Darrell Steinberg shares his vision for Sacramento’s future

Darrell Steinberg has, obviously, held higher offices, but in some ways it seems as though Sacramento’s new mayor has been prepping for this particular role his entire political life. Steinberg, 57, got his start on the Sacramento City Council, where he served from 1992 to 1998 before moving on to the California State Assembly (1998-2004), and then the California State Senate, where he was the president pro tempore from 2008 to 2014.

Over the years Steinberg has championed, among other causes, mental health care reform, the environment and youth issues. In this interview, conducted in December, Steinberg took time to talk about his goals, what a Donald Trump presidency means for the city, smart growth and the arts and taking care of the city’s most vulnerable citizens.

What are your thoughts coming into the mayor’s office?

There is an energy here around the arts and economic growth, and innovation, and neighborhoods, that is really exciting and invigorating. I can say the last time I took a position of high leadership in 2009 because of the Senate, I walked into a catastrophic situation. I am proud of the fact that I helped guide the state with others through that terrible time. Now, to have the opportunity to lead again, obviously in a different context, ut to lead during a relatively good time, in an era where we have the opportunity to create, and to build, and to innovate, is very exciting to me.

What are your goals for the first two years?

To me there are three buckets. No. 1: I think we have to continue the economic resurgence and the economic renaissance. Whether your context is the millennial energy and the downtown housing boom, the Golden 1 Center; whether it’s the tech centers, the innovation centers in downtown Sacramento … whether it’s the Community Center Theatre, I feel the obligation to not go backwards when it comes to the way the city is redefining itself economically and culturally. I have been saying it a lot: We are a proud capitol city, and we are a proud government town, and we ought to remain the center of public service, but that is no longer enough. Given our proximity to Silicon Valley [and] the Bay Area; given our natural assets, given our proximity to UC Davis, and Sac State, given we’re at the confluence of the twin rivers, given all our advantages we must build a high-wage, five-sector economy. I am going to continue that focus to ensure that we are diversifying our economy. The test to me really is whether or not successive generations of young Sacramentans can make the choice to make Sacramento their home, and that will depend on whether or not we create jobs, and whether or not we make the quality of life here a go-to city.

What’s No. 2?

We are going to tackle homelessness with a ferocity that has not been seen. You know my background as the author of [Proposition 63], the Mental Health Services Act. You know, under Prop. 63 in Sacramento County, there are 750 people I am told that are living with mental illness that were homeless and are now housed and getting services and treatment. … I refuse to accept the notion that homelessness need be hopelessness, I refuse the fact that a thousand or more people sleep out in the freezing cold and [during] the rainy season. We know what works: it’s assertive outreach, it’s case management, it’s services and permanent housing. We do not have nearly enough capacity to address all of those pieces of what helps people in this terrible tragedy of being left out on the streets. So my job will be to build coalitions, the relationship between our city and our county is essential. The 31st of January, we are going to have the first joint city council, and County Board of Supervisors, in at least 15 years, with a focus on homelessness and we are going to build inventory and we are going to build capacity.

What’s your goal on inventory?

I think we need several thousand units.

So, at the end of two years, you’re hoping how many units will be in the process of being built?

About 2,000, give or take.

The revenue to be able to do that is part of that Prop. 63 money?

We have some existing housing stock [from] the Sacramento Housing Redevelopment Agency. They control 15,000 public housing units in the city and county of Sacramento. Some portion of that can be set aside for supportive housing; it is an ongoing discussion in the city and county. … It is going to take several years for the money to flow.

The best way to cure homelessness is to build a house?

Yes, but it’s not housing alone. Especially for people with significant challenges that may have led to their homelessness—mental illness, substance abuse—coupling housing with supportive services [for those] who need them is essential.

And No. 3 on your list?

No. 3 is that this needs to become a city about youth. And that is an umbrella and a philosophy for a series of initiatives that I want to put forward. … We are going to build an infrastructure in this city so that over the next four years we have a goal of providing at least half of the high school seniors with access to year-round paid internships. That’s my goal. We are … working with the state employment training panel to procure a nearly million-dollar grant to fund the first 500 internships. … We’re going to start where some of the challenges are the greatest—and where these kids, all kids, need opportunity.

Let’s talk a little bit about the police …

Well, first of all, I think we have a very fine police force. … I do think there are some systemic issues and some cultural issues and it begins with our city making commitments to transparency. What the council did [in] November, in requiring the rapid disclosure of video evidence—a use-of-force policy, which uses deadly force as a last resort, these are good moves, and I support them. The next thing we need to look at is how well-trained are our police officers in de-escalation, for example, [in dealing] with people who are having a mental health crisis; [in dealing with] racial and ethnic bias. We want to bring our city up to the top when it comes to quantity and quality of training on these vital subjects. But the real goal is … to bring back a true definition of community. Back in the ’90s, you know, the old days when I was on the city council … there were federal grants, but also on our own we had genuine neighborhood policing. I remember in my city council district where there was a connection and a relationship between the police officers and the neighbors. And a lot of that went away, and the other thing that went away was the philosophy and the structure of neighborhood-based services. I want to get back to a city that is more responsive to the neighbors and neighborhoods. I want to structure the city so that the code enforcement officers, the neighborhood police officers, the parks and rec workers, the youth development folks, [the Sacramento Employment and Training Agency] … that they are all working under the same umbrella … so that the community knows its city, and that there is a partnership.

What is the procedure going to be to select a new police chief?

Under the city charter, it’s the city manager who makes the selection. However, I expect that we will be working collaboratively, the mayor, the council and the city manager, to make sure we are all together, and all behind the new selection. The other thing I should mention, what I hope will be one of the hallmarks of my mayorship, is the imperative to break down barriers that inhibit progress. I thought Kevin Johnson was a very good mayor and John Shirey was a very good city manager, but they didn’t—

Would it help if they actually talked to each other?

Well, yes, or talked more. … So we kinda break down the silos. … I’m already working with [City Manager] Howard Chan; I told him, “I want a partnership.” We cannot wear the city charter around our waist, we have to respect it, of course, but we need to break down a little bit of the formal authorities and responsibilities. We have to work together, and the selection of police chief is a good example.

I think a lot of people were really shocked on the Joseph Mann case. To have the police say they were under attack and it was self-defense, and then to have the video come out which so clearly demonstrates that they were lying …

It is essential for the community and it is a benefit of the police department to be transparent from the very beginning. To release that information, to admit a mistake when you make it. Because that builds credibility with the community, and to always err on the side of openness. … And increasing our police force, the numbers of sworn-in police officers, which also means dealing with recruitment and retention challenges, i.e. more money, when you combine openness, the best training, a commitment to genuine community policing, and respecting and honoring the people who are sworn to protect us, then you have a winning combination.

With the youth program, revenue will be needed—so increased taxes?

Well, we may need to go back, the voters probably will [be asked] to renew Measure U. But we also need to take much better advantage to our proximity to the Capitol. We are a capitol city, but I don’t think we have taken full advantage of our proximity to the capitol, and the fact that we can borrow some of the best thinking and some of the best ideas that are generated throughout California. … We’ve got the state dollars to try to draw down for housing. So it’s not that we’re not going to have to prioritize and ensure that we have invested ourselves in youth, but we also need to be creative and recognize that we have a lot of partners out there who want this city to succeed [who] live here. There are a lot of state officials, people in high positions in state government that work in Sacramento—they love Sacramento, they want it to succeed.

Of course, the biggest discretionary part of the budget is police and fire. Our number of firemen on firetrucks is much higher than the rest of the state, and there could be real savings there.

There can be no sacred parts of the city budget, and while public safety always comes first and I have great respect for the men and women who provide protection against fires and respond to emergency calls, there can be some significant efficiencies within the fire department. … We are not going to shy away from talking about them and on doing the right thing.

Investing in our youth, or having additional people on our firetrucks that other cities don’t have?

Well, that’s one example that should be talked about: who staffs the ambulance during a 911 call. There is also the issue of whether or not, there might be less expensive ways to respond to some emergency calls; for instance, a homeless person out here, we could have mental health or triage workers as opposed to the firefighters, to potentially reduce the call volume as well.

Let’s go back to the first thing you mentioned, in terms of economic development and taking advantage of our proximity to the Bay Area, and trying to bring in more nongovernment jobs.

And to make this more of a destination city.

Right. So one of the things you brought up before was on the sales tax.

On sales tax sharing?

On sales tax sharing, and on the, in terms of economic development, bringing in new manufacturing jobs that bring in new revenue to the area as opposed to retail, which just spreads revenue around.

And now you have Amazon.

Yes, so are you going to bring up sales tax sharing again?

Oh, my God, you know … it’s constitutionally barred now because of Proposition 1A. And you know, I am looking forward to being a strong regional leader, and a strong regional partner. I want to work with the rest of the region, and that was a very important debate that arguably led to a consensus around the blueprint. No, I am not going to bring that up.

That goes back to the thing that just came up in Natomas: to build more retail space in Natomas. Do we really need more retail space?

I don’t know, given some areas, we do. But in general I think we have to recognize the world is changing, people are shopping online now. I mean, I remember being in the mall the day after Thanksgiving. Black Friday down in the Bay Area, hardly anyone was there. The world is changing. I think you want to invest in the future.

So if we take the city’s limited resources and help to build more retail spaces, as opposed to Amazon, which is actually bringing in more jobs—

I don’t think our economic focus should be to create more retail jobs. Our focus needs to be on tech, research, innovation, it needs to be on food and nutrition, health care, education. There needs to be high-wage opportunities. That’s where we need to focus.

Let’s talk a little bit about regional leadership, and where the mayor fits in to that.

After the sales tax debate, of course, the region did the blueprint, and I did SB 375 [the Sustainable Communities and Climate Protection Act of 2008], which really put the blueprint into state law and expanded it statewide. I am going to be an active member of [the Sacramento Area Council of Governments]. I think that is very important for the city of Sacramento to show that it wants to work with the region and not just … say, “This is how we are doing things”—but to work together. And I intend to do that. I am also not, in general, a borders and boundary guy. I respect that we have different jurisdictions and certainly within the city we have city council members who have real needs in each of their districts, but I also want us to be about the whole city, and I want us to be about the entire region. To me, to work with the [Greater Sacramento Economic Council] and the other economic development entities—yes, to locate high-wage jobs in the city of Sacramento—I will stand with mayors of other parts of the region as well, and help them locate high-wage jobs to their cities, because as the region becomes successful we will all be successful. If the city is successful, the region will be successful.

This goes back to the strong-mayor discussion; I would like to hear your thoughts on that.

Well, I was for it, and philosophically I’m still for it. I think the city government should evolve with its growth and with its sophistication. It’s not high on my to-do list to revisit it, because (1) the voters spoke relatively recently, and (2) I believe genuinely a strong mayor under this system—No. 1, I can be strong by virtue of the relationship that I develop with the city manager and the departments. Partnership, not silos. Secondly, what is strength? Strength is having a vision, strength is coalition building, strength is counting votes and strength is actually producing consistent with your vision. And I am ready to go to work to do all those things.

I always thought the strong-mayor discussion was a solution that didn’t identify the problem. Our problems are regional, and the city is only 20 percent of the region and the city budget is a billion dollars and the county budget is $4 billion. If you take control of the whole city budget, you can’t accomplish things without cooperation.

Agreed. But I think this system works in the city, where the mayor and the city manager are tight. When they work as partners, it works; if they’re not, then it’s not a great system. It is the system; therefore, breaking down the silos and creating partnerships in the city and within the city is essential.

Let’s talk about the mayor in a Trump world.

You had to bring up that name, didn’t you? Well, first of all, I thought it was very unpatriotic for Mitch McConnell in whenever it was—November or December in 2008—to say his No. 1 goal was to assure Barack Obama failed. It is unpatriotic; it’s horrible. And, so, I do not want anybody in a position of leadership to fail. … Obviously, I am very unhappy with the result, but as I have said a number of times, we will work with him when we can and we will fight him when we must. I think my view of politics is very simple, and I think I have shown this over a number of years, 95 percent of the issues are worthy of principle compromise. You’ve got people with genuine differences, genuine value, differences various life experiences, business, labor, the environment, jobs, you name it, a whole host of issues. The one thing you never compromise is the civil rights of people. You just don’t do it. I know, I mean I read a lot, I read a lot about World War II, it’s seared in me about what happens when people turn their backs, or ignore, pacify or try to rationalize words or actions that violate the civil rights of people. Whether that be immigrants, whether it’s Muslim-Americans, whether, you know, it’s other groups of people who are marginalized. We’re going to stand with people, our people.

Fight Trump in areas that we must—

Immigration, the Dreamers, the hard-working families. Trump is obviously hard to read, and all over the map. He will say we just want to get rid of those who commit serious crimes, but then he uses the numbers 2 to 3 million. You know, nobody objects to people who have committed serious crimes to be deported from the country.

Trump’s calculations don’t add up to 3 million?

The calculations don’t add up to 2 or 3 million. … If he puts forward a trillion-dollar infrastructure plan that has a benefit for California and for Sacramento, and you know we have to find ways to work with him on that.

We have two riverfronts, connecting up West Sacramento and Sacramento. The streetcar thing, are we going to revise that?

Yes … the streetcar thing is there, I mean, we got $30 million in cap-and-trade funding from my bill. You know from the cap-and-trade investment plan to help complete the funding from the streetcar. … I think connectivity with West Sacramento is crucial and they have already started on their side of the road. And we’ve got to get at it. And we already have a master plan, we don’t need another. We need to pick two or three targets of opportunity and let’s get going. We’ve got the Powerhouse Science Center, we got Matsui [Waterfront] Park, we’ve got opportunities, we’ve got the docks, we’ve got Old Sacramento; we got to get going.

What else should I have asked you that I failed to do?

We didn’t talk about the arts. I grew up more of a sports guy than an arts guy but I know instinctively as a politician and a leader that a great city prizes arts as much as it prizes sports. And, you know, we cut the budget for the Metropolitan Arts Commission and it hasn’t gotten back up to the level before the cuts. … I want to put some energy into not just the traditional arts here—Crocker [Art Museum], the ballet, the [Sacramento] Philharmonic, the opera—but, also, there is an incredible emerging arts culture here.

Like the Second Saturday kind of thing?

Yes, and the Art Hotel, and the [Warehouse Artists Lofts], and why can’t we have some more live entertainment at our [Regional Transit] stops to enliven, we need to enliven the urban experience.

Speaking of RT—so, Measure B went down, just barely.

Ugh, yes. We’re going to have to come back to the voters again, and were going to have to work with our state legislative delegation. We have a very good delegation here. You know, as the legislature grapples with a state transportation [tax], and we have to be more aggressive going after cap-and-trade money.

In Measure B, it was one-third for transit and about two-thirds for roads. Do you think that’s the right breakdown?

You know, I think it was both a substantive and political compromise, because we went countywide, so I thought the coalition that put that together did a good job. Now where do we go from here? Well, we have to look at the numbers, and see what it would take to get the additional percent plus to get over the threshold.

A lot of it was in context of RT not having—

Well, RT is on the move now. … You got great leadership on the board, you got great recognition to get RT on the board, and I think we’re going to turn the corner there.

So then, just on the culture of the city council?

Lot of culture with the city council, interactions with each other, or with the public?

Well, both.

You know what, I think this is a very good city council and I also think that we can create a better … esprit de corps—not just between colleagues but with the city staff and with the public. City Hall ought to be a place of great energy, positive energy, and have everyone on the field welcome.