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.

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.

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. 

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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. 

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. 

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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.

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

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.

“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. 

When Zinola Manufacturing owner Kevin Zinola took a chance and offered convicted felon Titan Gilroy an entry-level job in his small Sunnyvale machine shop, he had no idea where the relationship would go. In the years to follow, Gilroy reformed his life, worked his way up through several companies and finally, established Titan America Manufacturing.

American-made products are in greater demand internationally, opening up another revenue stream for businesses that want to export. PASCO Scientific, an American manufacturer of lab equipment for hands-on STEM education, has expanded its business through export opportunities.

Sacramento has always been a soccer town. From the tremendous growth of youth soccer to the days of professional indoor and semi-pro teams, the game has long had roots in the heart of the Capital Region. With 13 million Americans playing the game, soccer has exploded in the last decade and is the third most played team sport behind basketball and baseball. Sacramento Republic FC is capitalizing on that fútbol frenzy, now boasting an elite youth academy program.

Well after midnight, Jordan Ferrell returns to his Fresno hotel room and lowers his exhausted body onto the bed. After umpiring nine games in 12 days, he’s spent. To unwind, he flips on the TV, scans the movie selection and retrieves his phone to check texts. Working the plate at tonight’s game was an exercise in patience.

In early January, while wrapping up a 3-month umpire stint in the Dominican Winter League, Hal “Tripp” Gibson got a call. The call. The one every umpire in the minor leagues is waiting for.

While sourcing my July feature for Comstock’s about the career journey of umpires, I learned just how much they give up and how many hours they put in away from home to reach the pinnacle of their profession.

Houses of worship are an important element in Sacramento’s architectural history. From century-old churches to facilities that incorporate modern and sustainable technologies, religious buildings knit together the very fabric of the communities they serve. Here, we feature five local houses of worship, each with its own unique story.

Momentum is shifting in the Capital Region, and young professionals are leading the charge. General skepticism is being replaced with emerging optimism and a renewed energy that’s providing the catalyst for growth and innovation across our cities.  Here are the top ten young leaders we think you should be watching. They are driving the Capital Region’s evolution, and we anticipate you’ll see them at the forefront in 2015 and decades to come.

The market for cutting-edge, sustainable homes has traditionally been small, primarily pursued by industry experts and boutique developers who can both appreciate and afford them. But that’s about to change.

Over half a million kids live in foster care in the U.S. as a result of abuse, neglect or abandonment. Because they can’t advocate for themselves, many become victims a second time, lost in an overburdened child welfare system that can’t pay close attention to each child. But one program is drastically improving outcomes for foster youth, despite the overwhelming odds.

Women in Philanthropy, a program of the United Way California Capital Region, supports foster teens in the community who are turning 18 and facing emancipation. The group coordinates workshops and social programs and organizes a holiday stocking and gift event. Last year, volunteers collected nearly 500 towel sets and 50 luggage sets, along with toiletries and household goods to give to those making the transition to independence.

Here we feature some of Sacramento’s most innovative, modernist buildings and the architectural solutions employed to achieve enduring and functional spaces.

Long before it was widely accepted, Sacramento attorney Mike Polis bought his first electric vehicle. He got started with a Toyota Prius, later upgraded to a Nissan Leaf and now drives a white Chevy Volt. On average, he saves more than $3,500 a year over his gas-powered counterparts, he can use the HOV lane as a single occupant and he charges his car for free at work.

The rise of elite youth sports and the popularity of year-round athletics have created an emerging market for participant and spectator spending in south Placer County, which has positioned itself as a major sports destination. Now, two separate entities are looking to capitalize on the region’s sports market with large-scale venues that could turn a profit in as few as three years. 

After two decades of working in the nonprofit industry, Robin Chronister, an executive assistant for Mother Lode Rehabilitation in Placerville, noticed a gradual but clear change in the nonprofit sector.

In the fall of 2011, the executive directors of the Sacramento Philharmonic and the Sacramento Opera sat in their respective offices staring bleakly at financial reports that were telling each of them what they already knew:

A twice-convicted felon, Ronita Iulio thought she had blown her last chance to salvage her life and family. After being released from prison in 2008, Iulio was anxious to reunite with her three children, but instead she faced an unsympathetic court that granted full custody to her ex-husband.

A growing movement of collaboration is uniting local nonprofits with faith-based organizations in an effort to maximize community impact by increasing manpower and financial support.

A Capital Region startup is striving to be among the first in the nation to produce the zero-calorie, natural sweetener stevia on an industrial scale. An agricultural biotech company, Yuba City-based Stevia First is bolstering its chances of success by actively collaborating with experts in the field, drawing on the area’s robust talent pool of farmers, agronomists, agricultural innovators and biotech experts to develop a product that’s superior in both taste and cost compared to its foreign competitors.

Tucked in a quiet corner of western Yolo County, Winters embraces the soul of small-town living. Centered around a historic downtown complete with white gazebo and an oversized main street clock, this tiny farm town (population 6,624) is on the cusp of a burgeoning new food scene.