Episode 1: A Chat with Elk Grove Mayors, Then and Now

What is like to be the Mayor of Elk Grove, California? Over the past 21 years, a lot has changed in Sacramento County’s second largest city. In this debut episode,  hosts Jodie Moreno and Kristyn Laurence will talk to Elk Grove’s first Mayor, and California Assembly Member, Jim Cooper, and our current Mayor, Bobbie Singh-Allen. We’ll also give a rundown of coming attractions as events of all kinds begin making a comeback following the pandemic. 

Transcript

Unknown: 0:01

Welcome to Elk Grove Citycast, the podcast about Elk Grove available anywhere you get podcasts. In each episode, city staff will dive into hot topics, share what's happening in the city, and introduce you to some of the people making a difference in this place that you call home. We hope you enjoy this episode of Elk Grove City cast.

Jodie Moreno: 0:22

Hi, and thanks so much for joining us for the very first podcast for the city of Elk Grove. I'm your host, Jodie Moreno. And I'm currently the community events and special projects coordinator for the city, which is kind of just a fancy title for an events gal. And I have a partner in crime here with me.

Kristyn Laurence: 0:38

Hi, I'm Kristyn Laurence, the public affairs manager at the city. So basically the communications girl. And we're so excited to find one more way to connect with all of you. I've been wanting to start a podcast for years now, so to see this finally coming to fruition is amazing.

Jodie Moreno: 0:54

Yeah it is. and Kristyn has a lot more years in government than I do and I rely on her help for just about everything. So it makes perfect sense for us to be together on this podcast bringing you all things Elk Grove.

Kristyn Laurence: 1:05

Yeah, and here's the cool thing, much to the surprise of many, government isn't always stuffy. This podcast gives us a chance to introduce you to what we do at the city in a fun and relaxing way. You get to meet some folks from city hall, from the community, and more without the formality of say, a city council meeting.

Jodie Moreno: 1:23

Oh, for sure. Plus, we get to share fun and

quirky things like: 1:25

Did you know that Elk Grove started out as a stage stop? Or that there's 100 parks in Elk Grove you can visit? More importantly, do you know who the very first mayor of Elk Grove was? No. Well, you're about to find out as we get a chance to chat with him or her and our current Mayor, Bobbie Singh-Allen right now. All right, Bobbie, what is it like to be elk Grove's Mayor?

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 1:51

Honestly it is such a tremendous honor and a privilege to represent the city that I've lived in for 30 years. So I'm just filled with immense pride and tremendous honor. I raise my kids here, as you know, they both started in elementary school here. My family lives here. My parents and my brother live here. So this is home. So being able to, you know, to be the mayor of my hometown that I love so much fills me with pride and joy. I'm sure you feel that too, Jim.

Jim Cooper: 2:21

I do. I've been in Elk Grove 32 years now, which is a long time. When I moved there, there was no Laguna Boulevard at all. And if you wanted to go on I-5, you'd go on Hood-Franklin road. That was the first exit. So I've seen Elk Grove grow a lot. And it's a great place to live and raise a family.

Jodie Moreno: 2:37

Oh, geez, Jim, about what was it like to be the very first mayor of Elk Grove? And how does that differ?

Jim Cooper: 2:43

You know what, there's no blueprint for being a brand new city right away. And what was weird, in the span of 10 years in Sacramento County, you had three cities incorporate first Citrus Heights, then Elk Grove, and then Rancho. hat had never been heard of in California before. And a lot of it was over public safety aw enforcement. People wanted to feel safe. And that was a ig not that they weren't safe. ut resources were being u ed elsewhe

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 3:08

And I was proud to vote for you, Jim as that first mayor. Thank you. Thank you. You served our community really well.

Jim Cooper: 3:15

Mayor is tough. I mean, Bobby knows. I mean, you get pulled in a lot of different directions. You're constantly on. And Bobby still has a full time job she does and a lot of people don't know that. She's got to pay bills and, you know, continue to raise her family. So she's got a full time job, then you do City Council also. It's tough. You think about it, you're working 40 hours a week, and then in the evenings and weekends, you're doing the business of the mayor. So it's a tough job.

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 3:41

Yeah, I appreciate that. It's so true. All of us on the Council have full time jobs. And it's a balancing act, but we're so committed to public service. And that's one of the things I'm also really proud of, it's just we have such a strong team. I'm honored that you know, they're all friends, which is uh, you know, we have that dream team scenario, which is very rare.

Kristyn Laurence: 4:02

So you're both really well known in Elk Grove. What's it like to go to the grocery stores? People stop you in the aisles? What's that? Like?

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 4:10

Oh, goodness, yeah. Costco is the is the one that you know, probably has the most fan club I would say. I get recognized everywhere. It's still a lot to get used to. But Costco on any given visit, it's about five to eight is what I've counted. And I remember one time, Coop was there too. Of course he gets it more than I do, because he's the real celebrity out here. But it's just it's it's different. The notion of privacy is gone.

Jim Cooper: 4:38

Let me ask you this Mayor, when you're there, like I don't got to do my hair when I go out and go to Costco. No. You got to do your hair and make sure you look good for your constituents. I mean, that's right. Go out like back in the day, right?

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 4:51

No, no, no more sloppy sweat pants and all I always have to be mostly put together. There is no casual Fridays for me. I've got to look presentable and carry, you're absolutely right.

Jodie Moreno: 5:03

I think Kristyn and I are glad we're behind the scenes then.

Kristyn Laurence: 5:08

So there's 21 years between when Jim became our mayor and Bobbie now in our mayor's chair. What motivated each of you is probably pretty different things, I would think. But what motivated you to become mayor? And has it been what you expected it to be?

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 5:27

It's like cucoo. First, as our first mayor,

Jim Cooper: 5:29

I think it's public service. Bobbie spent a number of years on the school board. I spent some time at the sheriff's department and just both public servants in really liking it in Elk Grove. I mean, this, the schools out there, the parks, a lot of good things about Elk Grove, and you want to continue to serve the public. You don't do it to get rich, but you want to the community you live in, and you're invested in that. So just making a change and making it better. And it's not easy. Think about Elk Grove, second biggest city in the entire region. 22 cities and six counties. Elk Grove is second only the city of Sacramento, and a lot of two income families, a lot of government workers for the state, the county, the city, it's also it's a threat. It's a thriving, vibrant community. So it's a lot of work.

Kristyn Laurence: 6:13

Is it what you expected it to be? Jim, when you were in that role?

Jim Cooper: 6:17

I never had any idea. You know, you're hiring a city manager, you're hiring a city attorney, you have no idea. There's no blueprint, there's no game plan. And I never been elected. So you're trying to do the best job you can. And it is tough. You're hiring people, we were going to old 711 converted 711 that was later on converted to a medical device facility. They sold medical devices. So it was it was tough getting up and running. But we had a great staff and it did a good job. And, you know, we heavily relied upon staff.

Jodie Moreno: 6:47

When you set the tone kind of like what was gonna happen moving forward.

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 6:51

Yeah, he did a great job laying the foundation.

Jim Cooper: 6:53

It was it was a team effort. Like Bobbie said, you can't do it by yourself. You've got to work good with your colleagues.

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 6:58

The advantage I had when I ran for mayor is that I wasn't elected for over eight years serving on the Elk Grove Unified School District, which as you all know, is the largest Northern California and the fifth largest in the state of California. So we cover all growing parts of South Sacramento, the unincorporated areas, and as far east as Rancho Cordova. So having that governance training really played a long way. So I really felt as though once elected mayor, while the issues might be different, the process and governance is definitely the same. And I wasn't an unknown. So I just was able to rely on having great relationships with my colleagues, with our regional leaders like Assemblymember Cooper, which really helped in terms of governing, which is the most important role that the mayor plays is governing. You preside over those city council meetings and making sure that you collaborate, but you also speak on behalf of the city. those are those are skills that I was able to bring through my eight years serving on those on the school board

Jim Cooper: 8:02

Bobbie's being humble because school district is a lot more intensive, a lot more work. I mean, you've got how many schools in Elk Grove in your district? 67 schools, graduations, I mean, there's a lot time, the level of involvement is much more significant. You don't see council, and just there's so much you've got to be there, you got to be the graduations. And you have to deal with the issue. So a lot more reading. So

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 8:27

Oh, yeah, there was a lot more reading that thank you for that. I definitely found myself. Although I'm pretty busy as mayor, I'm not gonna lie, but that's just my personality, I'm sort of that type A personality. And I, you know, I want to roll up my sleeves and get to work and really do a good job representing our city. But in terms of the hours that are dedicated, it can be as much as or as little as you put into it. So you get what you put into it. And I'm putting in a lot like on the Fourth of July, I just did a ride along with our, with our fire chief four and a half hours that I could have spent with my family. But I thought it was really important to be out in the field and see what our firefighters experienced on a daily basis on their most busy night. You know, going out to the school sites was something I loved doing. And I did that very regularly. Now I get to do that visiting small businesses meeting with different stakeholders. So you know, same process, but still staying busy. But you know, we had we had great leaders before me like our very first mayor,

Jodie Moreno: 9:27

when you just talked about all the different things that you're doing. So I'm sure the expectation of what you thought it was going to be is very different. And this is going to be a hard question to answer. But what do you think is the most important skill you need to have as a mayor?

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 9:39

so you know, the most important skill is also one of the reasons I ran to be mayor. And that is being able to collaborate and understand that it's this is service above self and being able to be a good listener. But to be able to work with your team. You're just one person but this is a team and for your team to be strong. You need to not make this role about yourself. And so one of the skills that I bring to the table is much like, on my eight years as a school board member, I value different points of view, and stakeholder engagement. So that unifying voice, but just listening, you know, I gave you several little skills in there. But all of those go towards community. It's not about me, it's about being a representative of the community, lifting their voices and their needs.

Jim Cooper: 10:28

I think, you know, like Bobbie said earlier, is being a good listener, and willing to work with people in compromise, you can't get it done. I'll be honest, I loved being on City Council. And the big difference between city council and legislature, you're one of five, and you can work with folks to get things done. And you can do it very quickly, versus the legislature deal with two houses, 120 members, multiple committees in both houses, and hopefully the governor signs your bill. So, City Council's much more able to react more quickly, and pivot if they need to, than state government. And it was really a good time you had an instant impact. Citizens are your community members. So it was very fulfilling. And just trying to make a difference. Because we live there, we want to, we want the best. What's best for the community.

Jodie Moreno: 11:13

Yeah, I know, you talked about you know, it's not about self. But how hard is that? Because you really have to have a thick skin in politics in any position. And you say it's not about self, but that's hard.

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 11:25

Yeah, we both know that so well. But yeah, you do need thick skin in politics. But at the end of the day, I go to sleep knowing that I am truly fighting hard for my community that you know it this is not for everyone. Politics. But at the same time, we have such a tremendous passion for making a difference in the lives of our residents. And so that's the driving force all of the good outweigh any of the darkness that comes along the way in politics.

Jim Cooper: 11:54

Yeah. The big thing is like said, you have detractors, I don't care how much good you do. You have detractors, and with social media, they can get online and say whatever they want about you or come to council meetings, and you just got to have thick skin and just, you know, just kee on doing what's right, yo're hopefully you're doing the r ght thing, and you're makin it better. And that's really hat it comes down to. But yo're never gonna please everyone. And you just can't if you went ome and dwelled on everything hat was said about you negativ ly, you would never get anyt ing accomplished. So I agree ith the mayor, it's not for eve

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 12:26

That's right, having thick skin that social media, you know, you have these keyboard warriors who can hide behind anonymous names. But the best thing you can do is use you know yourself, you know the truth. And the community for the most part knows who you are and know what you stand for. That's why they elected you. So it's really about focusing on why you're there. And that really being the driving force and in politics, haters are gonna hate so it's okay.

Kristyn Laurence: 12:52

True. I'm going to take Jim into the wayback machine a little bit because this question is about like, what was the most pressing issue you dealt with when you stepped into the role of mayor? and then, Bobbie, Now, you know, 21 years later? You know, there's there's probably some different issues at play. But I'd love to hear what kind of stuff were you dealing with,Jim.

Jim Cooper: 13:16

When we started the city in 2000, the biggest thing was hiring staff, he needed to get staff up and running. The majority of California cities are part-time councils. So on our council, the original Council, all five of us worked, we had day jobs. So you heavily relied upon staff to give you good information. So hiring that city manager, the city attorney, the city clerk, and getting that team on board. And that was so important, because like I said, staff can make you or break you. I mean, you're not there, you're taking time off and use vacation time during the day to come and meet with people and do things. So, so very, very intensive. But that was probably the biggest thing, getting adequate staff on board. And it was a brand new city. I mean, like I said, there were bumps in the road, you know, but it just took time.

Jodie Moreno: 14:04

Was there pushback for people that wanted to stay pretty rural?

Jim Cooper: 14:07

There were people like I said you can't please everyone. So it's one of those things you try and just do what's good for most folks, and go from there. But yeah, a lot of pushback. Some folks didn't want to become a city. They wanted to be a county. I think they're much better off as a city now. They've got much better services. And I think it's just, it was a good thing to happen. It took three times.

Kristyn Laurence: 14:30

But it definitely worked. Back then. I think our population was like 50,000 people or thereabouts, right? And now in 2021, we're serving 178,000 people is what I'd heard most recently. What kind of issues do you feel are the most pressing for our council now Mayor?

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 14:50

Yeah, so you know, I was elected in such an interesting time with COVID-19 of my entire campaign was run during the pandemic and I was elected during the pandemic. I'm making, we're still unfortunately, in a pandemic. So the most pressing thing was really economic recovery, making sure that our small businesses can survive and thrive, post COVID. And our working families feel they're supported, and ave the resources to be uccessful. You know, I'm a ormer board member for the lk Grove Food Bank, I know t at their clientele went up, wh t, six 700%, during COVID. And t at those are alarming numbers. So for me, you know, 21 ye

Jodie Moreno: 15:28

So you have lots of stuff going on. Now we took rs later, it's you're still, ou know, have some overlapp ng issues in affordable housing is still always very important or our community. While it may ot have been pressing back, t en it's definitely much m re pressing now, as the cost of housing has just gone up. And we want to make sure that ur working families, our teache s, our law enforcement officers, or firefighters, can afford to l ve here not only work here, but to be able to live in ur communities. Jobs, growth is always important, not j st bringing in our sm ll businesses, but some ma or employment sectors into ur city. That's something that'm very passionate about. I sit on the statewide board for vi it California. So I see the r le that you know that even tour sm plays and other economic driv ng factors for lifting communiti s. So I want to see Elk Grove eally be able to thrive with ne jobs and growth. Public Saf ty is always important for us, f r our residents. And I was so proud that our first mayor pav d the way to not only having o r own police department, but eally working closely with o r CSD, with our firefighte s. And public safety remains one of the focal points and why peop e move to Elk Grove. They feel safe. There's good jobs he e. There's great schools, th re's great parks. And the of course transportation nd traffic congestion. Those a ways still rank very high. But I m so proud of shout out to RT nd our new partnership that will be able to address some of, at l ast some of, those challenges with our new partnership with RT with great routes. And w have a program where our stude ts k 12 have free bus passes, wh ch will hopefully alleviate some of that traffic congestion. So a shout out to RT and our new pa tner. Jim in the wayback machine, now we're going to take you in the time machine and ask you kind of like what changes do you expect to see in Elk Grove like over the next 20 years or so?

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 17:23

Hopefully, we'll both still be alive. Hopefully, we've paved the way for a vibrant community. You know, we've always wanted an entertainment hub. And there's a lot of progress being made towards that working towards that. Being able to have affordable housing will hopefully we meet those challenges that we see. That we've all worked together as a team to really address those shortages, that we have representatives that truly have the best interests of our community at heart. I hope that those you know that mindset needs to always sustain and continue 20, 30, 50 years from now that having a solid, hopefully the mayor's office is then by four years, at least not every two years. So I don't have to keep running at least at least right now. That's a that's always a challenge. But you know, of course, the partnerships with our school district with our CSD, those will always remain important. But I personally hope my kids choose to live in Elk Grove and can afford to live here and invest here. And you know, this is a great community. So there's a lot of great things happening. And I imagine our public safety is going to continue strong as long as we elect councils that invest in public safety.

Kristyn Laurence: 18:36

Yeah, as a representative for the region, like Elk Grove is just a small part of your governing area right now. How do you think Elk Grove will fare you know 20 years from now in the region?

Jim Cooper: 18:48

I think Elk Grove will fare good. Elk Grove's doing good right now. And I'll be honest, what I love the best about Elk Grove is 15,000 kids playing sports. So it's just, you know, from Laguna to meadowview Road, just two miles as the crow flies. And you have the schools that are very impacted Title One, free breakfast, free lunch, free dinner, no sports programs, no arts programs for kids, no banks, no supermarkets. And you know, the biggest US Soccer League, the largest in the country, the largest Cal Ripken baseball league west of the Mississippi. I mean, you see a lot of involvement in just ballet dancing, and our kids are engaged involved. And to me, that's what makes Elk Grove beautiful. The parents are active, it's tough. And I would say if those kids in many of you had those same opportunities, their lives would probably be dramatically different. So a lot of positives about Elk Grove and just trying to have that effect on the rest of the region. But Elk Groive has is a special place and they have a lot to be proud of. I mean, we call the high schools out there you a lot of championships, they've won in a number of sports, and a lot of active pparent participation. So and they'll grow we have a lot to be thankful for that. And the mayor knows as a former school board member, if you look at, you know, three of the top 400 high schools in California, are in Elk Grove, you know, that's Franklin and CO I mean, when you start talking about Elk Grove, there's a lot of good things you talk about.

Jodie Moreno: 20:16

When you talk about being an entertainment hub, and we have so many new things coming online, and some really exciting things coming to the city, I'd see us just keep growing.

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 20:23

Oh absolutely, absolutely. And you know, what Assemblymember, Cooper mentioned about that connectedness with our, with our with our youth is so important, and kudos to you Assemblymember for the money and the resources that you brought for Elk Grove Food Bank, but for you being up there, and advocating for our city, the food bank would not have had a home. And you really played a key role in finding those instrumental dollars. As a former board member, we you know, going back dozens of years, we didn't have a home, so we've been moving place to place. And thanks to you, they Elk Grove food bank will will now finally have a home.

Jim Cooper: 21:03

Yeah, I think everyone in Elk Grove really cares, they want to do what's best for the food bank and the needs they meet. It's just people are struggling right now. With COVID unemployment, the cost of food going up, you know, it could definitely be us if the foot was on the other shoe. So a lot to be thankful for. And the food bank does a tremendous job.

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 21:23

More investment in our community, more investment in youth, for sure. I like what you said there. That's when I see that continue those partnerships are nonprofits. As a mayor, I want to continue to support them. You know, homelessness is that isn't is an issue. But that requires a lot of regional collaboration. And so that's where we have great partnerships with our Board of Supervisors and Assemblymember. Cooper and making sure that we're working together to solve some of these issues that impact all communities.

Jodie Moreno: 21:52

Well, before we end, is there anything else that you want our listeners to know, even if it's personal about you, or about our wonderful city, or about serving Elk Grove?

Jim Cooper: 22:02

I'm just happy that that Bobbie's the mayor, it's just having a good team there that they all work together cohesively. And just to really make Elk Grove great, I've lived there 32 years, I've never looked back. I'm looking, I'm gonna die in Elk Grove. And it's a good place, a good vibe. And I feel comfortable going out there. And I just really love what the city council is doing, and where they're headed to. So I think there's a lot more excitement to come. So I'm gonna sit back and enjoy the ride.

Bobbie Singh-Allen: 22:30

Thank you for that. And it's having strong partnerships with at the assembly level or the Senate or Congress member, of course, my colleagues and our county supervisors, for our city to continue thriving. It's having those great partnerships. And I love this community. I've lived here almost 30 years and plan to retire here. And I'm not going to use the D word die here. But it's a great place. And there's many ways to serve. So anybody listening wants to serve in our community. It's not just being an elected, where you need that thicker skin that we talked about earlier, so many other ways to serve, join boards and commissions. Great way of having your hands on role in shaping our community. We want outgrowth to thrive with all of you participating. There's many ways to join, reach out to any of us and we'll put you to work. But this is a great community a great place to call home and we welcome everyone. Everyone has a seat at our table.

Jodie Moreno: 23:26

Awesome. Thank you guys both so much for taking time to be on our first ever podcast for the city of Elk Grove. We're so excited for all of our listeners and for the future of our city. That was so great to talk with them and see how the city's changed over the years. I mean, I still find it so fascinating the whole government process and all that goes into keeping the city going.

Kristyn Laurence: 23:49

Yeah, and it's also pretty interesting to hear how they're tackling trips to the Costco.

Jodie Moreno: 23:53

I can't even imagine. Alright, let's talk about what's going on around town before we close this podcast out. As everyone knows, it's been a rough year for happenings and events with COVID. And we've seen so many of our nonprofit partners have to cancel their yearly fundraising events, along with our partners over at CSD having to postpone recreational sports and events. Even here at the city we've really had to reimagine our events over and over again.

Kristyn Laurence: 24:20

Yeah, but everyone we work with has gotten really creative and finding ways to bring something to our residents even if it means you have to change it up a bit. If you haven't driven through old town in a while we just reopened our newly renovated Old Town Plaza and there's the monthly food truck mania events from SactoMoFo the first Wednesday of every month, plus every Thursday, you can head over to District56 still and check out the Neighborhood Market.

Jodie Moreno: 24:44

Love that market and you know what? Coming up this fall there's uncorked and uncapped at the end of September at the Plaza, which is a great beer and wine event from our friends over at Explore Elk Grove. We've also got the peace and love music review on September 24 from the Elk Grove Arts Commission. Looking forward, we're cautiously optimistic that the Giant Pumpkin Festival is coming back the first weekend in October.

Kristyn Laurence: 25:07

That's true, these things are all subject to change, and we're keeping our fingers crossed that though they all happen. But you can find all these events and more on our website at ElkGrovecity.org or you can follow us on social.

Jodie Moreno: 25:18

Alright. I felt like this was a great first attempt at a podcast, right?

Kristyn Laurence: 25:22

Absolutely. My kids would be so impressed with me right now. They would say O...M...G Mom, you completed a whole podcast? It's amazing.

Jodie Moreno: 25:32

It is amazing. So we're gonna do it again then. Right? Absolutely great. Because you know what? We're excited to share our city in case you couldn't tell with all of you.

Unknown: 25:42

Thank you for listening to Elk Grove City cast. Listen to the next episode. For more interviews and happenings around town. You can find Elk Grove City cast anywhere you get podcasts. Make sure to like and follow the city of Elk Grove on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram for the latest news and events. Have an idea for a future episode. Send us a note. Email Public Affairs at Elk Grove city.org