Rio Linda and Elverta are, officially, unincorporated communities within Sacramento County.
Being “unincorporated” means that we have no direct local control over our government, land use or planning. We have no mayor or city council who directly oversees our community. This means that we are governed directly by Sacramento County. The closest thing we have to a mayor would be our Sacramento County Supervisor, Sue Frost.
Elected in 2016, Sue is the District 4 supervisor. District 4 is not just Rio Linda and Elverta. Sue’s district begins at the railroad tracks to our west, and continues east all the way to Folsom Lake. It then takes a Florida-like turn to the south, where it continues down past the Cosumnes River to Highway 16 to include Rancho Murieta. In all, Sue’s District includes Rio Linda, Elverta, North Highlands, Antelope, Citrus Heights, Orangevale, Folsom, Gold River and Rancho Murieta.
Obviously, what works for Folsom or Gold River may not work for Rio Linda. To account for that consideration, the county has empaneled “Community Planning Advisory Councils” or CPACs to advise and review planning , environmental, and land use issues in the individual communities. The CPACs in District 4 are in Antelope, Orangevale, Rancho Murieta, and Rio Linda/Elverta.
Issues our CPAC has considered and advised on recently include:
- Downtown Rio Linda Special Planning Area
- Elverta Specific Plan
- RiteAid and Starbucks project
- Century Palms Project
- Paradise Road Tattoo on M Street
- Sikh Temple project on 16th Street
They also occasionally advise on broad policy questions which apply to the entire county.
The CPAC’s responsibility is to provide direct local citizen participation early in the planning process when it is easier for project backers, developers and decision-makers to be responsive to public concerns.
During a typical meeting, project applicants will present the project to the CPAC and audience. The council will ask questions and express any of their concerns. After, the audience will be asked for input on the project. General public response/specific concerns are recorded in the CPAC minutes and forwarded to Planning and Environmental Review for inclusion in the staff report to the hearing body.
CPAC members are appointed by the County Supervisor for that community. This voluntary membership gives you a seat and a vote at the CPAC meeting. Members are expected to attend the monthly meeting and may have occasional responsibilities related to meeting preparation.
(To apply for a seat on your CPAC go to the Boards and Commissions page on the Clerk of the Board’s website and click on the “Application and Instructions” link.)
The Rio Linda/Elverta CPAC meets on the 4th Wednesday of the month, 7:00 p.m., at the Rio Linda Depot Visitors’ Center – 6730 Front Street in Downtown Rio Linda.
Our current CPAC members are Zachary Arbios, Roy Hickey, Suzie MacDonald, and Hal Morris. There is one seat open which is expected to be filled within the next month.
For more information, please visit Sacramento County’s Rio Linda/Elverta CPAC page.
