(WEST SACRAMENTO, Calif.) – From a resident-led new housing ordinance to accusations that certain city council members prioritize their own interests, 2025 was a busy year for West Sacramento.
The January 15 meeting began with public comments for items not on the agenda.
Proponent for Tiny Homes on Wheels (THoWs), Robyn Davis, told the council that she was "excited for this new year and the new Tiny Home on Wheels ordinance.”
Davis has been approaching the council for nearly a couple of years, as read here.
At the February 19 meeting, Yolo County Housing executive director Ian Evans presented on the county’s 5-year Strategic Planning Process.
Mayor Martha Guerrero poked holes in the plan, asking, “If there's a way to partner with the City to find more permanent housing,” before she stated, “'I’d like to find a way to, to open that niche and find out what we can do to support you.”
(Photo: West Sacramento government presentation)
Other agenda items included the purchase of a motel to be absorbed into the City's Homeless Emergency Housing Program, a public hearing on the proposed 5-year plan for West Sacramento’s Permanent Local Housing Allocation funds, and a request that the City act as a passthrough for a parcel of land earmarked by its future developer as potential affordable housing.
An appeal to the Liberty Project’s Environmental Impact Report caused a stir at the March 5 meeting. The claim centered around a distrust of the West Sacramento Levee Improvement Program, citing it as insufficient to protect the potential 1,503 homes from flooding.
While no new evidence was produced, the appeal was enough to draw others to the podium, and not only for the Liberty Project.
The lack of a pre-existing, publicly available evacuation plan for any of the zones in West Sacramento was heavily criticized. Resident Gay Reinhardt point blank asked, “How do you justify decisions like this?” Before pushing further and suggesting, “Could we be trading health and safety for developer profits?”
Despite the outcry, the appeal failed. The Liberty Project continued to its next phase.
(Photo: West Sacramento government presentation)
While finance was the main theme for the March 19 meeting, a public hearing was scheduled for ordinance 24-9, permitting “THoWs as legal dwellings. However, the hearing had to be postponed due to new state-mandated notice requirements."
On April 30, 2025, following a presentation from the Sacramento Area Council Of Governments (SACOG) on the projected population growth in the Sacramento region, THoWs Ordinance 24-9 was finally up for public hearing. Senior City Planner Daniel Berumen presented on the ordinance, the council asked logistical questions, and then the public had their turn to speak.
Robyn Davis opened and used her 3 minutes to thank a long list of individuals who were integral to getting the ordinance to this point.
The Liberty Project was back on the agenda for April 30. This time, with a revised plan based on the feedback received. Now, the public comments were, while mixed, in the majority support of Phase 1 of the Liberty Project. At the following meeting, the Liberty Project was fully approved.
(Photo: West Sacramento government presentation)
THoWs ordinance 24-9 was officially ratified.
Tiny Homes on Wheels are now classified as legal dwellings in West Sacramento.What a win for alternative housing!
A presentation was given at the May 21, meeting by Associate Community Investment Planner Isaah Alford on the Community Development Block Grant (CDBG). He outlined a well-received draft that focused on homelessness support services and low-income neighborhoods.
June 4 saw an acceptance of in-lieu fees as opposed to dedicated affordable housing units at the Newport Estates, developed by Seeno Homes. The CDBG plan was approved on June 18, 2025. It was specified that the emergency housing listed in the plan, by design, excluded families. West Sacramento Housing Manager, Raul Huerta said "we try not to put families in that environment.”
(Photo: West Sacramento government presentation)
While the July 16 meeting had no items that directly affected housing, outside the finalisation of the annual Municipal Code omnibus update, resident well-being was still central. Mosquito control, drunk driving, and the cost of programs hosted by Parks and Recreation were all discussed with care and thought.
On August 6, the city council was again accused of putting developers and business before residents. Resident Rhonda Pope Flores told the council of her mission to “Remind you of the games that were played with our community center.” And lamented that, after the loss of the center, a bar took over the space.
At the August 20 meeting, the council augmented the West Sacramento Area Flood Control Agency board and its governing document, the Joint Powers Agreement, to reflect the withdrawal of Reclamation District 537.
Homelessness was back on the agenda for the September 17 agenda. The City’s Homeless Emergency Housing Program received approval to hire in-house case managers, and Mayor Guerrero addressed the Yolo County Grand Jury report titled “Homelessness: Our Local American Tragedy.”
There were also forty-six residents who utilized in-person public comments to share their love and support for Three Sisters Gardens, whose lease renewal opgov.ai covered in December.
(Photo: YouTube)
October 1 brought homeowner Mark Reye’s appeal to keep his carport despite its deviation from the zoning code. His appeal failed due to the number of ordinances he violated, and his inability to bring the structure to code and on the 15th of the month all consent agenda items were passed without comment, which meant the only dialog was over the creation of a West Sacramento Tourism Marketing District.
The November 5 meeting was covered by opgov.ai, as Councilmember Dawnte' Early drilled YoloTD Senior Transportation Planner Lola Torney on the recommended short-range transit plan.
Yolo County Housing’s 75th anniversary was recognized by the November 19th City Council meeting. A sale of land owned by Washington Unified School District to the City was approved, as was a budget to redesign the City website.
(Photo: YouTube)
December 3rd brought the last City Council meeting of the year. The public comment section was dominated by emotional pleas for the Three Sisters Gardens lease renewal, including an outburst covered by opgov.ai.
Resident Maria Grijalva was allowed back into the room later in the meeting, where she again accused the council of being “A mean girls club,” this time over Mayor Pro Tem Verna Sulpizio Hull’s position as Mayor Pro Tem.
Her accusations were not intended to be directed at Mayor Guerrero, who worked very hard to respect residents under very stressful circumstances.
So that wraps up 2025 here. OpGov.ai looks forward to covering the city closely in 2026, providing all information that matters most to the public.
If you would like to add to this report, email me at sarah.s@lead4earth.org.
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