“Something isn’t quite right with Tim Collom. On the outside, Collom is doing far better than most of us. In the past year, he has been featured on KCRA-TV and HGTV speaking about real estate and in the pages of The Sacramento Bee and Sacramento Magazine showcasing his paintings. 

Say what you will about the severity of state and federal budget woes, but it’s arguably the small towns that are bearing the real brunt of today’s economy.

As we begin a new year, few of us feel ready to break out party hats and celebrate the state of our economy.

In one of the first actions designed to help the city of Sacramento move forward next year, the City Council OK’d a proposal concerning where we all stop.

Kipp Blewett, 46, is a principal partner and co-founder of Rubicon Partners Inc. He is also a member of the board of directors for the Downtown Sacramento Partnership.

The air cargo industry has long been a valuable component in the Capitol Region’s economy. But in spite of some rosy growth projections, air freight traffic in the region has been in a steady decline for more than a decade with no sure signs it will return to its former prominence.

Where Scalehouse Street meets Township Nine Avenue is, for now, a crossroads on 65 acres of dirt between Richards Boulevard and the American River Parkway. In less than a decade, this swath of land — offering striking views of both the downtown Sacramento skyline and one of the city’s beloved rivers — could be home to thousands.

In September 2008, when Lehman Brothers collapsed and the municipal bond market froze, Sacramento International Airport had just begun constructing the biggest capital improvement project in the county’s history.

Doby Fleeman can feel the ground shifting. He can almost hear the low rumble of engines.

“The steamrollers are on the move,” says Fleeman, manager of the Davis Ace Hardware Co. “It’s like we’re on tectonic plates. There’s a change in the wind.”

I remember a time when Sacramento’s Downtown Plaza was a thriving mall, a leader in the city’s retail sales and tax revenues. And, back in the 1970s, its design was up to date: many malls were self-contained, with no connection to surrounding streets.