Sacramento (March 28, 2023) The number of unhoused people sleeping on the sidewalks and other public spaces of Sacramento’s downtown has steadily declined since the city launched a new outreach program with the Downtown Sacramento Partnership.

At the same time, the number of people patronizing downtown businesses continues to grow as new housing projects open and a steady lineup of entertainment and sports events draws large crowds.

*Source: Downtown Sacramento Partnership*

The Downtown Partnership conducts a monthly census of the number of people sleeping outdoors downtown. In February, it counted 120 people, down from 200 in September 2022— a 40 percent decrease.

Nicholas Golling, homeless services manager for the city of Sacramento, said the increased focus on outreach to unhoused people downtown is at least part of the reason for the reduction, along with the weather and an increase in events downtown. Starting in June 2022, the City’s Department of Community Response began dedicating employees to work alongside outreach workers from DSP.

“It’s a team approach to get people connected to resources, to get them somewhere safe,” Golling said.

The teams connected 43 people to shelter and provided services to more than 500 people downtown in the program’s first six months of operation, according to the Downtown Sacramento Partnership.

“Finally, we have some objective good news on homelessness,” Mayor Steinberg said. “For the past six and a half years, we have laid a foundation to make this problem better, and we are beginning to see the results. We have a long way to go, but this shows we’re moving in the right direction.”

The Department of Community Response runs a similar outreach program in midtown with the Midtown Association. And under Mayor Darrell Steinberg’s leadership, the city and Sacramento County have signed a historic partnership agreement and launched joint outreach teams to connect with people living in large encampments and get them enrolled in behavioral health services and placed in housing. The county and city are in the process of jointly adding hundreds of new emergency shelter beds, including 350 tiny homes recently promised by Gov. Gavin Newsom.

Mayor Steinberg cited the reduction in unsheltered homelessness downtown as one of a number of positive trends in the urban core. In the past year, the city provided $4.2 million to the Downtown Partnership for security, lighting, and increased cleaning in the core of downtown, which includes Old Sacramento.

The Downtown Partnership reported this month that 4.7 million people had visited, worked or lived in downtown so far in 2023, a 21 percent increase from the 3.9 million who spent time downtown in the same period of 2022.

While some businesses closed during the pandemic, others stayed open and even expanded. Ernesto Delgado owns Mayhuel restaurant at 12th and K streets and La Cosecha in Cesar Chavez Plaza. He said the plaza is cleaner and feels safer since the city trimmed the trees, put new plants in the fountain, and increased maintenance. New string lighting will come soon, and Delgado recently won a $4,000 grant from the City of Sacramento to reprise last summer’s screening in the park of movies from the golden age of Mexican cinema.

Later this year, Delgado plans to open a new ceviche and oyster bar, called Octopus, in a storefront across 9th Street from La Cosecha in the Plaza Tower. Next door, in another vacant space, he will open Mercado Urbano, a market he likened to a “mini-Nugget” that will also have pastries, lunch, and prepared food.

Delgado is one of a number of business owners seeing larger lunch and dinner crowds as people come back downtown. He has been leading an effort to make Cesar Chavez Plaza a place for more large gatherings and community events. He said the Sacramento Hispanic Chamber of Commerce will hold its $200-a-head awards gala in the plaza at the end of April.

Ryan Royster and his partners in the restaurant Tiger, which sits on K Street just outside the entrance to DOCO, have been pulling people in by booking major artists like rapper and singer Don Toliver, by hosting live band open mics, and by posting social media “fit checks” highlighting patrons’ creative attire — among other things.

“With the success of the Kings bringing fans flocking to downtown, combined with other major activations like March Madness (NCAA Basketball) at Golden 1 Center, we have seen business trending in a positive direction,” Royster said. “Although this is exciting, we are still focused on finding sustainable ways to encourage and increase foot traffic beyond large-scale G1C events especially as we head into spring and better weather.

“The health and vibrancy of the K St corridor is largely a barometer of the health of our city. Thriving small businesses and decreased houseless populations reflect positively on a macro citywide level increasing the perception of safety for would-be dining and entertainment seekers as well as tourists.”