RANCHO CORDOVA, CA (MPG) – “We make an art of having fun, more fun than anywhere else in the region,” said Mayor Budge during her State of the City address. Fun was definitely on the ticket for all who attended the three for one event. Artists, art collectors, and others feasted upon an array of finger foods, viewed and bid upon silent auction 6” x 6” masterpieces, and purchased other small masterpieces including a “Mona Lisa.” Some buyers, at the end of the evening, took home half a dozen or more of the tiny pieces which served as a fundraiser for the Cordova Community Council. At $20 apiece, artwork was made available to everyone.

                Paintings, textiles, drawings, and mixed media artworks covered the downstairs and upstairs walls of City Hall for the annual fall art exhibition, juried this year by KVIE host Rob Stewart. The exhibit will remain until January, although several pieces were sold Thursday evening before 6 p.m. Symphony d’Oro ensemble performed background music.

                More music was to be had when the crowd moved into the American River rooms to hear Mayor Linda Budge’s State of the City address. Following the presentation of the colors by the Cordova High School Air Force ROTC, Cordova High School’s Chamber Choir sang “Star Spangled Banner,” followed by “I Believe,” a Jewish song that was dedicated to all victims of hate. The choir of ten girls and three boys held tea lights and lit those as they joined in the singing.

                As for what’s working in Rancho Cordova, it appears from the presentations that everything is working. Who would have expected the city of 70,000 to draw visitors from South Korea to its Independence Day celebration and hear that they were “blown away” by the fireworks and felt the community’s spirit.

                “There is so much happening in this city,” said Marc Sapoznik, executive director of Visit Rancho Cordova referencing Cordova Community Council’s Executive Director Shelly Blanchard’s presentation of events overview that included Sports Hall of Fame, MACC opening and the exhibits and related activities, the Rancho Cordova Concert Band, Symphony D’Oro, Kids’ Day, Memorial Day, HeartStoppers Haunted House, and the fireworks that impressed locals and visitors. Events were held on one hundred days last year.

                Sapoznik’s job is to bring people to the city and fill the sixteen hotel properties. During the past year 800,000 visitors came to the city and he looks forward to that number increasing to one million. The economic impact of the events and visitors reached $162 million with $6 million going into the general fund.

                Two new hotels are slated to open in 2019. From the sound of the audience, many were surprised to hear that Rancho Cordova hosts the largest rugby tournament in the United States. It’s also host to gymnastics, rowing, pro cycling, and will host the PAC 12 next year, and no one can forget that the California Capital Air Show is held at Mather each September. “We’re excited for 2019,” he said.

                Diann Rogers, CEO and President of Rancho Cordova Chamber of Commerce, acknowledged the board and ambassadors and showed a short video. Beth Tincher, SMUD’s government affairs representative, said that SMUD is “celebrating 41 years of energy efficiency” and introduced the woman everyone was anxious to hear.

                “Good evening, Rancho Cordova,” boomed Mayor Linda Budge. “Welcome to the art of living in Rancho Cordova.”

                The evening, she said, was about celebrating all of the artists who make up the city of Rancho Cordova – painters, sculptors, writers, architects, engineers, musicians. From the show of hands as she called out each art form, the entire audience was comprised of artists.

                Budge presented the top 15 accomplishments of 2018 beginning with birthday celebrations including 15 years of cityhood, 60 years of Cordova Recreation and Park District, and 100 years of Mather Air Force Base.

                “We asked for art and art happened,” she said.

                Mills Station Arts and Culture Center (MACC) opened in February and has hosted several exhibits, talks, and other activities. The city, she added, boasts several public art murals and mosaics. She didn’t leave out the performing arts and Sunday afternoon concerts at KP International.

                She spoke of the importance of partnerships, including the $3.4 million contribution to the Hagan pool replacement project that was presented to the community a week earlier. And she praised the new businesses choosing Rancho Cordova to call home. Hacker Lab opened this year, and the Barrel District features six breweries, two distilleries, and one meadery.

                Job growth is expected to continue. Rancho Cordova, she said, has “more jobs in the private sector than in the public sector,” which brought cheers from the audience. Those 65,000 jobs are just shy of the city’s population. Ribbon cuttings and ground breakings take place monthly. New homes, schools, and parks are also being built.

                The Community Enhancement Fund covers a lot of programs in public safety, arts, entertainment, and sports. Mayor Budge highlighted several projects, and each attendee received a “Citizen Report” showing funds going to crime suppression, school garden programs, after-school education and safety programs, Cordova Lancers, Leaders and Legends Mentors programs, MACC, Fourth of July parade, Art Ark, Lincoln Village fitness course, neighborhood abatement to pick up trash and recover shopping cars, and other projects to enhance the community.

                The Mather Heritage Trail opened this year with a 1.4 mile biking and walking path, and the city has taken innovative approaches to homelessness, she said, including using navigators and Mather Veterans Village, which is in its last phase of construction and will serve more than 100 homeless veterans and provide them the “dignity of living in their own home,” again drawing audience applause.

                “Take a minute and thank our veterans.”     

                Rancho Cordova Police Department’s neighborhood policing brings officers into the neighborhoods where they get to know residents. The program has been so successful that the department is being contacted by other jurisdictions. The team has grown with new school resource officers and K-9 detectives.

                Volunteers in Neighborhood Services (VINS) was praised, as was the work of student interns who designed renderings for the city’s new civic center to be located on the north side of Folsom Blvd. next to Folsom Lake College where the city recently acquired nine acres.

                “The budget is balanced with a healthy reserve” was probably a relief to the citizens given how many services and events the city offered or sponsored.

                “Rancho Cordova will remain a safe and healthy city, as good to live in 100 years from now as it is today,” said Mayor Budge. “We want to be proud to call Rancho Cordova home.”             

                For additional information, visit: https://www.cityofranchocordova.org/.