The photo shows the location of Middle Avenue, which was approved by the City Council for abandonment. Photo courtesy of the City of West Sacramento.

WEST SACRAMENTO, CA (MPG) – Abandonment of an unused West Sacramento Street and updates to the city’s park and facility naming policy were presentation subjects at the City Council’s Jan. 15 meeting.

City Council held a public hearing to consider a resolution vacating the public right-of-way known as Middle Avenue, located in the 600 block of Sutter Street. Middle Avenue is west of Sutter Street in an area of the city bordered by First Avenue on the south, Interstate 80 to the west and the Southern Pacific Railway line to the north.

According to the staff report, Middle Avenue was built and dedicated to Yolo County in April 1927 as part of the Sutter Gardens Acres final development map. It was subsequently transferred to the city of West Sacramento upon its incorporation in 1987.

“It was never improved as a road or public right of way,” Community Development Department principal engineer Mark Collier told the council.

The request for vacating Middle Avenue comes from the adjacent property owner, who owns property on both sides of the right of way. The abandonment is part of the property owner’s proposed XTRA Lease project currently under review by the city.

The five council members voted unanimously to approve the Middle Avenue vacation.

City Council also received a staff presentation and report on proposed revisions to the city’s Park and Facility Naming Policy. Council had previously directed city staff as part of its 2024 Strategic Plan to combine the park and facility naming policies into one policy with “best practices for equitable and intentional naming.”

Council also requested that the updates include “the representation and land acknowledgement of the local indigenous tribes.”

Historically, the park naming process has been separate from the facility process and has usually taken place as part of development. The current process begins with residents’ submitting a proposed name to the director of Parks and Recreation, which is then reviewed by the Parks, Recreation and Intergenerational Services (PRIS) Commission and subsequently submitted for final approval to City Council.

Besides the combining of policies and assigning of final authority, other proposed naming policy changes noted that facilities included are city buildings, parks, bridges, overpasses, trails “and other related public amenities and locations.”

In his presentation, Capital Projects Department Capital Improvement manager Peter Ibrahim told council that the naming criteria included the provision that “names selected should reflect DEI (diversity, equity, inclusion) of the West Sacramento community and have local, state or national relevance.”

Under the new policy, City Council, department staff and residents can submit requests for naming at any time. Requests should be filed on the appropriate form with the City Clerk, who reviews it for completeness and forwards it to City Council where it can be discussed, modified and placed on an upcoming agenda for consideration.

At the meeting, council can decide if the proposal needs community input, and if so, it is referred to the Community Relations Department for outreach to citizens and the PRIS Commission for review. If the nomination is an individual, it must have the approval of the individual or their families.

After review and consideration of community input, the proposal is again sent to City Council for final approval.

During council questions, Mayor Martha Guerrero asked Ibrahim if staff could make sure that the public vetting process for park and facility naming will be conducted in multiple languages. Ibrahim confirmed that there was a way to meet that request.

Council unanimously approved the proposed park and facility-naming policy updates.