Just days after he was elected, Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson invited other mayors in the region to a breakfast. The top leaders of West Sacramento, Marysville, Elk Grove, Auburn, Citrus Heights, Loomis, Live Oak, Yuba City, Rocklin, Lincoln, Winters and Rancho Cordova showed up.
Johnson's message: Let's work together to solve problems in our region – "be collaborative, not competitive."
A year later, Sacramento's self-proclaimed collaborative mayor needlessly offended Rancho Cordova officials when he announced that he planned to house 105 homeless men, women and children this winter in that city without consulting city officials.
Like the rest of Rancho Cordova, Councilman Ken Cooley learned about Johnson's homeless plan for his city from the newspapers. When Cooley went out to examine the proposed site at the old Mather Air Force Base, he found deteriorating apartments probably built in the 1950s. Most had no stoves or refrigerators. Some had mold. A city employee stuck a pen into a wall and ants came boiling out.
Cooley is proud of the fact that his city houses hundreds of formerly homeless people today. He doesn't oppose bringing in more, but he says the city needs to be consulted. And there's got to be a plan that includes decent habitation, security, services and programs for children.
We applaud Johnson's zest to tackle tough issues, but his arrogant go-it-alone style hurts the very goals he's trying to achieve – and not just on the homeless front.
Johnson held a news conference last week about a new Kings arena with the downtown railyard as a backdrop, clearly signaling that site was his favorite. But no one on Johnson's team bothered to talk to the railyard developer before the news conference or to officials at Cal Expo, another potential site that Johnson previously had touted.
If he wants to get things done, the mayor must do what he promised – work in partnership with others.
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