Historically Southside Park was Central City’s natural low spot and was subject to seasonal flooding. As such, development in Sacramento was at first confined to areas north of the R Street levee. But this changed with the construction of the levee at Y Street (now Broadway) opening up development south of R street starting in the late 1800s. The neighborhood welcomed those working in  nearby railyards, canneries, and lumber yards and those whose race (i.e. Portuguese, Japanese, Italians, Slavs, Africans) was not welcomed in more gentile parts of the City until the late 1960s.

This lower income/racially diverse legacy certainly carries over to the present day for Southside Park and Richmond Grove, but now as a strength as surrounding Central City districts are much less diverse and expensive. But like Central City Southside Park & Richmond Grove are solid mixed-use and walkable districts. With a density of only 7K per square mile, Southside Park could certainly use more housing and people. This would help support more retail and cultural amenities and hopefully provide more affordable housing. I’d also like to see more dense mixed-use buildings along the 15th & 16th street corridors. 

URBAN STRENGTHS:

* Overall very good sidewalk and curb cut infrastructure but lots of curb cuts not up to ADA standards.
* Quality historic architecture overall. In-fill is more of a mixed bag. Most of it is good urban form but plenty bland 60s & 70s design and some autocentric in-fill as well.
* Very convenient access to Dwtn, great public transit access, and a very comfortable neighborhood for all transportation moods.
* Excellent racial and economic diversity.
* Several walkable schools within the district are nearby.
* Great tree canopy.
* Southside park anchors the Southside neighborhood and is the largest park in the Central Sacramento. There are several smaller parks on the district’s northern edge.
* Quality cultural amenities including many restaurants & bars, several cafes & art galleries, a handful of live music venues, 1 community theater, a couple local museums and convenient access to Dwtn’s cultural amenities.
* Retail amenities include a Safeway, a pharmacy, several boutiques, a couple banks, several florist and dessert shops, a couple book stores, several gyms and churches and the eclectic Ice House mixed-use space.
* Good urban massing but some autocentric spots along 15th & 16th Streets.

URBAN WEAKNESSES:

* Density is pretty mediocre for an urban district.
* Very few households with kids but still some age diversity.
* Certainly an expensive place to purchase a house but a decent # of moderately priced 1-bed condos selling btwn 300K-600K. 2-beds sell anywhere btwn 400K-1M. 3 & 4 beds btwn 500K-1.1 M.
* Rentals are a similar story… studios lease in the 1Ks, 2-beds in the 1 & 2Ks, 2-beds in the 2 & 3Ks, and 3-beds anywhere from 3K-6K.
* Missing a public library and post office, and no department stores.
* Decent pedestrian activity but certainly less vibrant than other Central Sacramento districts.