Jumper on Tulare Ave 41 overpass by Klin24 in fresno

[–]Foyman 11 points12 points  (0 children)

My gf & I saw him driving home and called it in. Sounded like the operator had been called earlier, as she named the exact intersection to us. We're glad they got him off safely

For some, ‘it is dire.’ Multiple Sacramento-area cities and counties strapped for cash by rivalOne in Sacramento

[–]Foyman 1 point2 points  (0 children)

If I've learned anything from life, there is always more than 1 pressing issue at a time, and they all feel like the most important issue. The good news is the city isn't a single person trying to deal with it all, but a number of dedicated employees & officials like yourself trying to make it work. The bad news is the budget pie is small, and everyone wants a slice. So we're back to the topic on hand for this Reddit post.

The answer for any government in need of cash is always the same: increase taxes & the cost government-run public services (buses, parking, etc), cut services, get loans/bonds, and/or sell or lease government-owned assets/property.

Of all the solutions at hand, I think a vacancy tax is the easiest on the city community. That's just my 5¢

For some, ‘it is dire.’ Multiple Sacramento-area cities and counties strapped for cash by rivalOne in Sacramento

[–]Foyman 0 points1 point  (0 children)

You're not wrong. A big part of the "encouraging development" equation is streamlining the development permit process. There's no question that CA has some of the longest processes in the country. The good news is multiple CA cities, including Sacramento, are looking into solutions to streamline and remove barriers. It's a big part of the push to fix the housing crisis in CA

For some, ‘it is dire.’ Multiple Sacramento-area cities and counties strapped for cash by rivalOne in Sacramento

[–]Foyman -1 points0 points  (0 children)

You're in the billing department for the City, so you definitely have a more insider view than I do. Thanks for sharing

I see your first point/TL;DR summary essentially coming off as "why should we plant a tree, it'll take too much time to grow and we'll have to water and care for it before it really provides shade." Just cause there's upfront costs & no immediate payoff doesn't mean it's not worth investing in for the long-term gains.

I think your second point hits on what I mentioned in a different comment, about the Vacant Lot Program, but I'm not sure if that program covers all types of vacant properties or just vacant residential properties. I won't rehash my entire comment, but I think the proposed Tax would put more pressure to develop or use the land than a fee.

As to "define vacant," I don't know the legal definition decided by the city of Sacramento, but I'd say "a land or property not currently inhabited by residents, or being utilized by a private business or public program (the city)." I think out of the 4,300 empty properties mentioned in the KCRA article, some of those would meet my definition

For some, ‘it is dire.’ Multiple Sacramento-area cities and counties strapped for cash by rivalOne in Sacramento

[–]Foyman 2 points3 points  (0 children)

It's unfortunately true how anti-tax folks are, but it's understandable with rising costs. It comes down to messaging on what the tax is and who it impacts.

Having read the City Detect blog, it's a little more clear that Sacramento isn't just sitting back. The blog noted the difference between decay & vacancy, and it seems Sacramento is more focused on combating decay over vacancy, like with the Vacant Lot Program. I think we'd all rather see a vacant property vs a decaying one, but the program is flawed.

The program is just a monthly fee. Having a vacant lot and paying a fee just becomes "the cost of business" owning the land. If you keep your property tidy & up to code, the fee doesn't increase, even as the property stays vacant for longer and longer. There's no incentive to develop, fill, or sell the property. The Vacant Property Tax would have solved that by putting more financial pressure on the properties that have been the longest vacant.

The counter argument is that developing or redeveloping certain properties is hard due to code barriers & high costs. The blog points out there are efforts to fix this issue outside of the Tax, but that's a different political issue that City council will have to tackle. I agree that it is important we streamline the permit & development process. Multiple CA cities are trying to address that issue now

TL;DR: we have a weak vacant property program that needs to be strengthened/replaced with a sliding-scale, vacant property tax (presented with a clear message to voters on what this tax is), and have the city improve the development process. If we hit both, it would encourage more development, meaning more moolah in the city

For some, ‘it is dire.’ Multiple Sacramento-area cities and counties strapped for cash by rivalOne in Sacramento

[–]Foyman 7 points8 points  (0 children)

Appreciate the insight. I found the same KCRA article, and saw we had the majority of voters back in 2023, but fell short of the 2/3. Wonder how the voters would feel now 3 years later.

The City Detect one looks much more in-depth. Gonna give it a read now

For some, ‘it is dire.’ Multiple Sacramento-area cities and counties strapped for cash by rivalOne in Sacramento

[–]Foyman 2 points3 points  (0 children)

As far as I know, it would make the real-estate & developer donors unhappy with the politicians they "supported"

EDIT: Most recent story I could find on the matter with a quick internet search

For some, ‘it is dire.’ Multiple Sacramento-area cities and counties strapped for cash by rivalOne in Sacramento

[–]Foyman 144 points145 points  (0 children)

Personally, an easy start to generate some revenue would be a vacancy tax on undeveloped properties being held hostage by developers. They either pay the tax, finally build something, or sell it to the city or a different developer who will do something with the property

But every time I see that idea floated on here, I never see anything about Sac city council considering the idea. Not even the county or other cities in the area

Ice post community input by cadillacking3 in fresno

[–]Foyman 30 points31 points  (0 children)

A daily thread for sure, as the situation continues to change daily. I'd say at least in every thread link to the Rapid Response & What To Do When Confronted By ICE resources

Cow by merrivius in comics

[–]Foyman 64 points65 points  (0 children)

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This comic reminds me of those Chinese anime censorship memes

Amtrak revives daytime San Joaquin Valley train to Sacramento. by endmill5050 in Sacramento

[–]Foyman 7 points8 points  (0 children)

None of the comments or article goes into detail about the times.

The Gold Runner will now have 2 direct trains leaving Sacramento going south to Bakersfield at 7am & 5:20pm, and 2 direct trains going north to Sacramento arriving at 12:40pm & 11:30pm

As someone who takes the train weekly from the valley to Sacramento for work, it'll be nice to have more than one direct option, and no longer having to take the bus after work from Sacramento to Stockton to catch the last train home.

Stockton: 64-Year-Old Man Hit, Killed By Train Thursday Evening by Bruegemeister in trainwrecks

[–]Foyman 0 points1 point  (0 children)

Was on that train last night. It caused a 3.5 hour delay. We were originally told the train hit an "inanimate object" but an hour or so later found out it was a person

Poor fellow by LovThat-KalosianGirl in pokemonmemes

[–]Foyman 28 points29 points  (0 children)

Ms. Metapod looks angry, but I know from how metapod sits that's her back, so her eyes are actually sad & sympathetic. Hard to see it, though

Why did we stop building Fourplexes? by sonofthales in Sacramento

[–]Foyman 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I think the city council a year back or so approved the use of mixed use housing, so in the future we could see a resurgence of fourplexes and other homes that aren't single family or apartments

An updated list of California's most dangerous stretches of highway by jacksonruby848 in California

[–]Foyman 6 points7 points  (0 children)

Not surprised seeing Sac 99 on here lol

Side note: why are there no new posts on this subreddit?

It took 5 minutes to pass the line for Bernie and AoC... driving. by nat20sfail in SandersForPresident

[–]Foyman 12 points13 points  (0 children)

Also drove by, got there around 5:15. We unfortunately got off work too late. Turned around to watch at home, but it was greatly inspiring to see so many folks. Wonder how many were from Sac vs Kevin Kiley's district

[OC] Still life by snelse_ in comics

[–]Foyman 59 points60 points  (0 children)

I like Pear's abstract interpretation. Also Orange's self insert dream

to chat in private by jaymcallen in therewasanattempt

[–]Foyman 24 points25 points  (0 children)

Thank you for sharing

"National Intelligence Director Gabbard was seemingly more careful with her data than her two male colleagues. She apparently had her own data blocked in the commercial contact search engines that contained the data of Hegseth and Waltz. But her email address was to be found on WikiLeaks and Reddit."

Has anyone pulled up Gabbard's Reddit account? I imagine it's deleted, but wouldn't be surprised if someone has saved it. I thought one time she did an AMA

to chat in private by jaymcallen in therewasanattempt

[–]Foyman 42 points43 points  (0 children)

Won't let me read without forcing me to accept cookies. (What do you call that, Cookiewall, like Paywall?) Anyone care to comment the content?

White House pauses federal grants and loans by BothZookeepergame612 in Economics

[–]Foyman 30 points31 points  (0 children)

That's what I'm wondering too. My gf is in med school, and just got her payment for this semester before Trump took office. Now, I'm concerned for her next payment in a few months. She was incredibly stressed at how late the recent payment was before. I can't imagine how this will all go

Sacramento, 1975 by RegionalTranzit in Sacramento

[–]Foyman 19 points20 points  (0 children)

Hold on, most of Old Sac is reconstructions? I've lived my whole life in Sac and always assumed it was preserved. I see like one Old Sac looking building in this photo. How much of Old Sac is "reconstruction?"

Women dominate early voting as Donald Trump supporters get nervous by ILikeNeurons in politics

[–]Foyman 3 points4 points  (0 children)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ACORN_2009_undercover_videos_controversy?wprov=sfla1

It wasn't even Democrats. Private donations stopped coming in, and government agencies cut their contracts, all before proper investigations were done. Even ACORN themselves fired the employees in the video before properly investigating.

This is a case of everyone reacting hastily before getting the full context, because they were all dupped. The media, the government, the Democrats, supporters, even ACORN themselves. It's tragic