Funding requested for project to reconnect Old Sacramento’s riverfront to downtown area
A project to connect downtown Sacramento and the Old Sacramento waterfront could get a boost in funding thanks to the backing of an elected official.
Longtime U.S. Rep. Doris Matsui has requested $5 million in federal funding to support the Downtown Sacramento Partnership’s plans to study the construction of a park that would connect downtown and the Sacramento River, according to a news release.
According to a Downtown Sacramento Partnership news release, the city’s Sacramento Stitch Park Riverfront Reconnection Project plans to create a signature, four-acre public commons park that would link downtown Sacramento to the city’s underutilized riverfront.
“The project is an appropriate use of taxpayer funds because it will provide the infrastructure needed to support downtown economic development, provide much-needed green space, and connect downtown Sacramento with the underutilized waterfront and Old Sacramento,” Matsui wrote in her request for funding.
As it stands now the Sacramento River is separated from downtown Sacramento by a 10-lane, below-grade section of Interstate 5, the news release said.
The original neighborhood was part of Sacramento’s historic West End and near the Japantown district. These diverse neighborhoods were displaced and segregated during Sacramento’s redevelopment era between 1950 and 1964.
The project aims to invest federal dollars in nearby communities and revitalize the area for future community-oriented events such as wellness classes, art activities and music concerts.
Designs will focus on developing green spaces, transportation mobility and linking Crocker Art Museum and Park with future amenities and the Sacramento River, the news release said.
“There are unprecedented grant opportunities available through federal funding to support the creation of dynamic reconnection projects which link portions of neighborhoods together that were physically separated in the past and have served as divides to the health of our communities ever since,” said Scott Ford, economic development director of Downtown Sacramento Partnership .
The project looks to create a “dynamic gathering area” adjacent to Capitol Mall.
“Reclaiming this space for the people of Sacramento will create a signature public commons at the gateway to California’s capital city capable of hosting both special events and passive recreation,” Ford said in the news release. “(It) will serve to enhance the quality of life and social connectivity of everyone in the region.”
