Its plans include building out 9,400 homes for about 25,000 people and creating a new community near the Sacramento International Airport, one the size of a small city. If completed, the community would stretch 2,000 acres along Garden Highway. The City Council voted 8 to 1 to oppose the development<\/a> last August. It sent a formal letter urging the county not to proceed with it. <\/p>\n Discussions about the Natomas project have taken place since 2018. But when the city opposed it, council members argued it violates an agreement made in 2002 between the city and county<\/a> to preserve land near the Sacramento River as protected agricultural open space. <\/p>\n Councilmember Karina Talmantes, who represents part of Natomas, has continued to push back on the project as it returns to the county for approval this week. This week, she took to social media<\/a> to urge the county to delay its vote. She said the development would hurt the communities she represents.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cThe project in itself is basically the size of Galt \u2026 you are building a city the size of Galt right next to many residential neighborhoods,\u201d she said, pointing to what she described as \u201cmany unanswered questions\u201d about transportation, public safety and schools. Ronnie Bell, who is running for the District 2 seat on the Board of Supervisors, said he backs the project.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cRight now our number one concern has to be finding affordable homes for the people who don\u2019t have them,\u201d Bell said.<\/p>\n Bell also pushed back on concerns about the Swainson\u2019s hawk, arguing that environmental protections should not outweigh the need for housing.<\/p>\n \u201cI don’t mean to sound flippant, but we have a housing crisis. So, the hawk will have to be moved. And I’m sure the hawk will be fine, Sacramento is a huge area,\u201d Bell said. \u201cThere is ample room on those waterways for the hawk to find a new place to live and to raise its offspring.\u201d If approved on Tuesday, the county-led plans to build the project would move forward. Additional planning and approval from the county would be needed before construction begins. The Board of Supervisors is expected to take public comment at its 2 p.m. meeting<\/a> before making a final decision.<\/p>\n Additional reporting contributed by CapRadio reporter, Riley Palmer<\/a>.<\/p>\n
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Councilmember Karina Talamantes opposes the development that could come near the district she represents on August 12, 2025.Tony Rodriguez\/CapRadio<\/p>\n
Heather Fargo was Sacramento\u2019s mayor when the conservation plans were adopted. She said the project is moving forward without environmental concern for the protected land and road planning.
\u201cThey have no reliable source of water. They have no plans to improve the transportation issues or transportation improvements that should be done on either the Interstate 80 or the two-lane roads that connect to it,\u201d Fargo said.
She also raised concerns about the county’s prioritization of housing development. She said the county has housing projects approved elsewhere in the region that have yet to be built, and that it would stretch into the threatened Swainson\u2019s hawk’s<\/a> natural habitat and nesting area.\u00a0
\u201cThe [development would] encroach into the one-mile buffer\u2026 basically wipe it out\u2026 the birds will have to move \u2026 and move closer to the airport,\u201d Fargo said.
Supporters of the project argue the region still faces a housing shortage. They say developments like Upper Westside are needed to increase supply and bring down costs.<\/p>\n
CapRadio reached out to County Supervisor Phil Serna, who represents the Natomas area and has previously supported the project. Serna did not respond ahead of publication.\u00a0<\/p>\n
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