Hello City leaders, business owners and West Sacramento community members,

My name is Leticia "Tish" Palamidessi and I have lived in West Sacramento for 25-years. My husband Chris and I always knew when it was time to raise our family and start a business, there was no other place we’d want to be than our home town of West Sacramento. Over the years we’ve been so proud of how the city has grown - while still protecting its feel of a small, tight knit community. I currently have three children at Our Lady of Grace School, and am a part of the parents in opposition to the bike Nest's location along the Clarksburg Trail.

I was recently given a letter from Mr. Sturmfels to all of you in response to our opposition; calling our group "small" and a "minority" of the Our Lady of Grace community. I write today to repeat the previous opposing views to your project's location - and would like to add, as a Yolo County resident and tax payer, along with pulling my dollars from your businesses - I'd like to remind you I am a registered voter and will not forget the disregard for our concerns come the next election.

The continued dismissal of concerns we have for the safety of OUR CHILDREN as "small" by Assemble Sacramento is not sitting well with me. It shouldn’t sit well with ANY of you either. We do not see the construction of this project within 100-feet of our campus the same as the other parks near schools in West Sacramento. The Diocese of Sacramento has also assured the OLG community that they HAVE NOT in any way showed support of this project's location in relation to our campus. 

The opposition to the location of your project is larger than you think. I encourage all of you to reach out to us and hear us out.

"While the Nest Project has merits, the amenities provided by the project may also invite trouble. Once the retail stores in the Southport Town Center shoo away transients and loiters, those individuals will naturally gravitate to the Nest. The project is so close to the playground that someone could easily have a conversation with a student. As you may already know, OLG has a transitional kindergarten program -so there are four year old students at the campus. It is an extreme public safety risk to have our children so close to a spot that may invite loitering and all of the negative accompanying impacts such as graffiti, fights, profane conversations and lewd acts.

We have heard that the project proponents have suggested planting a tree barrier, but that’s simply unacceptable - especially since Our Lady of Grace would be tasked with maintaining the tree barrier. We did not ask for this project near our school and our small school already has limited resources. Therefore, it is not fair that our school community would be forced to bear the financial and physical burdens of maintaining the barrier.

Many residents feel that this project has not received the public input it deserves. How did the city choose to give this project money? Was there a public notice the city was looking for ideas on what to do with this space? Were other non-profit proposals considered? Or only those of members of the City’s Planning Commission? A growing group of parents are ready to make their voices and questions louder in opposition to the Nest’s proposed location.

We have copied the sponsors of Assemble Sacramento on this note. They have contributed financially to this project and we think they would be disappointed to lose customers because of their support of this project. Our family will not patronize these businesses until the location of the Nest moves. If our voices aren’t heard, we will be sure to use the power of our spending to help make our point.

We have also included the local newspapers because more members of our community should be informed about what’s happening in our city.

Again, we support the idea of Nest, but we are adamantly opposed to the current proposed location of the Nest. Our request to move the Nest one-tenth of a mile North or South from its current location is not unreasonable. We simply ask that you consider the health and safety of the children, teachers, and families who have called Our Lady of Grace School and West Sacramento home for nearly 60-years and move this project to somewhere else along the bike trail."

Thank you for your consideration,

Leticia “Tish” Palamidessi

 

cc:

Hon. Oscar Villegas, Yolo County Supervisor

Cindy Tuttle, Director West Sacramento Parks and Recreation

Laura Macdonald, Principal, Our Lady of Grace School

Sarah Kirby Gonzalez, Board Member, Washington Unified School Board District

Oscar Villegas, Yolo County District 1 Supervisor

Marianne Estes, Yolo County District 1 Deputy Supervisor

Carol Strunk, Yolo County District 1 Assistant Deputy Supervisor

Clark Pacific

Emily Begay, Teichert Foundation Grants Manager

Fred Teichert, Teichert Foundation

Chuck Cunningham, CEO, Cunningham Engineering

Wood Rogers

Tim Harris, CEO, Insight Public Relations

Bridgeway Play

Village Nurseries

Old Sugar Mill

Bike Dog Brewing Company

Tumber Law Firm

Ridge Capital Real Estate Investment, Inc.

Matt Morrow,CEO, Morrow Surveying

West Sacramento Chamber of Commerce

Jim Brown, Executive Director, Sacramento Area Bicycle Advocates

Andrew Sturmfels, Founder, Sacramento Assemble

Clarksburg Wine Co.

Bogle Winery

West Sac News Ledger

West Sac Web

West Sac Sun