Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty answers a question during The Sacramento Bee’s Q&A event with City Manager Maraskeshia Smith, opinion editor Marcos Breton, and City Hall reporter Ishani Desai in the newsroom on Thursday.
JOSÉ LUIS VILLEGAS
jvillegas@sacbee.com
Sacramento’s 57th mayor and new city manager joined The Bee’s opinion editor Marcos Bretón, and City Hall Reporter Ishani Desai for a Q&A discussion Thursday night.
Marakeshia Smith, now in her fourth month as city manager, decided to work in the city of trees because of its legacy.
“There’s some major projects going on, they have great leadership, why not have a great legacy and work with the Capitol?” Smith said.
Here are four takeaways from The Bee’s Q&A event below.
Sacramento’s top priority: Increase economic development amid budget deficit
Desai noted how significant the Railyards soccer stadium’s 20,000-seat expansion will be for economic development and that it will take time. She asked how the city plans to balance the project amid a $66.2 million budget deficit.
The solution? Employment cuts, McCarty said. “We’re trying to adopt the budget with the least amount of pain, and we’ve done it for two years in a row, pick the low hanging fruit, so there’s not a lot of easy choices left,” he said.
His focus is on growing the city’s economy, and offering more streamlined paths to approve building permits for housing, hotels, restaurants, entertainment projects and other businesses.
Bretón asked about the potential consequences of state workers unionizing to secure 100% telework in downtown, including the loss of property tax revenue and foot traffic. In response, McCarty said having people return to work downtown is a controversial, but unequivocally a positive thing for city employees.
“It’s the governor’s decision, he’s going to make it,” he said.
He also emphasized the need to diversify downtown assets, finding ways to use those buildings, and cited his support for Sacramento State’s new downtown campus.
“We need foot traffic to bring money to some of our storefronts,” Smith said. “If (state workers) don’t come back 100%, we could use some of those locations as housing.”
‘No one-size fits all’ homelessness and housing solutions
McCarty said the city’s homeless population is down by 30% and statewide that number is around 9%.
“Housing and homelessness are tied together, we need to hone in on that,” McCarty said.
Both McCarty and Smith touted the number to the success of micro communities — 40 tiny homes that are 120 square feet, in North Natomas and South Sacramento.
“Our city staff looked at what we were doing … and saw which programs were the most effective for taxpayer dollars and also for people that are homeless,” McCarty said. The tiny homes cost roughly the same or less as traditional shelters, reveal better outcomes and provide a sense of stability, he added.
“There’s no one-size fits all (solution) when you’re talking about micro communities,” Smith said. “You have to take what you’ve been allocated and try to make the best decision you can.”
Sacramento City Manager Maraskeshia Smith answers a question during The Sacramento Bee’s Q&A event with Mayor Kevin McCarty in the newsroom on Thursday. JOSÉ LUIS VILLEGAS jvillegas@sacbee.com
The City Council has added about 500 new beds in the last 15 months and is on track to add 600 more as part of its six-point plan. Other solutions the city will continue to work on include places suitable for safe camping, parking and converting hotels.
Seniors are one of the fastest-growing homeless populations in Sacramento and have been a main focus as tenants in these micro communities. When asked about how seniors are charged about 30% of their monthly income to stay there, after a 90-day grace period, McCarty compared it to a rent charge.
“There are people in shelters that have income, and when we get people stabilized, we can sign them up for SSI (Supplemental Security Income) and other benefits,” McCarty said. “We’re not forcing people to do this, if seniors want to go through other options, they can.”
How will public safety, traffic fatalities and crime be addressed?
More roads, red light traffic cameras and police enforcement are a part of the city’s plan to improve public safety and reduce traffic fatalities.
Thirty-two car crash deaths occurred last year. Desai referred to the City Council’s 2017 ‘Vision Zero’ plan to reduce traffic fatalities to zero by 2027, and asked how the Department of Public Works plans to improve roads with a backlog of at least $5 billion in road maintenance.
McCarty focused on how speeding, red light cameras and other technologies will improve traffic conditions, while also helping to balance the city’s budget.
“It’s going to take the partnership of all departments to say, how are we now going to move this forward?” Smith said.
Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty and City Manager Maraskeshia Smith during The Sacramento Bee’s Q&A event with in the newsroom on Thursday. JOSÉ LUIS VILLEGAS jvillegas@sacbee.com Sacramento A’s and a potential Major League Baseball team
Sacramento has always been a sports town, McCarty said, referencing the Sacramento Kings.
Even though an official application process has not begun, McCarty expressed his excitement for Sacramento to become a formidable host city for a Major League Baseball team, and build a new MLB stadium in West Sacramento. West Sacramento’s existing ballpark district, 40 acres on the riverfront, view of Tower Bridge looking to the east and financing district makes it a feasible spot.
“Based on their rules in their county, it’s more favorable than ours, and they have a good public private partnership to make that a reality out there,” McCarty said. The project would take multiple years, and bring excitement and revenue to the city.
Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty answers a question during The Sacramento Bee’s Q&A event with City Manager Maraskeshia Smith, opinion editor Marcos Breton, and City Hall reporter Ishani Desai in the newsroom on Thursday. JOSÉ LUIS VILLEGAS jvillegas@sacbee.com
This story was originally published March 27, 2026 at 9:23 AM.
The Sacramento Bee
Kat Tran is a local engagement and retention reporter for The Sacramento Bee. They focus on topics important to subscribers and produces newsletters while organizing community events and outreach. Tran previously worked as a food and drink reporting intern at The Bee. They graduated from the University of Florida in spring 2025.