Sacramento councilmember needs land for homeless shelter. He’s still searching
.jpg "Councilmember Rick Jennings, seen during a Sacramento City Council meeting in January 2024, has said his district has yet to secure a site for a homeless tiny home community despite a yearslong city effort.")
Four years after Sacramento required each council district to site homeless housing, Councilmember Rick Jennings’ district — spanning Land Park, Curtis Park and the Pocket and Greenhaven neighborhoods — still has none.
“We must act now,” then-Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg said, his emphatic tone punctuating each word.
The former mayor made the remarks during a 2021 City Council meeting to approve temporary shelters, also known as tiny homes, for people experiencing homelessness. Steinberg implored council members to approve an ordinance, urging swift action to assist thousands sleeping on Sacramento’s streets in every council district and address businesses dealing with encampments.
Each council member was tasked with selecting a site for long- and short-term housing. After four years of searching, Councilmember Rick Jennings said he and city officials had not identified land that met requirements to establish a temporary shelter in his 7th District. Jennings said a site’s specifications could be “adjusted based on the standards that we’ve set.”
“I don’t want to be the only council (member) that doesn’t have a micro-community in his district,” Jennings said. “I’m after them constantly, talking to them, working with the city manager and different departments.”
Efforts to establish tiny homes have extended from Steinberg’s tenure into Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty’s administration and his broader plan to address homelessness. McCarty’s “six-point plan” includes creating micro-communities in districts represented by Jennings and council members Lisa Kaplan, Caity Maple and Mai Vang.
The difficulty in finding a site complicates McCarty’s policy to expand services for tiny homes dedicated to Sacramento’s seniors. The mayor said his plan is “ambitious but achievable,” despite Jennings and city staff not securing land since 2021 in his district, which includes the Pocket, Land Park and Curtis Park.
“We’ve been clear these sites must prioritize results, cost efficiency and equitable distribution — including (Jennings’ district), where we’re actively evaluating several city-owned locations,” McCarty wrote in a statement.
A tiny home site is typically placed on a city-owned parcel between one and 1.5 acres and includes about 40 units. The property must also connect to water, sewer, electrical and gas, Jennings said.
“Those requirements being, and the amount of build out that (my district) already has,” he said, “it’s hard to find.”
Developing a city-owned parcel allows Sacramento to save money as the council balances a $66.2 million budget deficit. The start-up cost for each site is estimated at about $3.5 million and annual operating costs are about $500,000, Department of Community Response Director Brian Pedro has said.
Jennings said the city has waited to see whether property owners would sell land at roughly $1 per acre, which he described as difficult to find. Despite the yearslong search, he expressed optimism.
“We have to keep looking,” he said. “Trying to turn every stone upside down, trying to make sure that we haven’t missed anything.”
Councilmember Karina Talamantes’ 3rd District, which includes South Natomas, does not have tiny homes. In a statement, she said her district includes permanent supportive housing for unsheltered residents at Vista Nueva and Northview Pointe apartments, along with other programs.
McCarty’s plan calls for placing tiny homes in the following areas:
1st District, North Natomas: North Natomas’ 3511 Arena Blvd. in Councilmember Lisa Kaplan’s district.
2nd District, North Sacramento: South Hagginwood neighborhood at 2809 Rio Linda Blvd in Councilmember Roger Dickinson’s district.
4th District, Downtown/East Sacramento: River District at 291 Sequoia Blvd. in Councilmember Phil Pluckebaum’s district.
5th District, Oak Park/Parkway: Brentwood neighborhood, near Sacramento Executive Airport, at 6360 25th St. in Councilmember Caity Maple’s district. Parkway neighborhood at 4290 Mack Road in Maple’s district.
6th District, Tahoe Park/Colonial Village/Elder Creek: An unidentified safe parking site in Eric Guerra’s district.
8th District, Meadowview/Valley Hi/North Laguna: Meadowview neighborhood at 2461 Gardendale Road in Councilmember Mai Vang’s district.
