We asked readers for their opinions of the Sacramento area’s future. Here’s what they said

Many residents of the Sacramento region seem worried about its future. But for the most part, they seem willing to stick it out.

Nearly 300 readers of The Sacramento Bee responded to a Bee survey seeking input on the biggest issues facing our region and what should be done to address those challenges. The survey was part of The Bee’s Tipping Point series exploring the toughest problems in the region, including our housing affordability crisis and climate change.

The Bee’s coverage of those issues and its reader survey are happening as the Sacramento Area Council of Governments develops its next regional blueprint, which will serve as a guide for how local governments establish their transportation and development priorities over the next 25 years.

Roughly 20% of those who responded to The Bee’s survey said they were not optimistic that their children or other young people would be able to afford to live in the Sacramento region 25 years from now. Less than 7% expressed high levels of optimism in the region’s future affordability.

“My two adult kids have moved elsewhere already,” one survey respondent wrote. Others said they were worried about the region’s future challenges with climate change and public safety.

Still, nearly half of those who responded to the survey said they had not considered leaving the region in the last five years. A little more than 10% said they had taken significant steps to relocate.

About 39% of survey takers said homelessness is the most severe challenge facing the region, the largest share of any issue. Another 30% said housing affordability was the biggest challenge, while climate change, suburban sprawl and traffic congestion also received significant responses.

Survey respondents listed several amenities the region needs to focus on developing in the years to come, with expanding public transit receiving the most support. Others said more should be done to make housing more affordable and parks cleaner. One survey respondent simply replied, “Kindness.”

In terms of housing, about 38% said their ideal neighborhood and home would be a single-family residence with a small yard in Sacramento, Elk Grove or Roseville. Another 26% said they preferred a single-family home with a large lot in a suburban neighborhood, while 21% would favor living in an apartment or condo in a densely populated neighborhood.

Those who responded to the survey expressed overwhelming support for investing public dollars into addressing the region’s challenges.

More than 80% said they would support a large public investment in funding climate resiliency infrastructure such as levees, groundwater retention and wildfire prevention. Nearly 75% said they would support significant public dollars being spent on funding affordable housing, and 72% said they want a large public investment in expanding the region’s public transportation network.

Readers have plenty of things they like about living in the Sacramento region.

About 38% said living close to their family is the biggest positive for being here. Access to the outdoors, the weather and “big city” amenities also ranked high. The city of Sacramento ranked as the best place in the region to live, according to our readers, followed by Davis, Folsom and Roseville.