If one area of Sacramento needs leadership this election, it’s Council District 2 | Opinion
Among Sacramento communities desperate for local leadership, the city council’s District 2 surely tops the list. The area encompasses some of the oldest and most underserved neighborhoods including Old North Sacramento, Hagginwood, Del Paso Heights and parts of Robla.
To its lasting detriment, this district has suffered a string of recent representatives on the city council who have been disappointing to say the least.
The most recent disappointment, Sean Loloee, resigned after his indictment by a federal grand jury in December on multiple charges, including conspiracy to defraud the U.S. Department of Labor. Shoun Thao, executive director of Hmong Youth and Parents United, is currently serving as the District 2 council member until a new leader can be elected.
The Bee is endorsing Roger Dickinson to be that leader because he has the strongest understanding of what this district needs and a proven track record working collaboratively with numerous legislative bodies.
The former assemblyman faced a wide range of opponents in the March primary, and very nearly avoided a run-off, but Stephen Walton, earned enough votes to send him to the November election.
While Walton is a sincere and smart candidate, and we hope he stays involved in public service, we feel Dickinson has the experience and knowledge of the issues needed to serve this district right now.
A former Sacramento County supervisor, Dickinson was previously the executive director of Transportation California, where he worked to help pass the Road Repair and Accountability Act of 2017, the largest transportation funding legislation in California history.
Dickinson is currently a policy director at the local nonprofit CivicWell, and serves on the boards of the Multiple Sclerosis Society of Northern California, the Aerospace Museum of California and the Sacramento Tree Foundation. He is also a co-founder of Sacramento Metro Advocates for Rail and Transit, where he continues to pursue his long-held goals in the policy areas of health care, welfare reform, economic development, clean air, improved transportation and smart growth. He has been a dedicated public servant to the people of Sacramento for over four decades.
We believe Dickinson could be the stabilizing force District 2 desperately needs — and desperately deserves.
He has the relationships to put his district on the state and federal map for financial assistance programs. The former representative has experience working with the Housing Concepts Coalition and has advocated for affordable housing initiatives and collaboration with community organizations to bring in much-needed investments.
He supports mental health professionals and social workers serving as first responders in non-emergency situations that don’t require a police presence.
Dickinson seeks to integrate these services into the city’s emergency response system and wants to bring “high tech, green and clean” industries to North Sacramento, such as renewable energy sources and clean technologies that cannot be cheaply outsourced.
Along with our endorsement, we sincerely hope that Dickinson can help restore stability, community, dignity and good governance to District 2, which needs genuine care and attention from its representative — perhaps now more than ever.
Perhaps best of all, he already has a point in his favor over the last guy: Dickinson lives in the district.
BEHIND THE STORY
MOREWhat are editorials, and who writes them?
Editorials represent the collective opinion of The Sacramento Bee Editorial Board.
They do not reflect the individual opinions of board members or the views of Bee reporters in the news section. Bee reporters do not participate in editorial board deliberations or weigh in on board decisions. The same rules apply to our sister publications, The Modesto Bee, Fresno Bee, Merced Sun-Star and San Luis Obispo Tribune.
In Sacramento, our board includes Bee Executive Editor Colleen McCain Nelson, McClatchy California Opinion Editor Marcos Breton, opinion writers Robin Epley, Tom Philp, LeBron Antonio Hill and op-ed editor Hannah Holzer.
In Fresno and Merced, the board includes Central Valley Executive Editor Don Blount, Senior Editor Christopher Kirkpatrick, Opinion Editor Juan Esparza Loera, and opinion writer Tad Weber.
In Modesto, the board includes Senior Editor Carlos Virgen and in San Luis Obispo, it includes Opinion Editor Stephanie Finucane.
We base our opinions on reporting by our colleagues in the news section, and our own reporting and interviews. Our members attend public meetings, call people and follow-up on story ideas from readers just as news reporters do. Unlike objective reporters, we share our judgments and state clearly what we think should happen based on our knowledge.
Read more by clicking the arrow in the upper right.
Tell us what you think
You may or may not agree with our perspective. We believe disagreement is healthy and necessary for a functioning democracy. If you would like to share your own views on events important to the Sacramento region, you may write a letter to the editor (150 words or less) using this form, or email an op-ed (650-750 words) to opinion@sacbee.com. Due to a high volume of submissions, we are not able to publish everything we receive.
Support The Sacramento Bee
These conversations are important for our community. Keep the conversation going by supporting The Sacramento Bee. Subscribe here.
This story was originally published September 30, 2024 at 12:00 AM.