in the county last year with overall larceny declining by 22 percent, with thefts valued at $400 or less dropping by 24.1 percent.
Finally, the number of arson crimes in the county declined by 35.9 percent in 2004 over the previous year.
Reach Jeff Mitchell at 427-6977 or jmitchell@dailyrepublic.net.
Solano County crime at a glance
County population 2003: 416,500
County population 2004: 419,548
Overall violent crimes in 2003: 2,226
Overall violent crimes in 2004: 2,005
9.9 percent reduction
Overall property crimes in 2003: 7,713
Overall property crimes in 2004: 6,830
11.4 percent reduction
Source: California Department of Justice
The positive news is that violent crimes such as homicide, aggravated assault and rape declined across the state by 5.2 percent in 2004 over the previous year.
The bad news - and the area where a lot of police leaders are now turning their attention - involves property crime such as burglary and car theft. Statewide, these kinds of crimes edged up in 2004 over 2003 by 0.9 percent.
The data was contained in the state DOJ's annual report titled "Crime in California, 2004 Advance Release."
"This report tells a good law enforcement story," California Attorney General Bill Lockyer said in a press statement. "Despite budget deficits and limited resources, our communities and families are safer from violent crime."
Across Solano County, the statistical crime picture is even brighter.
Overall violent crimes in the county (homicide, rape, robbery, aggravated assault) show a 9.9 percent reduction in 2004 over 2003. These numbers were led by a 19.3 percent reduction in forcible rapes.
The numbers of property crimes in the county are rolling back, too, the DOJ statistics showed.
In 2004 fewer Solano County residents had their cars stolen. Car thefts dropped by 20.2 percent over the previous year.
DOJ numbers also showed there were fewer petty thefts in the county last year with overall larceny declining by 22 percent, with thefts valued at $400 or less dropping by 24.1 percent.
Finally, the number of arson crimes in the county declined by 35.9 percent in 2004 over the previous year.
Reach Jeff Mitchell at 427-6977 or jmitchell@dailyrepublic.net.
Solano County crime at a glance
County population 2003: 416,500
County population 2004: 419,548
Overall violent crimes in 2003: 2,226
Overall violent crimes in 2004: 2,005
9.9 percent reduction
Overall property crimes in 2003: 7,713
Overall property crimes in 2004: 6,830
11.4 percent reduction
Source: California Department of Justice
Thursday, June 30, 2005
A look at Solano's economic future
By Matthew Bunk
FAIRFIELD - California's housing market will begin to deflate by 2007, fewer Fairfield workers will commute to work in the year 2030, and tourism will be a major economic engine for Solano County if the popularity of wine continues to grow.
Those were findings of a study released Wednesday by The Business Forecasting Center at the University of the Pacific. The 100-page report contains short-term and 25-year projections for the state and 11 metro areas, including Fairfield-Vallejo.
"Any time you make long-run comparisons you really have to rely a lot more on trend analysis, while the quarterly forecasts can incorporate things like business cycles, monetary policy and fiscal policy," said Sean Snaith, director of Pacific's Business Forecasting Center and author of the report. "The further out you look, the more difficult it is to be specific and, quite frankly, accurate."
Researchers tried to get a grasp on California's wily real estate market, a task that's kept many economists and analysts busy for the past couple of years as the price of homes rose to record levels.
Similar studies have predicted home prices would continue to rise at a record pace and others have warned of a bursting bubble. But Snaith's study took a moderate tone, likening the housing market to a delicately baked pastry.
"The current housing market is like a soufflé because it is the end result of just the right ingredients put together at just the right time in just the right environment that has allowed for prices to make this historic climb," the study states. ". . . Once any of the ingredients are taken out of the mix, the soufflé will begin to deflate."
It's unlikely, Snaith said, home prices will continue to rise 30 percent every year, and it's just as unlikely the market will crash. Instead, there might be a slowdown as mortgage rates rise, and that could happen by 2007.
"But to go from 30 percent per anum appreciation to 2 percent doesn't seem to me like a bubble bursting," he said.
The wider economic picture shows steady expansion for the next 25 years, with Fairfield-Vallejo expected to progress faster than the state in many economic categories. In particular, personal income growth in the region is expected to outpace the state average.
The employment outlook for Fairfield-Vallejo is strong as well. After marginal growth for the past couple of years, total employment is expected to increase an average of 2.4 percent for the next three years, with the construction industry leading the way.
"I think employment growth is rising at a nice clip," Snaith said. "The Fairfield-Vallejo metro area is above the state average and certainly above national average growth. It's one of the stronger metro areas we covered in the study."
That's because the state will experience a shift in growth centers from the coastal areas to farther inland as the traditionally popular cities reach buildout, Snaith said.
The Business Forecasting Center at Stockton's University of the Pacific was founded in 2004.
Reach Matthew Bunk at 425-4646 Ext. 267 or mbunk@dailyrepublic.net.
FAIRFIELD - California's housing market will begin to deflate by 2007, fewer Fairfield workers will commute to work in the year 2030, and tourism will be a major economic engine for Solano County if the popularity of wine continues to grow.
Those were findings of a study released Wednesday by The Business Forecasting Center at the University of the Pacific. The 100-page report contains short-term and 25-year projections for the state and 11 metro areas, including Fairfield-Vallejo.
"Any time you make long-run comparisons you really have to rely a lot more on trend analysis, while the quarterly forecasts can incorporate things like business cycles, monetary policy and fiscal policy," said Sean Snaith, director of Pacific's Business Forecasting Center and author of the report. "The further out you look, the more difficult it is to be specific and, quite frankly, accurate."
Researchers tried to get a grasp on California's wily real estate market, a task that's kept many economists and analysts busy for the past couple of years as the price of homes rose to record levels.
Similar studies have predicted home prices would continue to rise at a record pace and others have warned of a bursting bubble. But Snaith's study took a moderate tone, likening the housing market to a delicately baked pastry.
"The current housing market is like a soufflé because it is the end result of just the right ingredients put together at just the right time in just the right environment that has allowed for prices to make this historic climb," the study states. ". . . Once any of the ingredients are taken out of the mix, the soufflé will begin to deflate."
It's unlikely, Snaith said, home prices will continue to rise 30 percent every year, and it's just as unlikely the market will crash. Instead, there might be a slowdown as mortgage rates rise, and that could happen by 2007.
"But to go from 30 percent per anum appreciation to 2 percent doesn't seem to me like a bubble bursting," he said.
The wider economic picture shows steady expansion for the next 25 years, with Fairfield-Vallejo expected to progress faster than the state in many economic categories. In particular, personal income growth in the region is expected to outpace the state average.
The employment outlook for Fairfield-Vallejo is strong as well. After marginal growth for the past couple of years, total employment is expected to increase an average of 2.4 percent for the next three years, with the construction industry leading the way.
"I think employment growth is rising at a nice clip," Snaith said. "The Fairfield-Vallejo metro area is above the state average and certainly above national average growth. It's one of the stronger metro areas we covered in the study."
That's because the state will experience a shift in growth centers from the coastal areas to farther inland as the traditionally popular cities reach buildout, Snaith said.
The Business Forecasting Center at Stockton's University of the Pacific was founded in 2004.
Reach Matthew Bunk at 425-4646 Ext. 267 or mbunk@dailyrepublic.net.
Vacaville among top 100 spots to live, Relocate-America survey concludes
Good news for Vacaville!
Sacramento Business Journal - April 5, 2005
Link Here
Roseville and Vacaville are among America's top 100 places to live, according to Relocate-America, a Howell, Mich., company that describes itself as "a Web site assisting consumers in finding communities that best fit their family's needs."
The only other California locales on the 2005 list are Eureka and the Riverside County duo of Murrieta and Temecula.
The company said that in compiling the list -- one of several such rankings created each year by various outfits -- it employs the following criteria: great people and neighbors; serenity, peace and quiet; beauty of area; great schools; safety for children; low crime rates; activities, such as museums, theaters and sports; and economic health, with employment opportunities and affordable housing.
That collection of criteria produced disparate results indeed, as the California results suggest. In Nevada, where 11 locales were named, it's more pronounced. The 11 are all over the map not just in geography but in size, rate of growth and the pace of life: Reno, Sparks, Gardnerville, Elko, Mesquite, Las Vegas, Henderson, Boulder City, Mount Charleston, Pahrump and Summerlin.
Even more jolting are the only two Oregon cities on the list, wealthy Astoria atop a hill at the mouth of the Columbia and blue-collar Klamath Falls in the south-central part of the state.
Relocate-America ranked only its top 10 and listed the other 90 alphabetically
Spencer, a small town in northwestern Iowa, came in at No. 1.
Long Beach, N.Y., was second. Yuma, Ariz., claimed the third spot. Edmond and Bartlesville, Okla., were No. 4 and No. 5, respectively. Venica, Fla., was sixth. Bonita Springs, Fla., grabbed the No. 7 slot. Montgomery, Ala., weighed in at No. 8. Asheville, N.C., snagged No. 9 honors. Jasper, Ind., was No. 10.
Sacramento Business Journal - April 5, 2005
Link Here
Roseville and Vacaville are among America's top 100 places to live, according to Relocate-America, a Howell, Mich., company that describes itself as "a Web site assisting consumers in finding communities that best fit their family's needs."
The only other California locales on the 2005 list are Eureka and the Riverside County duo of Murrieta and Temecula.
The company said that in compiling the list -- one of several such rankings created each year by various outfits -- it employs the following criteria: great people and neighbors; serenity, peace and quiet; beauty of area; great schools; safety for children; low crime rates; activities, such as museums, theaters and sports; and economic health, with employment opportunities and affordable housing.
That collection of criteria produced disparate results indeed, as the California results suggest. In Nevada, where 11 locales were named, it's more pronounced. The 11 are all over the map not just in geography but in size, rate of growth and the pace of life: Reno, Sparks, Gardnerville, Elko, Mesquite, Las Vegas, Henderson, Boulder City, Mount Charleston, Pahrump and Summerlin.
Even more jolting are the only two Oregon cities on the list, wealthy Astoria atop a hill at the mouth of the Columbia and blue-collar Klamath Falls in the south-central part of the state.
Relocate-America ranked only its top 10 and listed the other 90 alphabetically
Spencer, a small town in northwestern Iowa, came in at No. 1.
Long Beach, N.Y., was second. Yuma, Ariz., claimed the third spot. Edmond and Bartlesville, Okla., were No. 4 and No. 5, respectively. Venica, Fla., was sixth. Bonita Springs, Fla., grabbed the No. 7 slot. Montgomery, Ala., weighed in at No. 8. Asheville, N.C., snagged No. 9 honors. Jasper, Ind., was No. 10.
Bakery brings European touch to Vacaville
VACAVILLE - Pure Grain Bakery opened a second location Jan. 4 and hopes to bring a European flare to downtown Vacaville.
The bakery/cafe is the first business to open in the city's nearly finished Town Square development.
Co-owner Michael Meithe said downtown needed a nice cafe and called the new location a dream come true as he sat under the sun at an outside table drinking a cappuccino from the cafe's full service coffee bar.
"It reminds us very much of Europe with the outside dining and town squares," Meithe said of the location.
Miethe and his business partner Holger Seibert began filling a niche for German baked goods in Vacaville 15 years ago. Running a bakery began as a childhood dream growing up in Germany. They both completed apprenticeships at Seibert's father's baker and earned master's degrees in business.
Miethe visited California in 1989 and identified Vacaville as an ideal location to open a German-style bakery because of the many Europeans Travis Airforce Base has brought here. By 1991, Miethe and Seibert opened their first bakery on Eubanks Street.
The bakery specializes in German-inspired products such as Black Forest Cake and European breads. The all-natural breads and rolls are the most popular items, Miethe said.
"Everyone who visits Europe they will definitely say, yeah that bread is the way it's made in Europe," he said.
Pure Grain will operate from both locations - baking and distributing from the Eubanks location.
Until now, Pure Grain has mainly concentrated on its wholesale clientele. They supply baked goods for the University of California, Davis campus, and German restaurants around the Bay Area. Their breads can also be found in the Natural Food grocery stores in San Francisco, Davis and Sacramento.
Meithe said he feels lucky to have found Vacaville. For 15 years, customers have welcomed and supported the bakery, and the Town Square concept is very exciting, he said.
"It's totally a European flair."
Reach Sarah Arnquist at 427-6953 or sarnquist@dailyrepublic.net.
Pure Grain Bakery
Owners: Michael Miethe and Holger Seibert
Date opened: Jan. 4
Address: 11 Town Square, Vacaville
Phone: 447-4121
Web: www.puregrainbakery.com
The bakery/cafe is the first business to open in the city's nearly finished Town Square development.
Co-owner Michael Meithe said downtown needed a nice cafe and called the new location a dream come true as he sat under the sun at an outside table drinking a cappuccino from the cafe's full service coffee bar.
"It reminds us very much of Europe with the outside dining and town squares," Meithe said of the location.
Miethe and his business partner Holger Seibert began filling a niche for German baked goods in Vacaville 15 years ago. Running a bakery began as a childhood dream growing up in Germany. They both completed apprenticeships at Seibert's father's baker and earned master's degrees in business.
Miethe visited California in 1989 and identified Vacaville as an ideal location to open a German-style bakery because of the many Europeans Travis Airforce Base has brought here. By 1991, Miethe and Seibert opened their first bakery on Eubanks Street.
The bakery specializes in German-inspired products such as Black Forest Cake and European breads. The all-natural breads and rolls are the most popular items, Miethe said.
"Everyone who visits Europe they will definitely say, yeah that bread is the way it's made in Europe," he said.
Pure Grain will operate from both locations - baking and distributing from the Eubanks location.
Until now, Pure Grain has mainly concentrated on its wholesale clientele. They supply baked goods for the University of California, Davis campus, and German restaurants around the Bay Area. Their breads can also be found in the Natural Food grocery stores in San Francisco, Davis and Sacramento.
Meithe said he feels lucky to have found Vacaville. For 15 years, customers have welcomed and supported the bakery, and the Town Square concept is very exciting, he said.
"It's totally a European flair."
Reach Sarah Arnquist at 427-6953 or sarnquist@dailyrepublic.net.
Pure Grain Bakery
Owners: Michael Miethe and Holger Seibert
Date opened: Jan. 4
Address: 11 Town Square, Vacaville
Phone: 447-4121
Web: www.puregrainbakery.com
East Bay economy to continue growing
Link Here
The gross metro product of Alameda and Contra Costa counties is expected to grow by almost 15 percent in the next five years according to a new forecast from the University of the Pacific. Solano County's gross metro product is expected to grow by 17.7 percent, according to the report.
In the report released Wednesday, Center Director Sean Snaith said that the California economy, as well as the economy of the East Bay, is 'continuing to expand at a healthy pace.'
The latest state and regional forecast from the Stockton university's Business Forecasting Center anticipates employment in Solano County to grow by 13 percent by 2010, fron 127,400 jobs in 2005 to 143,900 jobs in 2010. Employment in Alameda and Contra Costa counties is expected to grow by 6.5 percent, from 1.03 million jobs to 1.10 million jobs in 2010.
The center said California's overall economic outlook is quite sunny.
'The long-run outlook for California's economy is strong and by 2030 real gross state output should exceed $3.7 trillion,' said Snaith, in a statement. 'Some of the highest-growth regions in the state will be found in California's Central Valley as economic muscle will be added to the agricultural backbone of this region.'
Shorter term, the center predicts that California's payrolls will grow at 1.6 percent annually from now through 2007; state unemployment will hold steady at 5.8 percent and, California housing starts will hold steady this year and start to fall off in 2006-2007, as mortgage rates rise. The current housing market, the center said, resembles "a soufflé -- a delicate combination of many factors, threatening to deflate with any change in environment or ingredients."
The center was founded last year. Part of the Eberhardt School of Business, it produces quarterly economic forecasts of the United States, California and 11 metropolitan areas from Sacramento to Fresno and the Bay Area.
More information from the report is available at forecast.pacific.edu.
The gross metro product of Alameda and Contra Costa counties is expected to grow by almost 15 percent in the next five years according to a new forecast from the University of the Pacific. Solano County's gross metro product is expected to grow by 17.7 percent, according to the report.
In the report released Wednesday, Center Director Sean Snaith said that the California economy, as well as the economy of the East Bay, is 'continuing to expand at a healthy pace.'
The latest state and regional forecast from the Stockton university's Business Forecasting Center anticipates employment in Solano County to grow by 13 percent by 2010, fron 127,400 jobs in 2005 to 143,900 jobs in 2010. Employment in Alameda and Contra Costa counties is expected to grow by 6.5 percent, from 1.03 million jobs to 1.10 million jobs in 2010.
The center said California's overall economic outlook is quite sunny.
'The long-run outlook for California's economy is strong and by 2030 real gross state output should exceed $3.7 trillion,' said Snaith, in a statement. 'Some of the highest-growth regions in the state will be found in California's Central Valley as economic muscle will be added to the agricultural backbone of this region.'
Shorter term, the center predicts that California's payrolls will grow at 1.6 percent annually from now through 2007; state unemployment will hold steady at 5.8 percent and, California housing starts will hold steady this year and start to fall off in 2006-2007, as mortgage rates rise. The current housing market, the center said, resembles "a soufflé -- a delicate combination of many factors, threatening to deflate with any change in environment or ingredients."
The center was founded last year. Part of the Eberhardt School of Business, it produces quarterly economic forecasts of the United States, California and 11 metropolitan areas from Sacramento to Fresno and the Bay Area.
More information from the report is available at forecast.pacific.edu.
Business - Long-term prosperity seen for Sacramento area
Link Here
The Sacramento region's economy will more than double and its population will soar to 3.5 million by 2030, predicts a new forecast being released today by the University of the Pacific's Business Forecasting Center.
Personal incomes for residents of El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento and Yolo counties will also grow above the state average of 6 percent, rising to a total $350.1 billion in 2030 from the current $70.1 billion, the Stockton-based university center predicts.
Sean M. Snaith, an economist who oversees the Business Forecasting Center in the Eberhardt School of Business, released the projections for the Sacramento economy along with his center's quarterly economic outlook for the state.
'Some of the highest growth regions in the state will be found in California's Central Valley as economic muscle will be added to the agricultural backbone of this region,' Snaith said in his report.
The state's short-and long-term economic prospects remain solid, but the red-hot housing market could cool and even deflate a little over the next few years if mortgage interest rates rise, Snaith said.
Contradicting a recent study by the University of California, Los Angeles, Snaith said that the housing market has not entered a bubble phase, adding that there will be no crash in home prices as dramatic as the Internet stock market correction.
Instead, Snaith likened the California and Sacramento housing markets to a fast-rising souffle.
The Sacramento region's economy will more than double and its population will soar to 3.5 million by 2030, predicts a new forecast being released today by the University of the Pacific's Business Forecasting Center.
Personal incomes for residents of El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento and Yolo counties will also grow above the state average of 6 percent, rising to a total $350.1 billion in 2030 from the current $70.1 billion, the Stockton-based university center predicts.
Sean M. Snaith, an economist who oversees the Business Forecasting Center in the Eberhardt School of Business, released the projections for the Sacramento economy along with his center's quarterly economic outlook for the state.
'Some of the highest growth regions in the state will be found in California's Central Valley as economic muscle will be added to the agricultural backbone of this region,' Snaith said in his report.
The state's short-and long-term economic prospects remain solid, but the red-hot housing market could cool and even deflate a little over the next few years if mortgage interest rates rise, Snaith said.
Contradicting a recent study by the University of California, Los Angeles, Snaith said that the housing market has not entered a bubble phase, adding that there will be no crash in home prices as dramatic as the Internet stock market correction.
Instead, Snaith likened the California and Sacramento housing markets to a fast-rising souffle.
UOP forecasts $199B Sac metro economy in 2030
Link Here
The economy of the Sacramento metro should more than double by 2030, predicts a new forecast from the University of the Pacific, accompanied by big gains in population, employment and especially personal income.
The latest state and regional forecast from the Stockton university's Business Forecasting Center anticipates a gross Sacramento metro product of $199.6 billion in 2030, more than twice the $83.9 billion of 2005. Other predictions:
- population will increase from 2.07 million now to 3.49 million in 25 years
- total personal income will quintuple, from $70.1 billion now to $186.3 billion in 2020 and $350.1 billion in 2030
- total establishment employment' will rise from 875,000 now to 1.46 million, with an unemployment rate of 4.3 percent in 2030.
Greater Sacramento should grow faster than the state, the center said, although California's overall economic outlook is still quite sunny.
'The long-run outlook for California's economy is strong and by 2030 real gross state output should exceed $3.7 trillion,' said Sean M. Snaith, director of the center, in a statement released Wednesday. 'Some of the highest-growth regions in the state will be found in California's Central Valley as economic muscle will be added to the agricultural backbone of this region.'
Shorter term, the center predicts that:
- California's payrolls will grow at 1.6 percent annually from now through 2007
- state unemployment will hold steady at 5.8 percent
- California housing starts will hold steady this year and start to fall off in 2006-07, as mortgage rates rise. The current housing market, the center said, resembles "a soufflé -- a delicate combination of many factors, threatening to deflate with any change in environment or ingredients."
The center was founded last year. Part of the Eberhardt School of Business, it produces quarterly economic forecasts of the United States, California and 11 metropolitan areas from Sacramento to Fresno and the San Francisco Bay Area.
More information from the report is available at forecast.pacific.edu.
The economy of the Sacramento metro should more than double by 2030, predicts a new forecast from the University of the Pacific, accompanied by big gains in population, employment and especially personal income.
The latest state and regional forecast from the Stockton university's Business Forecasting Center anticipates a gross Sacramento metro product of $199.6 billion in 2030, more than twice the $83.9 billion of 2005. Other predictions:
- population will increase from 2.07 million now to 3.49 million in 25 years
- total personal income will quintuple, from $70.1 billion now to $186.3 billion in 2020 and $350.1 billion in 2030
- total establishment employment' will rise from 875,000 now to 1.46 million, with an unemployment rate of 4.3 percent in 2030.
Greater Sacramento should grow faster than the state, the center said, although California's overall economic outlook is still quite sunny.
'The long-run outlook for California's economy is strong and by 2030 real gross state output should exceed $3.7 trillion,' said Sean M. Snaith, director of the center, in a statement released Wednesday. 'Some of the highest-growth regions in the state will be found in California's Central Valley as economic muscle will be added to the agricultural backbone of this region.'
Shorter term, the center predicts that:
- California's payrolls will grow at 1.6 percent annually from now through 2007
- state unemployment will hold steady at 5.8 percent
- California housing starts will hold steady this year and start to fall off in 2006-07, as mortgage rates rise. The current housing market, the center said, resembles "a soufflé -- a delicate combination of many factors, threatening to deflate with any change in environment or ingredients."
The center was founded last year. Part of the Eberhardt School of Business, it produces quarterly economic forecasts of the United States, California and 11 metropolitan areas from Sacramento to Fresno and the San Francisco Bay Area.
More information from the report is available at forecast.pacific.edu.
Wednesday, June 29, 2005
East Bay predicted to lead region in economic gains. Solano County looks to be an even faster-growing region in the next five years.
Link Here
Posted on Wed, Jun. 29, 2005
By George Avalos
The East Bay will be the economic bulwark of the Bay Area over the next five years and will outpace the region's other major urban centers in economic growth, job creation and personal income, according to a forecast released today.
What's more, the East Bay is helping propel growth not only in Alameda and Contra Costa counties, but also in adjacent areas, according to the quarterly economic report by the Stockton-based Business Forecasting Center at the University of the Pacific.
The expansion in the East Bay is one reason Solano County should boom between now and 2010. Growth in housing and population in Solano will also fuel development in that county, which is mostly rural outside the Interstate 80 corridor, said Sean Snaith, director of the Business Forecasting Center.
"In a lot of ways, the East Bay is an engine," Snaith said. "It is pulling Solano County and part of the Central Valley with it as it grows."
The economy of the East Bay is projected to grow 14.6 percent in the coming five years, total personal income by nearly 36 percent and employment by 6.5 percent. And the East Bay already has a bigger economy than either the San Francisco-San Mateo-Marin region and Santa Clara County, the UOP forecasters found.
"The East Bay has become the employment center of the Bay Area," said Bruce Kern, executive director of the Oakland-based Economic Development Alliance for Business.
The report points to the growth of residential and commercial construction in areas such as eastern Contra Costa County and eastern Alameda County as key reasons for the robust economic outlook for the East Bay.
"Those areas have a lot more room to grow," Snaith said.
The East Bay also is an engine that has managed to avoid the bumpy spots that remain in the wake of the Internet and technology debacle that erased hundreds of thousands of jobs in Silicon Valley and the San Francisco area.
"There is still some slack lingering from the boom and bust of the dot-com days," Snaith said. "But I see that slack starting to be picked up."
Solano County looks to be an even faster-growing region in the next five years. Solano's economy is forecast to expand nearly 18 percent, total personal income will soar 38 percent and jobs will swell by 13 percent, the UOP researchers predict.
Manufacturers have opened a number of sites in Solano over the years, including beer and candy factories, as well as newer biotech production complexes.
"It's a combination of the new biotech manufacturing base, the growth of Travis Air Force Base, some traditional agriculture, and an increased population," said Michael Ammann, president of the Fairfield-based Solano Economic Development Corp. "We have a lot of opportunities to participate in growth."
The jump in population has kindled interest in major retail projects along I--80 in Solano. Developers intend to transform part of the county fairgrounds in Vallejo into a retail and entertainment complex. Another entertainment and shopping center is in the works for the Nut Tree site in Vacaville. And an upgrade is being crafted for the Westfield regional mall in Fairfield, Ammann said.
The various growth factors in the East Bay and Solano have prompted banks and other companies, such as Wells Fargo & Co., to ramp up their services, said Michael Billeci, a Wells Fargo regional president who heads the bank's operations in the East Bay and South Bay.
"It makes sense for businesses to follow the housing," he said. "We are definitely in an expansion mode in the East Bay. We also believe the other parts of the Bay Area are not going to grow as quickly as the East Bay and Solano."
Despite the prospect of favorable trends, Kern warned that the East Bay must soon confront a number of challenges that could cause the Alameda-Contra Costa economy to sputter.
"The cost of doing business in the region continues to move upward," he said. "We are concerned about the affordability of housing in the East Bay."
It's not enough, Kern maintained, to have stronger employment and income growth.
"We have to focus on creating a competitive economy to sustain the opportunities for the East Bay that the UOP forecast portrays," he said.
George Avalos covers the economy, financial markets and banks. Reach him at 925-977-8477 or gavalos@cctimes.com.
Posted on Wed, Jun. 29, 2005
By George Avalos
The East Bay will be the economic bulwark of the Bay Area over the next five years and will outpace the region's other major urban centers in economic growth, job creation and personal income, according to a forecast released today.
What's more, the East Bay is helping propel growth not only in Alameda and Contra Costa counties, but also in adjacent areas, according to the quarterly economic report by the Stockton-based Business Forecasting Center at the University of the Pacific.
The expansion in the East Bay is one reason Solano County should boom between now and 2010. Growth in housing and population in Solano will also fuel development in that county, which is mostly rural outside the Interstate 80 corridor, said Sean Snaith, director of the Business Forecasting Center.
"In a lot of ways, the East Bay is an engine," Snaith said. "It is pulling Solano County and part of the Central Valley with it as it grows."
The economy of the East Bay is projected to grow 14.6 percent in the coming five years, total personal income by nearly 36 percent and employment by 6.5 percent. And the East Bay already has a bigger economy than either the San Francisco-San Mateo-Marin region and Santa Clara County, the UOP forecasters found.
"The East Bay has become the employment center of the Bay Area," said Bruce Kern, executive director of the Oakland-based Economic Development Alliance for Business.
The report points to the growth of residential and commercial construction in areas such as eastern Contra Costa County and eastern Alameda County as key reasons for the robust economic outlook for the East Bay.
"Those areas have a lot more room to grow," Snaith said.
The East Bay also is an engine that has managed to avoid the bumpy spots that remain in the wake of the Internet and technology debacle that erased hundreds of thousands of jobs in Silicon Valley and the San Francisco area.
"There is still some slack lingering from the boom and bust of the dot-com days," Snaith said. "But I see that slack starting to be picked up."
Solano County looks to be an even faster-growing region in the next five years. Solano's economy is forecast to expand nearly 18 percent, total personal income will soar 38 percent and jobs will swell by 13 percent, the UOP researchers predict.
Manufacturers have opened a number of sites in Solano over the years, including beer and candy factories, as well as newer biotech production complexes.
"It's a combination of the new biotech manufacturing base, the growth of Travis Air Force Base, some traditional agriculture, and an increased population," said Michael Ammann, president of the Fairfield-based Solano Economic Development Corp. "We have a lot of opportunities to participate in growth."
The jump in population has kindled interest in major retail projects along I--80 in Solano. Developers intend to transform part of the county fairgrounds in Vallejo into a retail and entertainment complex. Another entertainment and shopping center is in the works for the Nut Tree site in Vacaville. And an upgrade is being crafted for the Westfield regional mall in Fairfield, Ammann said.
The various growth factors in the East Bay and Solano have prompted banks and other companies, such as Wells Fargo & Co., to ramp up their services, said Michael Billeci, a Wells Fargo regional president who heads the bank's operations in the East Bay and South Bay.
"It makes sense for businesses to follow the housing," he said. "We are definitely in an expansion mode in the East Bay. We also believe the other parts of the Bay Area are not going to grow as quickly as the East Bay and Solano."
Despite the prospect of favorable trends, Kern warned that the East Bay must soon confront a number of challenges that could cause the Alameda-Contra Costa economy to sputter.
"The cost of doing business in the region continues to move upward," he said. "We are concerned about the affordability of housing in the East Bay."
It's not enough, Kern maintained, to have stronger employment and income growth.
"We have to focus on creating a competitive economy to sustain the opportunities for the East Bay that the UOP forecast portrays," he said.
George Avalos covers the economy, financial markets and banks. Reach him at 925-977-8477 or gavalos@cctimes.com.
Dixon funds marquee train station
06/29/2005 06:49:14 AM
By David Henson/Staff Writer
One of the smallest towns in Solano County moved a sizable step closer to connecting by rail to two of California's biggest cities.
The Dixon City Council approved Tuesday night a $1.25 million contract with a Vacaville-based company to construct the marquee train station that essentially will complete the city's Multi-Modal Transportation Center.
The building should establish the city as a future stop for the Sacramento- and Bay Area-bound passenger trains that currently zip through without a pause.
"I'm glad to see this move forward," Vice Mayor Gil Vega said. "I believe regional transportation's challenge, especially for small communities such as Dixon and others, is for it to move outside the large metropolitan areas like Sacramento and San Francisco."
Swank Construction, which was awarded the bid from a pool of six applicants, expects to begin construction as early as August and complete the building by spring.
Completing the transportation center, which already has parking spaces and slots for buses to pick up passengers, puts Dixon well ahead of its neighbors in regard to solving gridlock issues on Interstate 80, Vega added.
"Incrementally, we're getting closer to where we can restore passenger rail service to Dixon," he said.
Swank's bid was the lowest, but still more than the original $1.1 million budget. However, the increased cost was not unexpected since the first estimate was calculated a year ago and did not take into account increased construction costs.
A set of wooden benches in the plans was deleted and an additional $200,000 from the Redevelopment Agency's budget will be applied to make up the difference.
David Henson can be reached at dixon@thereporter.com
By David Henson/Staff Writer
One of the smallest towns in Solano County moved a sizable step closer to connecting by rail to two of California's biggest cities.
The Dixon City Council approved Tuesday night a $1.25 million contract with a Vacaville-based company to construct the marquee train station that essentially will complete the city's Multi-Modal Transportation Center.
The building should establish the city as a future stop for the Sacramento- and Bay Area-bound passenger trains that currently zip through without a pause.
"I'm glad to see this move forward," Vice Mayor Gil Vega said. "I believe regional transportation's challenge, especially for small communities such as Dixon and others, is for it to move outside the large metropolitan areas like Sacramento and San Francisco."
Swank Construction, which was awarded the bid from a pool of six applicants, expects to begin construction as early as August and complete the building by spring.
Completing the transportation center, which already has parking spaces and slots for buses to pick up passengers, puts Dixon well ahead of its neighbors in regard to solving gridlock issues on Interstate 80, Vega added.
"Incrementally, we're getting closer to where we can restore passenger rail service to Dixon," he said.
Swank's bid was the lowest, but still more than the original $1.1 million budget. However, the increased cost was not unexpected since the first estimate was calculated a year ago and did not take into account increased construction costs.
A set of wooden benches in the plans was deleted and an additional $200,000 from the Redevelopment Agency's budget will be applied to make up the difference.
David Henson can be reached at dixon@thereporter.com
Solano County sets torrid pace for growth
June 29, 2005
By RACHEL RASKIN-ZRIHEN, Times-Herald staff writer
The Vallejo area is riding a wave of growth that forecasters predict will more than double its economy in the next 25 years, a new study shows.
Sean Snaith, director of the University of the Pacific's Business Forecasting Center, said the Vallejo-Fairfield metropolitan area is growing faster than nearly anyplace else in the region.
"The bottom line for the Vallejo area is that once again it's looking like one of the strongest metros we cover, over the next two years and also long term," Snaith said.
The center conducts quarterly economic studies for the United States, California and 11 metro areas.
Snaith said the area's growth is fueled by several factors involving regional and national trends.
"The Vallejo area's economy is growing faster than most other areas. It's one of the top two or three," Snaith said. "It's the same kind of thing we're seeing in the Central Valley. The coastal regions are essentially built out, and that, along with economic considerations, is driving people to these more inland areas."
Snaith said the coastal build-out pushes property values there out of most people's reach, which sends them inland in search of affordable housing. The demand for housing in places like Vallejo causes home prices here to soar.
The influx of population, some of which results from baby boomers entering their peak homebuying years, also spurs development of businesses offering the goods and services needed to support them, he added.
Often described as a real estate "bubble," the situation is more like a "soufflŽ," Snaith says.
"It's not like the dot com bubble, which burst," Snaith said. "The real estate market is based on something more tangible - supply and demand - and is not likely to collapse."
The housing boom, and its resulting economic boom, could falter, though, if one or more of the factors driving it drastically changes, Snaith said.
"We don't want to peek in the oven here, but if any part of the ingredients changes, like a sharp rise in interest rates, the soufflŽ could deflate," he said.
The study shows that personal income in the Vallejo area will grow 7 percent from its present $14.2 billion to nearly $20 billion in the next decade. It is expected to reach about $38 billion by 2020 and nearly $73 billion by 2030. This area's personal income growth rate through 2007 is expected to surpass the state's average, because of a strong employment outlook, the study shows.
Construction jobs are expected to grow through 2006, but slow down through 2007. The service sector and professional and business service industries are predicted to create more than 2,000 jobs locally by 2007.
The number of education, health services, and leisure and hospitality jobs are also expected to rise, though more moderately. And, unlike the rest of the state where manufacturing is down, that industry is expected to grow at more than 2 percent in the Vallejo-Fairfield metro area in the foreseeable future.
The study further predicts employment in the Vallejo area growing at better than 2 percent every decade through 2030. And it anticipates the area's population growing from just over 416,000 this year to 672,000 in 2030, with the sharpest spike predicted within the next five years.
The whole story, Snaith said, is told in the center's predicted "gross metro product" for the Vallejo area - the local equivalent of the nation's gross national product. Figured in 2000 dollars, that figure is expected to rise from this year's $13 billion-plus in output to more than $29 billion in 2030.
- E-mail Rachel Raskin-Zrihen at RachelZ@thnewsnet.com or call 553-6824.
By RACHEL RASKIN-ZRIHEN, Times-Herald staff writer
The Vallejo area is riding a wave of growth that forecasters predict will more than double its economy in the next 25 years, a new study shows.
Sean Snaith, director of the University of the Pacific's Business Forecasting Center, said the Vallejo-Fairfield metropolitan area is growing faster than nearly anyplace else in the region.
"The bottom line for the Vallejo area is that once again it's looking like one of the strongest metros we cover, over the next two years and also long term," Snaith said.
The center conducts quarterly economic studies for the United States, California and 11 metro areas.
Snaith said the area's growth is fueled by several factors involving regional and national trends.
"The Vallejo area's economy is growing faster than most other areas. It's one of the top two or three," Snaith said. "It's the same kind of thing we're seeing in the Central Valley. The coastal regions are essentially built out, and that, along with economic considerations, is driving people to these more inland areas."
Snaith said the coastal build-out pushes property values there out of most people's reach, which sends them inland in search of affordable housing. The demand for housing in places like Vallejo causes home prices here to soar.
The influx of population, some of which results from baby boomers entering their peak homebuying years, also spurs development of businesses offering the goods and services needed to support them, he added.
Often described as a real estate "bubble," the situation is more like a "soufflŽ," Snaith says.
"It's not like the dot com bubble, which burst," Snaith said. "The real estate market is based on something more tangible - supply and demand - and is not likely to collapse."
The housing boom, and its resulting economic boom, could falter, though, if one or more of the factors driving it drastically changes, Snaith said.
"We don't want to peek in the oven here, but if any part of the ingredients changes, like a sharp rise in interest rates, the soufflŽ could deflate," he said.
The study shows that personal income in the Vallejo area will grow 7 percent from its present $14.2 billion to nearly $20 billion in the next decade. It is expected to reach about $38 billion by 2020 and nearly $73 billion by 2030. This area's personal income growth rate through 2007 is expected to surpass the state's average, because of a strong employment outlook, the study shows.
Construction jobs are expected to grow through 2006, but slow down through 2007. The service sector and professional and business service industries are predicted to create more than 2,000 jobs locally by 2007.
The number of education, health services, and leisure and hospitality jobs are also expected to rise, though more moderately. And, unlike the rest of the state where manufacturing is down, that industry is expected to grow at more than 2 percent in the Vallejo-Fairfield metro area in the foreseeable future.
The study further predicts employment in the Vallejo area growing at better than 2 percent every decade through 2030. And it anticipates the area's population growing from just over 416,000 this year to 672,000 in 2030, with the sharpest spike predicted within the next five years.
The whole story, Snaith said, is told in the center's predicted "gross metro product" for the Vallejo area - the local equivalent of the nation's gross national product. Figured in 2000 dollars, that figure is expected to rise from this year's $13 billion-plus in output to more than $29 billion in 2030.
- E-mail Rachel Raskin-Zrihen at RachelZ@thnewsnet.com or call 553-6824.
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