Welcome to Downtown Sacramento, a work in progress. It seems that there is always construction going on as we are a growing city. There is not a really good way to describe our downtown other than eclectic. It’s a mix of the old and the new, historical and modern, traditional and avant garde. Let’s take a look.
The Sacramento skyline as viewed from the city of West Sacramento.
Looking westward from the Capitol at the Tower Bridge. Back in the day, before all the new interstates and freeways were built the entrance into Sacramento from the West was over this bridge.
A side view. This bridge spans the Sacramento River that divides the two cities of Sacramento and West Sacramento. It is also marks the county line. On this side we’re in Sacramento County. West Sacramento, on the other side, is in Yolo County.
City Hall.
Across the street from City Hall is this little park.
US Bank Building.
Looking at the 801 K Street Building.
Some of our buildings have been given unique nicknames by the locals. Another angle shows why the 801 K Street building is called the “Darth Vader Building”". LOL
MIxing the old with the new, this is the 926 J Building.
926 J from the rear. This old office building is being renovated. Before the end of 2008 it will be a boutique hotel.
Cal-EPA. California Environmental Protection Agency building. Seeing as how we are the State Capitol there are many state government buildings scattered around the downtown.
The old post office, still open for business. Back in the day this was the main post office for Sacramento. Now there is a shiny, new, huge building in West Sacramento.
No, this sleek looking, modern style building is not a four star hotel. This is the jail. Honest. It is. LOL
At the least the jail is close to the Federal Courthouse.
The gate of our little Chinatown.
Some of the Chinese style buildings facing J Street.
This one faces onto I Street.
The Wong Tower. This building houses apartments for senior citizens.
Looking eastward down J Street. 926 J Street Building is on the right. That’s the old Elks Building down there on the left.
Downtown shopping mall. It cannot compare to Ayala Center Cebu. There are larger malls outside of the city here.
Mall facing L Street. The mall is 2 blocks wide by 3 blocks long or 6 square blocks in total.
Macy’s.
Wells Fargo Building. Presently the tallest at 34 stories.
300 Capitol Mall Building.
1201 K Street Building. Remember I said some had nicknames? This is the “Ban Roll-On Building”. LOL
The newest addition to our skyline.
Won’t be much longer until this will be the newest. It’ll be 25 stories when completed.
Across the river in West Sacramento is the Ziggurat Building. Ziggurats were first built by the Sumerians and the Babylonians about 6,000 years ago.
Next to the “Zig” another new office building is rising.
The Sacramento Convention Center.
The Memorial Auditorium. Before the Convention Center was opened this was the place to hold a function.
The Hyatt at Captiol Park. Best hotel in town.
Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament.
Closer look at the detail. It was recently restored.
Looking up, up at the spire.
The message is clear. Go to church or go to jail! Hahaha. LOL
The cathedral is located right off the K Street Mall. This street is for pedestrians only. No personal vehicles allowed.
Only the light rail trains and emergency vehicles can drive down the pedestrian mall.
Looking south from the K Street Mall at the Capitol Building.
So here I am wandering around taking fotos for this blog and I run into my good friend Gary Cooper. No, not that Gary Cooper, the movie star. This is our Gary Cooper, the star of the Capitol. Gary is a legislative advocate and a darn good one at that. If you need someone to be a voice for you and represent you in Sacramento then Gary is your man. Enlist his services and he might even buy you one of those coffees. 
7 responses so far ↓
ianne // April 21, 2008 at 10:10 am |
Sacramento, California is a beautiful place! Goyo, do you have winter there?
goyo // April 21, 2008 at 2:09 pm |
Hi Ianne. Yes, we have winter but it’s fairly mild. In the middle of winter the typical daytime temperature is in the mid 50’s with lows from the upper 30’s to low 40’s. Ocassionally the overnight low will dip down to around 32 but only a handful of times. All in all it’s pretty good, especially compared to other parts of the country. It does not snow here but we’re only 45 minutes away from frolicking in the snow that falls in the Sierra Nevada Mountains.
All temperatures above are Farenheit by the way. 50 degress Celsius? That sure wouldn’t be winter! LOL
Leap of Faith! // April 22, 2008 at 6:31 am |
Goyo, as usual, your pictures look great. It really amazes me at how few the peopel are in your area. I do not see a lot of pedestrians in your pictures.
I love the Cathedral… it’s beautiful.
goyo // April 22, 2008 at 12:40 pm |
Keith, it’s true. Not a lot of people walking around. Even during the lunch hour there’s not a lot. It’s hard to believe that Metro Sacramento is over 2 million people. Here practically everyone drives their car, the rest use the light rail or the bus. No one standing around waiting for a jeepney either. Now, if we were on Colon Street in Cebu we’d be crushed by the pedestrian traffic!
Pat Desmond // May 2, 2008 at 7:13 pm |
thanks for the pics, the virtual tour is a big help as I get ready to do some business there. Really helps me see Sac a little better. neat idea.
Rony // September 24, 2008 at 4:21 am |
what’s the street that has the Manhattan style buildings with the fire escape ladders outside?
Jenny // November 16, 2008 at 7:08 am |
The building you describe as “the newest addition to our skyline”…is that the building that glows purple at night? I just moved here, and I’ve been wondering about that buildng and what it is.