vibrant walkable area

[caligirlz]

Originally Posted by pistola916

Compared to Fresno and Bakersfield, its a metropolis.

Those of us from the CSJV would say, or Goshen or Weedpatch

[WizardOfRadical]

Originally Posted by pistola916

Compared to Fresno and Bakersfield, its a metropolis.

LOL

[sacreole]

While no San Francisco or L.A., Sacramento is definitely several steps above Fresno and Bakersfield. Consider that Sacramento is the state capital at the confluence of two rivers and two interstate highways. We have an international airport served by Southwest Airlines and other mainline carriers. We are also the "Farm to Fork" capital and have a plethora of great dining establishments. Plus you can be in San Francisco or Tahoe in about 90 minutes.

[enigma99a]

Originally Posted by pistola916

3. Downtown Sac to SF's Financial District is 90 minutes if traffic on I-80 is light. Amtrak provides many train service between Sac and the Bay Area.

I've made it to downtown SF in an hour on many occasions (80mph) and 90 min to SFO. Problem is I-80 is really crowded and often can be double or triple that. Cap corridor is on time and reliable but slow. 2 hours time you transfer to the Bart and make it into The City. But no stress. +1 on Southwest/Jetlue to LA. If you buy in advance you can get some really good deals

[KC6ZLV]

Originally Posted by WizardOfRadical

The central city core is walkable. Vibrant might be a stretch depending on where you are coming from.

Compared to SF and LA it is a cowtown.

I can't say I've ever seen a cow in Sacramento, with the exception of the State agricultural exhibits at Cal-Expo. San Francisco (Daly City), however, had the Cow Palace.

[KC6ZLV]

Originally Posted by sacreole

While no San Francisco or L.A., Sacramento is definitely several steps above Fresno and Bakersfield. Consider that Sacramento is the state capital at the confluence of two rivers and two interstate highways. We have an international airport served by Southwest Airlines and other mainline carriers. We are also the "Farm to Fork" capital and have a plethora of great dining establishments. Plus you can be in San Francisco or Tahoe in about 90 minutes.

The "Farm to Fork" crap makes me laugh. When marketing something as unique, the goal, it seems to me, would be to find something that isn't found elsewhere. I could make a rather extensive list of cities in California surrounded by agriculture, and most of them grow a larger variety of crops than you will find around Sacramento.

But, it makes a certain type of trendy resident feel good, and that is what it is all about.

And these days, I'll take Tahoe over San Francisco. Actually, I rarely go there because I head out into the wild places in the Sierra Nevada.

[elcamero]

Originally Posted by existant

To me the whole central city grid is very walkable, but the moment you walk under a freeway or over a bridge it's basically car dependent suburbia. I was really disappointed with East Sacramento... I felt like the only pedestrian in a sea of cars. Though there are some businesses worth walking to or taking transit to get to that are close to the central city area. (Target, Fedex, USPS, Trader Joes, the co-op, etc.)

Agree with all of this. I lived in East Sac previously and loved aspects of it, but you're pretty much riding a bike or driving for most of what you do.

At one point when I moved back to the Sac area after being away for a while, without thinking I ventured out at rush hour. I distinctly remember sitting at the one of the Howe/Watt/Fair Oaks intersections and feeling like I was going to have a Michael Douglas Falling Down-esque breakdown. Of course, Sac traffic is nothing compared to LA and other places, but the sprawl can feel daunting if you're coming from rural areas.