Friday, July 31, 2026 (Civic Well & Valley Vision)
CEQA 2.0: Diverse Perspectives on New CEQA Reform Proposals
Last June, Assembly Bill (AB) 130 and Senate Bill (SB) 131 were enacted as part of the state’s approved budget. Collectively, this legislation paved the way for sweeping changes to the policies and practices related to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), many of which were included in the Little Hoover Commission’s 2024 report “CEQA: Targeted Reforms for California’s Core Environmental Law.” This year, there are several new proposals to amend or expand CEQA reforms, notably SB 954 (Blakespear) and the Building an Affordable California Act ballot measure backed by the California Chamber of Commerce. This panel will provide an overview of CEQA reform to date and highlight perspectives from civic, community, and business leaders on the risks and opportunities offered with new CEQA exemption proposals with a focus on common ground solutions to the modernization of CEQA as a policy tool.
Panelists: Pat Angell, Ascent, Sacramento Office Director and Chief Marketing Officer; Kate Gordon, CEO, California Forward; Matt Bogoshian, Executive Director, American Manufacturing Communities Collaborative; Kim Delfino, President, Earth Advocacy; Evan Schmidt, CEO, Valley Vision; Bernadette Austin, CEO, CivicWell
Friday, Aug 21, 2026 (ULI & Civic Thread)
Designing for Resilience Through Community-Informed Planning
As communities face growing challenges related to food access, public health, and limited resources, planners are increasingly being asked to respond to needs that extend beyond traditional planning approaches. This moderated discussion brings together cross-sector professionals who have leveraged planning, design, development, and partnerships to improve community well-being and connect residents to essential resources. Through real-world examples, panelists will explore innovative, community-informed strategies that reimagine spaces, systems, and partnerships in response to evolving community needs. Attendees will gain practical insights into cross-sector collaboration, creative problem-solving, and the role planners can play in building more resilient, equitable, and responsive communities.
Panelists: Sam Greenlee, CEO, Alchemist CDC; Amber Stott, CEO, Food Literacy Center; (Invited) Carrie Johnson, Executive Director, Rancho Cordova Food Locker;
Moderator: Rosie Ramos, External Relations Team, SACOG
Friday, Sept 25, 2026 (SACOG)
Partnerships for Vibrant Places
A region coming together for transformative change in our communities–the kind of change that creates resilient and livable communities--takes partnerships across multiple agencies and organizations. Together, we accomplish what one agency or organization could not do alone--in this case, in implementing the Sacramento region’s long-range plan, the 2025 Blueprint. Local initiatives presented during this session serve as evidence of how established relationships became stronger by including new community partners, and how those partners amplified voices and outcomes.
Panelists: Jon Lim, President, Marysville Chinese Community, Inc.; Kary Hauck, CEO, Sapphire Marketing Group; Erika Bumgardner, AICP, Business Development Liaison, City of Woodland; Ian Evans, Executive Director, Yolo County Housing Authority; Rosie Ramos, External Relationships Program Manager, SACOG
Moderator: Lisa Lind, AICP, Blueprint Program Manager, SACOG
Friday, Oct 30, 2026 (AEP)
Development Economics for Inclusive Infill Development
With construction costs remaining stubbornly high in many places and rents becoming unachievable in many communities, this session will focus on successful approaches and examples of how we can foster affordable infill development.
Panelists: Greta Soos, Senior Planner, City of Sacramento; Katie Hanten, P.E., President, Vertical Pacific, ULI Housing Chair; Invited Affordable Infill Developer, TBD
Friday, Nov 20, 2026 (APA & ASLA)
Synergy on the Streets: Aligning Multi-Disciplinary Teams and City Agendas for Community-wide Impact and Climate Resiliency
This session explores how multi-disciplinary teams—spanning civil engineering, landscape architecture, and architecture, can align with community planning efforts and local stakeholders to meet community needs through a unified, climate-resilient neighborhood design.
We will discuss how to marry design, grassroots efforts, and community trust by examining the intersection of a vital community hub and an adjacent complete-streets-corridor for La Familia's Opportunity Center on Franklin Boulevard.
Invited Panelists: Joel Rehbein, Staff Architect, WMB Architects; Ben Woodside, Principal, CALA; Rachel Rios, Executive Director, La Familia Counseling Center, Inc.
