Rancho Cordova officials showcase innovation, community progress in State of the City address
RANCHO CORDOVA — The mayor of Rancho Cordova held the annual State of the City address on Wednesday.
Highlights included a budget surplus and plans for big growth, but there is one thing in particular the city is doing to make it stand out — right from the starting line.
Rancho Cordova is trying to turn the town's six main vehicle entrances off Highway 50 into dazzling drives. Thousands of cars pass through these six gateway corridors each day, and the city wants to improve the look of the streets, signs, sidewalks, and landscaping.
"Those things are important because they set an environment, they set a message to the people in the community and to the businesses," said Diann Rogers, the president and CEO of the Rancho Cordova Chamber of Commerce.
It's also a way the city hopes to attract new science and technology businesses to come to town.
Mayor David Sander turned this year's State of the City address into a science-themed event, showcasing the city's desire to create more high-tech jobs.
"We are a natural home for the high-tech community," Sander said. "They find us to be cheaper and more accessible with a great workforce and a great quality of life."
It comes at a time when the city's population is forecast to double in the next 30 years.
"We have to plan for transportation and service needs, to be sure that we maintain the high quality of service, our high quality of public safety," the mayor said.
The city has thousands of acres of vacant land that's planned for development of new homes, parks, and commercial sites. Mayor Sander said he wants it done right.
"What we probably don't want to see is a lot of the same old thing," he said. "What we'd like to do in Rancho Cordova is have more fun and be more innovative, so we're always going to try to do something different, something better."
The city just completed a $42-million roadway improvement along Folsom Boulevard. Funding comes from federal and state grants, along with local sales tax revenue.
