It was an eventful year: A new administration shook up the economy, AI speculation reached a fever pitch, local chefs garnered Michelin recognition, and the A’s made their Sacramento debut. These were our most-read stories of 2025.
In 2025, Comstock’s Google Analytics reveal readers’ interest in the kind of hyperlocal news only regional media can provide, from profiles of rising leaders to behind-the-scenes explorations of the developments and investments that impact the cities where we live and work. On the web, where we engage in faster-turnaround news than the monthly print publication cycle allows, readers came to us for local insights on the yo-yo of federal funding and tariff volatility.
I hope this list of our most-read print and web stories of 2025 helps you reflect on the year now coming to an end. We are grateful for our readers, subscribers and supporters and look forward to continuing to help you understand life and business in our region in 2026.
– Jennifer Fergesen, digital editor
Top 10 print stories
1. Young Professionals: Camille Zapata | July
By Robin Douglas
We interviewed Camille Zapata, digital director for Gov. Gavin Newsom, shortly before the governor shot to international social media stardom due to his much-publicized online showdowns with President Donald Trump. Previously followed mostly by California residents, Newsom gained millions of followers from outside the state, attracted to his posts peppered with youth slang and irreverent humor. That youthful tone might have been a hint that Newsom isn’t the sole creator behind these posts. Those curious about the self-styled “Zillennial” leading his social media strategy found her profile from our July Young Professionals issue, photographed at Bradshaw Animal Shelter.
2. Dilemma of the Month: My Gen Z Employees Want a 4-Day Workweek. How Do I Get Them to Back Off? | July
By Suzanne Lucas
Always one of our most popular print columns, the Evil HR Lady’s Dilemma of the Month addressed a dozen nitty-gritty workplace issues this year, ranging from the intricacies of the new Pregnant Workers Fairness Act to dealing with employees who don’t wash their hands. This year’s most-read installment considers a popular new workplace trend while also offering general tips on diplomacy and leadership.
3. Resurrecting the Railyards | April
By Brad Branan
The redevelopment of the sprawling former railyards near Sacramento Valley Station is one of those seemingly inexhaustible Capital Region topics that we have covered many times over the past decade. Our latest deep dive into the project took a slightly different approach, considering both the economic and the environmental impacts involved in the redevelopment and what it will take to make the brownfield safe for residences and businesses.
4. The Capital Region Is in the Vanguard of Autism Research and Treatment | June
By Ed Goldman
Autism has been in the news lately, from heated arguments over its causes to young people announcing their self-diagnoses on social media. This print feature takes a step back from those debates to highlight local health systems that are making real strides in understanding autism and improving the lives of those who have it.
5. This Quaint California Town Is Getting a $23M Amphitheater Renovation — and More | August
By Marcus Crowder
There are some corners of the Capital Region that reliably love reading about themselves, and Fair Oaks Village, a community of 3,000 near the American River, is a strong example. Once called “Hair Oaks” for the preponderance of salons among its historic storefronts, the census-designated area is becoming a place worth a detour thanks to a vibrant downtown and investments in entertainment and recreation.
6. According to Michelin, California’s Top Sommelier Is in Sacramento | September
By Judy Farah
Often overlooked in favor of larger coastal metropolises, Sacramento’s food scene got a win this year when local chef Chris Barnum-Dann of Localis received the prestigious Best Sommelier award from the California Michelin Guide. Comstock’s Editor Judy Farah sat down with Barnum-Dann for an intimate conversation that revealed the challenges he faced to get to the top of Sacramento’s burgeoning fine-dining scene. This interview was the first in our new chef profile column, Epicure.
7. Jackson’s National Hotel Got a Facelift — but It’s Still as ‘Haunted’ as Ever | January
By Steve Martarano
Steve Martarano wrote our monthly Off the Beaten Track column for five years, driving to far-flung locales across the Capital Region to find quirky attractions worth visiting. The column retired in June and was replaced by Out of Office, a travel column that extends beyond the boundaries of our 10-county region. For one of his final columns, Steve visited the National Hotel in Jackson, a Gold Rush relic that recently had to sweep away the cobwebs (but not the ghosts) to join the Hilton brand.
8. Will AI Replace Architects? | June
By Laurie Lauletta-Boshart
The rise of AI, especially generative AI like ChatGPT, has been in the news all year, and Comstock’s has been coveringits impacts on the economy asdutifully as anyone. (For what it’s worth, Comstock’s still hires human writers and artists, even as the technology replaces them in many fields.) This feature by longtime architecture writer Laurie Lauletta-Boshart zeroes in on the impacts in one industry and considers how it may help, not stand in for, human creativity.
9. Fritz Grupe: At 87, He’s a Real-Life Western Legend | January
By Ed Goldman
Comstock’s Publisher Winnie Comstock-Carlson has been talking about profiling this prominent Capital Region developer and rancher for years. Contributor Ed Goldman finally made it out to his sprawling 11,000-square-foot home, one of six on his 1,300-acre compound, to learn about the business moves and personal attributes that brought him to legendary success.
10. Is Sacramento Ready for the Big One? | February
By Brad Branan
This time of year, it’s easier to remember that Sacramento has one of the highest flood risks of any metropolitan area in the country, despite its distance from the ocean and proclivity for drought. After a series of devastating floods in the 20th century, state, local and federal governments combined their efforts to build the robust flood infrastructure that keeps the city mostly safe and dry today. But as climate change ramps up storms and their impacts, is Sacramento ready for even bigger floods?
Top 10 web-only stories
1. Why Are Big-Name Bands Playing at These Mountain Town Venues? | May
By Graham Womack
Capital Region fans of several nationally known bands, from Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers to Jeff Bridges and the Abiders, may have been surprised to see their favorite acts holding concerts not in Sacramento but in the mountain towns of Grass Valley and Nevada City. Comstock’s contributor Graham Womack drove up to the foothills to report on the local investments that are turning the towns into hubs for music and entertainment.
2. Hydrologic Engineering Center in Davis to Keep Federal Government Lease | March
By Graham Womack
There were so many rapid changes to government-funded projects in the first months of 2025 that it was difficult for the media to keep up. We made it our goal to follow up on local funding cuts so that readers could understand the consequences of these actions, not just the initial press releases. As it turned out, many federally funded projects in the Capital Region ended up having their funding reinstated after receiving cut notices, including the Hydrologic Engineering Center, the UC Davis Smelt Lab and UC Davis’ Alzheimer’s Disease Research Center.
3. ‘We’ve Shown Sacramento the Best Baseball in the World’: First Year With A’s in Sacramento Draws a Total 1.1 Million Fans | October
By Steve Martarano
Longtime sports writer Steve Martarano has been covering A’s move to Sutter Health Park in West Sacramento since its first surprise announcement in April 2024. After attending over a dozen A’s and River Cats games at the stadium — plus the A’s final game at the Oakland Coliseum — he reflected on a historic year in baseball for the Capital Region.
4. Five Years After the Shelter-in-Place Order, How Is Downtown Sacramento Doing? | March
By Graham Womack
During the COVID-19 pandemic, we checked in with several downtown Sacramento businesses every few months to see how they were faring with lockdown and evolving restrictions. On the fifth anniversary of the statewide stay-at-home order, he visited his sources one last time to see if downtown ever managed to recover. This was one of contributor Graham Womack’s last stories for Comstock’s before he joined the team at the Sacramento Bee.
5. New Design Studio on R Street Weaves Its Way Into Sacramento | January
By Ed Goldman
Contributor Ed Goldman, who writes the print Back Story, Icon and Getting to Know columns, wrote a rare web story to report on a new design store on R Street. As it turned out, the owners are as charming as their handmade jewelry and woven garments.
6. Sacramento Manufacturers and Distributors Weigh the Effects of Tariffs | December
By Seth Sandrosky
Though released just last week, this web story surprisingly received enough traffic in a few days to catch up with stories that had been online all year. It is the first installment in Comstock’s series exploring the impact of tariffs on local businesses, the second and main part of which will appear in the January print edition.
7. Visit Sacramento Unveils Menu for Tower Bridge Dinner | August
By Judy Farah
This year’s Tower Bridge Dinner attracted even more attention than usual thanks to its connection to Terra Madre Americas, the new stateside branch of the prestigious European food festival that will be held in Sacramento every other year for a decade. Comstock’s Editor Judy Farah attended a media event announcing the Indigenous American-inspired dishes that would later be served to invited guests on Tower Bridge.
8. Sacramento’s New Cherry Blossom Park Sees Its First Spring | April
By Robin Douglas
Last year, Sacramento inaugurated a new cherry blossom park along the Sacramento River, the culmination of years of advocacy by organizations including Reclaim Japantown, a group working to restore the memory of Sacramento’s demolished Japanese neighborhood. Photographer Robin Douglas visited to document the park’s first spring, which saw few blossoms on the young saplings but plenty of hope for the future.
9. Startup of the Month: Nexa Labs | July
By Russell Nichols
This year’s most-read installment in Russell Nichols’ Startup of the Month column, a web-only companion to the print column Founder of the Month, featured Nexa Labs, the winner of the 2025 UC Davis Big Bang! Competition. This promising technology collects animals’ biodata, including heart rate, respiration rate, blood oxygen and body temperature, so that farmers can nip diseases in the bud before they spread through a herd.
10. Pasquini’s Serves Up Nearly a Century of Food, Family and Lore | June
By James Raia
Some of Comstock’s most popular stories are its intimate portraits of local restaurants — not just the food they serve, but the backstories of their owners and their relationships with their customers. This web profile of a hidden gem in Live Oak fits that model perfectly, lingering on the conversations between tables and family rumors of the restaurant serving bootleg wine during the Prohibition.
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