Interesting on a couple of fronts. 1) that Arnie had included Cal Expo on his list of things to sell off in California's garage sale to try to pay the rent for one more year, whihc would seem to put pressure on the board to do something drastic; and 2) that the majority of the Cal Expo baord are from the Sacramento area. Makes sense I guess, but I think I assumed that as a statewide fair it would be represented by peeps from across the state. Instead they are mostly locals. Wonder how many fo them have been to Kings games?
GAS put Cal Expo on his list of CA properties to sell in May 2009.
Other state properities included San Quentin State Prison, the Los Angeles Coliseum, the Cow Palace in Daly City, the Del Mar Fairgrounds, and the Orange County and Ventura County fairgrounds.
Some more interesting tidbits from the same article I found:
"The state estimates it would raise $80 million from the sale of Cal Expo as is, but $150 million if it has the 850-acre property rezoned for mixed-use development. The document says a study would be necessary to determine whether the California State Fair, a Sacramento fixture, could remain on the site."
And...
"But Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg, D-Sacramento, said he would consider the plan -- including his hometown Cal Expo -- given the scope of the state's structural budget problems.
"It's not a new idea, but I and my colleagues are certainly open to any and all creative ideas, and you know every dollar saved through ideas like this means a dollar less of painful cuts to public education, to the most vulnerable people in California," he said.
Steinberg added he would need to further explore the details. "It's important to the people of Sacramento that Cal Expo remain the venue for the State Fair," he said."
I don't have a link to it but I was able to find the story via Sac State's Library access to a large database that includes the Sacramento Bee.
The quote below was taken from the Sacramento Press, which of course is the topic of this thread.
"Representatives of Steinberg and Assemblyman Dave Jones of Sacramento — both nonvoting, ex-officio board members — are expected to attend Friday's meeting."
Dave Jones and nonvoting...love seeing that in the same sentence.
