Laurie Lauletta-Boshart is a contributing writer and editor for consumer publications, Fortune 500 companies, small business and higher education. She has written for Dwell, ESPN, Wall Street Journal, SI.com (Sports Illustrated) and others. On Twitter @laurieboshart or www.wordplaycommunications.com.
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Distinctive Dwellings
Architects and homeowners use the modernist template to design dwellings that are a departure from the norm
Once considered a stark and cold aesthetic, today’s residential modern design employs variety and warmth. Here are some of the Capital Region’s modern homes and the architects who designed them.

Virtual Variations
With the coronavirus pandemic forcing most college classes online, recent high school graduates are finding their choices have changed
Students are weighing all the options, including attending community college, learning online or postponing college altogether.

Coronavirus Replay
After canceling spring sports, the NCAA extends eligibility to student athletes to play for another season
The NCAA voted on March 30 to allow schools to provide spring-sport student athletes with an additional season.

Higher Calling
Architects and colleges collaborate to create holistic, functional and artistic spaces to meet the shifting needs of today’s students
These six Capital Region higher-education projects, completed in the last decade, offer inspired and intentional learning spaces.

Higher Calling: From Abstract to Reality
Team of three students contributed to Cosumnes River College’s Winn Center
In 2009, CRC partnered with the U.S. Green Building Council’s Sacramento chapter to participate in the Natural Talent Design Competition. Entrants were required to design a 36,000-square-foot building known as the Winn Center.

Learning to Pivot
New college grads are adapting to an economy and job market hard hit by the coronavirus pandemic
As college seniors finished their classes online, the impact of the coronavirus pandemic complicated their job prospects.

Help for Displaced Workers
What employers and employees need to know about job protection and wage replacement during the COVID-19 pandemic
In the COVID-19 pandemic, business as usual has been upended and employers and employees are facing uncharted territory. Comstock’s spoke with Roseville-based employment law attorney Drew Lewis about what job protection and wage replacement programs are available in the Capital Region.

Mending the Gap
In California, efforts to close the gender wage gap persist, despite the signing of The Equal Pay Act of 1963
Fifty-seven years after the Equal Pay Act was signed into law by President John F. Kennedy, women still earn substantially less than men. Legislation in California is attempting to level the playing field.

Comstock’s Talks: Mending the Gap
PODCAST: Fifty-seven years after the Equal Pay Act was signed into law by President John F. Kennedy, women still earn substantially less than men. Legislation in California is attempting to level the playing field.

Fostering Future Success
In 2012, California implemented extended foster care legislation to improve outcomes for 18- to 21-year-olds. Is the program working?
A decade ago, extended foster care, or EFC, did not exist in California. When foster youth turned 18, they aged out of the system and often transitioned to adulthood with a bag of their belongings, a small amount of money, and a list of board and care facilities and shelters.

College Confidential
There are proven ways to navigate the college admissions process without cheating the system
With tens of thousands of undergrads applying each year for limited spots, California’s college systems have approved admission criteria for assessing incoming freshmen. While the strength of a student’s academic record is one of its top considerations, the University of California system has established 14 factors — both academic and nonacademic — for undergraduate admissions.

Art of the Land
From parks to light-rail stations, landscape architects are bringing art to the masses
Public art has always had a place in the designed environment, but art in landscape is becoming more common in the public sphere. Here we feature notable spaces in the Capital Region that celebrate beauty through landscape architecture and artistic design.

Women in Leadership: Chrysa Tsakopoulos Demos, AKT Investments
As part of our 2019 salute to women in leadership, we feature seven of the Capital Region’s most relevant and successful women leaders — here’s one of them.

Women in Leadership: Nicole Howard, SMUD
As part of our 2019 salute to women in leadership, we feature seven of the Capital Region’s most relevant and successful women leaders — here’s one of them.

Women in Leadership: Selvi Stanislaus, Franchise Tax Board of California
As part of our 2019 salute to women in leadership, we feature seven of the Capital Region’s most relevant and successful women leaders — here’s one of them.

Women in Leadership: Angela DePaoli, Bargas Environmental Consulting
As part of our 2019 salute to women in leadership, we feature seven of the Capital Region’s most relevant and successful women leaders — here’s one of them.

Women in Leadership: Deitra Kenoly, San Joaquin Media Group
As part of our 2019 salute to women in leadership, we feature seven of the Capital Region’s most relevant and successful women leaders — here’s one of them.

Onward & Outward
Surrounding cities capitalize off of UC Davis’ growth — and the City of Davis’ slow-growth mindset
UC Davis is a key asset in the Capital Region’s economic development. With the City of Davis’ slow-growth mindset thwarting developments designed to capture tech transfer, surrounding cities look to cash in.

Placer County Amps Up Housing Efforts
Stakeholders collaborate on solutions to affordable-housing crisis
Karen Hernandez works with a number of families who struggle to afford a home. It’s part of her role as volunteer director for ReDirect Nuevo Camino, a Lincoln nonprofit that serves at-risk youth in Placer County. Many combine, forming households of seven or eight people sharing a modest two-bedroom apartment designed for four.

The Family Niche
Pomopolis Farms taps into a unique market for steady, repeat business
Suburban father Mike Polis makes an unlikely rancher, but he’s gained traction with his passion project, building a small family farm catering to a niche Capital Region market.

420 Estates
The cannabis surge is driving a property frenzy in Sacramento’s industrial and commercial markets
Green zones approved for commercial cannabis are limited, and demand for commercial space has driven up property values in Sacramento. Local businesses — both cannabis-related and otherwise — are feeling the pinch.

Williams Offers Room to GROW
Canna-Hub, a cannabis real-estate development firm, is planning its own massive cannabis complex in the city of Williams.

Reflecting on a Rehab
How preservation architects gave Sacramento’s Stanley Mosk Library and Courts building a much-needed makeover
The Stanley Mosk Library and Courts building in downtown Sacramento was in dire need of a rehabilitative makeover to bring back its historic beauty.

Civic Pride
How six public places came to be
Civic structures help define a community’s identity. We feature six projects from throughout the Capital Region that have employed unique delivery models and creative design solutions to produce structures worthy of their calling.

Destination in Design
Capitalizing on recent momentum, East Sacramento designers set sights on creating a new design district
Hoping to capitalize on the revitalization of Sacramento’s downtown core, Nar Bustamante is moving his offices to the burgeoning design scene in East Sacramento off Elvas Avenue. Along with local talent already in place, these designers hope to help solidify Sacramento’s place as a new urban hotspot.

Enterprising Parents Address Family Needs
The transition to parenthood can be daunting, particularly for new parents and those juggling work and family life. But several Capital Region-based parents have launched creative businesses and groups that support the whole family — from emotional and physical well-being, to work/life balance.

A Sense of Place
Sacramento designers and architects challenge the notion that outside talent is more suitable for notable projects
Sacramento is coming into its own, and tying the built environment to the regional diversity — including an agricultural backdrop and focus on sustainability — is important to local designers and architects.

When The Giving Gets Good
Family-owned businesses with generous social responsibility platforms benefit Capital Region communities.
A number of the Capital Region’s most prominent family-owned businesses — like the River Cats — have made social responsibility a core tenet of their companies, employing staff and consultants to help make their programs central to who they are and how they operate.

Funding Your Future
With the rising cost of college, experts educate students on applying for financial aid and scholarships
Getting into college is only half the challenge; paying for it is quite another. According to research conducted by two assistant professors of economics, in a paper titled “Accounting for the Rising in College Tuition,” the cost of college tuition more than doubled from 1987 to 2010, and outpaced inflation by 2-4 percent.

New & Improved B Street Theatre
In 1986, the B Street Theatre opened as a simple touring theater for children. Since then, it has grown to be one of the West Coast’s premier children’s theaters, producing 19 shows per year and serving 300,000 people annually. But the two-theater playhouse had outgrown its original space and sought options.

School of Thought
These educational spaces bring creative inspiration to the masses while preparing the next generation of artists
Traditional museums and old-school performance centers — with silent hallways and auditoriums where photography is forbidden — are being rethought in favor of interactive educational spaces. The Capital Region boasts a number of vital, enriching educational institutions that intentionally link the arts and education communities to create welcoming spaces that are both inspiring and accessible.

How Sweet It Is
After a difficult recession, several Capital Region dessert shops cautiously expand
During the economic recession and its aftermath, some restaurants and sweet shops in the region were hit hard by the rising cost of ingredients and cost-conscious customers, and forced to shutter their doors or scale back on business.

Home Makers
A woman’s place in the home is as the buyer, seller — and everything in between
With the increase in female representation across the homebuilding and homebuying spectrums, the building and real estate industries have an opportunity to target this growing market, which could shift the way homes are designed, built and sold.

Seeking Stability
New measures call for significant reform to offer foster youth a better chance at permanent homes
Foster youth who live in congregate care settings (like group homes) are more likely than those who live with families to suffer a variety of negative outcomes, including low education levels, mental illness and involvement with the justice system. Placing foster youth in a stable and caring home is paramount, but finding the best way to do that has proved challenging.

Compassion Planet Employs Aged-Out Foster Youth and At-Risk Teens
Deer Creek Farm, a retail boutique in Rocklin that offers unique gifts, home decor and a working garden, is not your typical shop. The shop employs aged-out foster youth (18 and older) and at-risk teens as part of a mentoring program with Compassion Planet, a Rocklin-based nonprofit organization that works to bring stability into the lives of young people by equipping them for future success.

Local Loomis Unveiled
Placer County town has cultivated a niche food scene frequented by locals
An idyllic, family-farm community in south Placer County, Loomis is proud of its small-town heritage and quaint downtown dotted with unique shops and cafés. This rural village of about 7,000 residents caters to outdoor enthusiasts looking for a slower pace. Loomis has managed to keep its hometown feel for decades, jealously guarding its open space and passing on chain stores and malls.

It Takes a Community
The new Destiny Community Center facility offers resources for single moms and their children
Open seven days a week, the community center includes multi-functional meeting and educational rooms, a fitness center, a fully-stocked teen center, a trellis café with indoor seating and oversized flat screen, a KidZone and more.

Cash Haul
In a single generation, the Rozakis family went from having one dump truck to owning a $16 million materials transport business
In 2005, GR launched Crete Crush, a sister company to its trucking operation that includes two concrete and asphalt crushing and recycling centers, one at the company’s Rancho Cordova headquarters, and another at its 15-acre facility off Bradshaw Road in Sacramento. When the company first started, it was paying someone else to crush the concrete and asphalt that was accumulating from demolition site hauls.

Pitch Perfect
The Giants have made an uncharacteristically long-term commitment to the River Cats — here's why the match is ideal for both teams
In September 2014, the River Cats signed a two-year affiliation agreement with the San Francisco Giants, effectively ending the team’s 15-year partnership with the Oakland Athletics. Less than two years later, the two clubs have inked a new four-year deal, extending the agreement through 2020, marking one of the few times the Giants have signed a four-year agreement with a Triple-A affiliate.

Baseball Affiliation Basics
The contractual obligation between a Major League Baseball club and the Triple-A Minor League Baseball affiliate is a standard player development contract with very clear responsibilities.

What Happened When One River Cat Got the Big Call
Only about 10 percent of all minor league players get a chance to play in the big leagues
Once players make it to Triple-A, the prospect of being called up to the majors is more tangible. Only about 10 percent of all minor league players make it to the big leagues, and the majority are pulled from the more talented and experienced Triple-A teams, which represent the highest level of Minor League Baseball.

Hot Spots
Why are architecture firms flocking to Sacramento’s central city — and what does it mean for the industry?
Firms are becoming increasingly attracted to the city’s creative vibe and energy, seeing advantageous opportunities to setting a base in the heart of the Capital Region. They join already established firms that, together, are bringing a renewed energy and a design presence to the city’s core.

Women’s Work
Four local leaders discuss their journeys to the top of male-dominated industries
Effective leaders don’t come from one mold. The women featured below have excelled in nontraditional industries due to their talent, vision, perseverance and the (sometimes unlikely) mentors who guided their trajectory. They shared their stories with us — where they started, their rise to leadership and their thoughts on mentoring the next generation of powerful women.

Mad for Mod
Sacramento Mid-Century Modern Home Tour returns
One of SacMod’s most popular events, the Sacramento Mid-Century Modern Home Tour, is back for 2016 and takes place just once every three years.

Fresh Intervention
11 young leaders bring a new perspective to the Capital Region
This year’s list features innovators, disruptors and creators who are invigorating our cities and challenging the status quo. The impact they’ll make in our local communities and beyond will help define our future.

Coffee Enthusiasts Unite
Caffeine Crawl returns to Sacramento March 5
Following a completely sold-out event in 2014, Sacramento Caffeine Crawl will return to the city next week with an all-star lineup of some of Sacramento’s finest coffee establishments.

Systems for Success
Nonprofits use measurable outcomes to demonstrate success and shore up support
Saint John’s Program for Real Change is part of a growing national movement of nonprofits designing programs that include new ways to monitor outcomes and quantify success for those they serve.

Private Efforts for Public Good
Auburn citizens turn defunct prison into needed shelter
A wearisome, vicious cycle was emerging with Auburn’s homeless population: Greater numbers were congregating on the streets by day and filling the DeWitt minimum security prison by night. Neither the city nor the county had adequate housing or facilities to deal with the situation, so the problem persisted. Residents were frustrated, but nothing was done. A group of community members vowed to act and started a grassroots effort that has culminated in turning the partially vacated barracks at DeWitt into a fully-staffed, round-the-clock facility open to Auburn’s homeless.

Friends with Tents
Tent Pals lets buyers donate temporary housing to those in need
While studying abroad at the London School of Economics, UC Davis grad Alex Aguiar befriended a young homeless girl. He found her sleeping beneath an overpass, using folded cardboard to keep the cold concrete from chilling her body. Aguiar could not get the girl’s plight out of his mind. To understand his market, Aguiar spent the night with the homeless community, learning their stories and about what might help them. That’s when the idea for Tent Pals was born

Feast Your Eyes on This
True gourmet dining starts with the plate, a canvas for culinary art
“There is an old adage that we eat with our eyes,” says John Weatherson, co-owner and co-chef, along with wife Nyna, of Restaurant Trokay. In his experience, the brain is conditioned to pre-determine the quality of a dish’s taste by the way it looks, and how a dish is plated ultimately helps to maximize the diner’s gastronomic experience. Located in the historic district of downtown Truckee, the couple’s culinary creations at Restaurant Trokay take center stage, but the presentation is no afterthought.