♪♪ Scott: Christopher Cabaldon was first elected mayor of West Sacramento in 1998.

He returned to private life after an unsuccessful bid for reelection.

Former Mayor Cabaldon joins us today to reflect on his tenure and his thoughts about the future of West Sacramento.

Mayor Cabaldon, what happened in the last election?

Christopher: Well, what didn't happen in the last election?

Uh, the 2020...

I mean, it's already a cliché, um, but everything about 2020 was, um, a challenge, but also unprecedented.

In fact, we... we kept looking backwards, the precedent at times, and the same thing was true all year long during the election.

So, I think as... as... as the year was going forward, as March rolled around, um, you know, my intention had been to exit, um, to... to... to conclude a long term of service, one of the longest serving mayors in the country.

Um, uh, but as the crisis took hold, the... the... the triple crisis of the pandemic and the economy and economic consequences of the pandemic and our response and the racial justice, um, crisis as well, uh, it was clear in... in July and August that you just don't walk away from your community, um, after this... after a long term of service in the middle of a crisis.

And so, I...

I ran for reelection again, but knowing that... that, uh, this year was going to be different, that you couldn't- I couldn't campaign in September, October... October, November, like, "“Hey, look at me!

Look at all the wonderful things.

"” And you know, "“Look at this great new project.

"” "“Hey, there's a new coffee shop.

"” Right?

You can't... you can't do that, um, when you're trying to manage a pandemic.

And when you're trying to, uh, persuade everyone of the seriousness of the crisis, folks across the political spectrum to comply with the health orders, uh, to heal a community, to hold it together, um, is a very difficult time.

And so, you know, I think actually in the entire SACOG region, the six counties of SACOG plus San Joaquin, not a single mayor was reelected.

Um, uh, but you know, I think for the right reasons.

We all had to step up and lead, um, in a public health crisis, which is not usual.

That's not the best way to... to manage politics, but it was the right thing to do for... for... for the health and safety of our communities.

Scott: You know, that... that, um, observation about, uh, the mayors within the region, not being reelected is interesting.

I have not heard that before.

I...

I wanted to ask you, you've got such a reputation as a problem solver and an innovator and... and frankly, West Sacramento is known as the city that works, where it is that you can get stuff done.

Where do you think beyond just the management of the extreme conditions we were in, there was a bit of a delta because for many, uh, within the region, your, uh, leadership was looked at as an example of how to lead a city right.

Where was the disconnect with the public on this?

Christopher: Well, you know, it's.... it's, I think it's, uh, you know- I got more votes this time than I have on any of their election in the past.

Right?

So, it wasn't a change of the... of people's minds so much as, um, you know, a lot of folks voted this time who hadn'’t voted previously.

We... we sometimes think of the, uh, of, uh, folks who don't vote as this like, um, great reserve of progressive values.

Like if they would just come out to vote we would get a higher minimum wage and... and universal healthcare and all of that.

But particularly this year, uh, we saw a lot of voters inspired by the president, um, who were just angry.

Um, and voters who weren't angry, but were frustrated and didn't know what to do and trying to cope with crises after crises in their own lives.

Um, yeah, so what you say about West Sacramento is true.

I would say it's largely true about Stockton also.

And my colleague and... and friend Michael Tubbs also sort of unexpectedly not reelected in his community as well.

And we saw this all over the place, um, in California in particular, um, where, uh, just that the nature and the mood of the electorate wasn't focused on, "“How is my city doing?

"” It was this sense of frustration and malaise and anger and "“Can we... and can't we just get this under control, and government, would you please stop telling us what to do, and government, would you please solve this crisis all at once?

"” Right?

It is all of that happening at the same time.

And, uh... uh... and... and given that we were all occupied with... with managing and leading through the crisis, I think, uh, you know, getting... getting down and dirty, rolling up your sleeves and fighting and you know, bloody and muddy battle in politics just wasn't the right... it wasn't the right tone for... for 2020.

Scott: Okay, well, instead of talking about 2020, let's go backwards a bit.

Take us back to when you first became mayor.

What was West Sacramento like back then compared to 2021?

Christopher: Well, I- th- I- you know, it physically, it was dramatically different.

We were about half the size we are today in terms of population, um, uh, and most of those folks are still here.

Uh, all of us who have lived here back then are still in town, but a lot more folks decided that West Sacramento was a place that they wanted to live or to come home to, um, after joining the military or going to college or what have you.

Um, so we're much larger than we were before, but also, you know, uh, you know, I w- I wish we could take a walk, um, through West Sacramento today.

You cannot go a block or two and not see the... the physical transformation of the city, the opening up of the waterfront, the creation of a new downtown, neighborhood after neighborhood after neighborhood, affordable housing like we were never building before.

Um, just like physical changes all over the place.

Of course, Raley Field, Sutter Health Park, and... and many others, our new college that was built, uh, were physically transformed.

I guess so, for me, the other thing about that... that time was that, um, we... we didn't have a high opinion of our- of what was possible for West Sacramento.

Um, and that was partly reinforced by, you know, pretty much everybody else in the region thought West Sacramento was an armpit and they're like, "“Don't... don't go there after dark.

"” Um, and nobody thought- people either didn't know we existed or didn't believe in us.

And... and after a century of... of possibility and potential, uh, after a century, you'’re kind of like, "“Well, what's wrong with me if I have all this potential and I'm not delivering on it?

"” Um, there was a sense of... desperation is not quite the right word, but a sense that, you know what, we're a working class, industrial, you know, low to middle income town and, you know, things aren't great, they're not perfect, but they're good enough.

Um, and, uh, you know, there's no point in dreaming bigger.

Um, and so our... our community had just incorporated in 1987 as a city with the hopes of, you know, getting our water cleaner and... and improving the quality of our police department, and maybe getting a downtown, maybe opening up a little bit of the... of the waterfront.

Um, but our ambition as a community about what we could become, uh... uh... uh, was radically different back then.

Scott: When you think about all of the change that's come to West Sacramento and you referenced the waterfront, the new downtown, the bridge district, um, the, you know, uh, signature, uh, buildings like the CalSTRS building and all that.

Out of all those projects great and small, w- which one of those or ones that I didn't mention is- was your toughest, but most satisfying achievement?

Christopher: I.. .I...

I think it's... it's.... it's gotta be Sutter Health Park or Raley Field in... in some ways, um, maybe not the hardest over the course of everything, but it was the key to unlocking everything else.

You know, I became mayor in 1998.

Back then the city, the citizens didn't elect the mayor.

Um, I was elected to the city council and, uh, the city council elects- elected the mayor back then.

And just for convenience, the council would just rotate it.

Right?

We don't wanna have to make choices among each other, so we'll just rotate.

So, 1998, it wasn't that there was a groundswell of people saying, "“Hey, we want Christopher Cabaldon as our mayor.

"” It was, "“Oh, it's your turn.

"” You know, your turn in the rotation.

Um, and a couple of guys had this crazy idea of building a minor league baseball stadium in West Sacramento.

They came to meet with one.

They didn't have any land, they didn't have a team, they didn't have any money.

Um, one was like, selling cell, uh, cellphone contracts, the other one, you know, had a family legacy of minor league baseball, but that was it.

Um, and that project was impossible, right?

No... nobody could-we didn't... we didn't have a penny to our name in West Sacramento to help to put something together.

Uh, we didn't have the land, we had nothing.

And we pulled that project off and, uh, it was, uh, it was a huge, uh... uh, lever of change for all those other physical changes, it made us look at issues and say, "“Hey, uh, you know what, the crack house has been across the street from the park for forever.

"” And we've always thought, "“Well, you just can't do anything about that.

"” Well, we just shocked the region and built, uh, you know, the... the $45 million minor league ballpark.

If we could do that, surely we can take care of that crack house.

And what about the fact that sec- you know, most second graders can't read at grade level?

Surely, we could take on that if we... if we just did the ballpark.

So, for me, the... the ballpark was a major, major step forward because it caused us to realize, hey, we could partner with others in the region, that we could do big things and that we were capable of, but we just had to, like, get to work and roll up our sleeves.

And that, um, in some sense, uh, was more important than the physical change, it changed our psychology and our... and our mindset in the city that if we applied ourselves and we made, you know, we- if we did the hard work and we made the tough choices and... and took some chances that we could really get something done.

And that has built on itself ever since, um, all around the city in every other corner as well.

Scott: Some of your biggest fans, uh, come from the business community, which, uh, typically is seen as being, uh, pre- pretty critical of what would be considered progressive leadership, if I... if I can, you know, put a label on it.

And yet you seem to have high support from the business community.

And I'm curious, w- what is it that you and your colleagues in West Sacramento have done differently to make, uh, to give yourselves a reputation as a place to innovate or get things done when many other cities that have, frankly, no offense, far more resources than West Sacramento, have struggled?

Christopher: I actually think, in some extent, the answer is embedded in your question and it's that last part of what you just said was that, uh, you know, we're not Land Park, we're not Davis, and we're not Roseville.

We don't have any- we have no natural economic advantages.

You know, we have a beautiful river, access to the causeway, we... we've got all kinds of assets, but... but among them have never been great wealth.

Um, and that has meant that we had to like... like, you had to- we had to, like... where is that- were are our bootstraps, we gotta be starting work and we can't do it alone.

Uh, when I got elected, I'’m like I, you know, I wasn't running as a business candidate.

I'm like, I wanna...

I want to open up a college here.

I want to fix our transit service and create real mobility.

And then I really started to realize that's a - it all costs money, it all costs money!

So how do we do that?

Um, and found, uh, progressive business leaders and others that wanted to help on those projects.

But also realize that that an industry like ours, we just had to create economic opportunities, um, and growth and jobs.

And so, we... we have done that and... and I th- and... and turning back to the ballpark example, because it was one key insight of that was, we... we cut the deal on that ballpark -—I was elected in 1998, December as mayor-— the ballpark opened in April of... of 2000.

So, we made the deal for the ballpark in about April or May, I think, of 1999, it was open, in, uh, one year later.

That's incredible!

I mean, it's hard... it's hard to, like, get an addition to your house, um, built in... in any city in one year, but we built this entire thing.

Um, and, uh, the project that came next was IKEA.

And... and Sacramento and others were like, "“We'll give IKEA... IKEA, we'll give you $10 million, we'll give you $25 million to locate in our cities.

"” And I looked at our budgets and said, "“Well we don't... we don't- I can't even give you $500,000, much less $10 million.

But I'll tell you what IKEA, um, we could get you open, um, one or two years faster than anyone else can.

"” Um, and IKEA said, "“Well, look that- we could make $10 million, uh, in... in a year easily, we make that hundreds of times over in a year.

"” So, they came here, they chose West Sacramento.

That was the second project after we had Raley Field that said, yeah, Raley Field wasn't a fluke.

The ballpark wasn't a fluke.

This is a new... this is a new vibe in West Sacramento.

And it taught me, um, that figuring out how to make economic opportunity and economic expansion happen, partnering with the bus- with different kinds of folks in the business community, you could really leverage significant change.

And, uh, that's paid off in terms of our initiatives around micro transit and micro mobility and transit reform.

It's paid off definitely in our West Sacramento Home Run program that you and I have spoken about before, uh, you know, radically changing economic and educational opportunity in the city.

And so, the marriage of... of, uh, economic expansion and growth with progressive ideals and progress- and... and really leading initiatives, um, has been kind of the hallmark of West Sacramento over the last 20 years.

Scott: And we... we talk about those steps along the way, I'm curious, how are you different than you were back in 1998?

Christopher: Oh, my gosh.

It's... it'’s... an easier question would be how am I the same, which is hardly at all.

Um, in 1998, I...

I...

I was, uh, I was working as a... as a staffer in the State Capitol, I was just leaving the Capitol.

Um, a young guy who... who was like, ran for city council to like, just fix some stuff and then get back to my... my real calling, which was to work on, uh, you know, on... on the glorious things.

I wanted to work on foreign policy and, you know, saving the... the coast and, you know, things like that.

Not sewers and pot- and... and potholes and, uh, you know, stuff like that... that wasn't... uh- but I was going to work on that for a little bit, but I was going to get back to that.

And I realized, uh, working in the city, was that this is where real change happens.

I mean, you know, with no offense to, you know, U.S.

Senators and California State Assembly Members... it is in communities, at least the communities like mine that aren't finished yet, where you have the... the possibility of dramatically, profoundly changing people's opportunities and their lives, their sense of power, their sense of possibility.

Um, so I fell in love with... with... with like, the ability to really make a legitimate impact and not just do it yourself, but to engage people in doing that.

Um, which wasn't on me before.

I think, uh, I also, um, uh, started to become more- a little bit more outgoing.

I'm a policy wonk by nature.

You know, I'm a...

I'm a behind-the-scenes, uh, you know, aid, legislative aid.

That's what I was when I got- first got elected to city council.

And I had to, like, find a different part of me that could, like, handle the crab feeds and shake hands and kiss babies and give the speeches and all of that that was not- I wasn't- I never trained to be the mayor of West Sacramento.

And then the last one, which was probably the, you know, the most, in some ways, the most obvious now, but the most, the deepest one was that I was in the closet.

You know, I...

I...

I'd grown up.

I...

I had the - in the early 90s, maybe late 80s started to realize that this feeling that I was different from everybody else, um, had a name and that I was gay.

Um, but I also had- I've been watch- you know, watching years and years and years of, uh, every time there was somebody gay that in politics, like some- you know, somebody would step up to a podium, you know, "“Hi I'm so- I'm so-and-so, I'm the mayor or the senator for this city or this town.

"” And, uh, you know, sweat would be coming down their face and they would announce that... "“I...

I need to be...

I needed, uh, you know, make an announcement, and I'm gay.

"” And then always right after would be, "“And I am resigning effective, you know, next Thursday"” or something.

That... that... that it was clear that there... that there- you just couldn't be... that that part of me that was, like, essential or something, at the essence of my DNA, I couldn't be that and be in politics.

And so, I chose politics.

I'm like, I want to make a difference.

And I... I- the... the having a personal life isn't going to be a part of that.

In 2006, I came out of the closet, um, uh, and... and I was- with great fear, um, and that journey that my city and I have been on together, um, of growth and change, uh... uh, has dramatically changed me.

So, I'm a complete, in some ways, a completely different person than I when... when- as different, uh, as... as I was then compared to as different West Sac is now compared to then.

Scott: When... when you did come out, how, uh, how did your city receive you?

Christopher: Uh, you know, I... I- it- so, it was... it was the whole spectrum, right?

So, when I... when I first came out, I was worried that, you know, there would be people that camped out at my house cause it's a small town, everybody knows where you live.

Um, you know, with... with picket signs or torches or whoever, you know, you just, you... you don't know because you've never seen it happen before without it resulting in, you know, in something horrible.

Um, and the... the response was, the night that I did it the state of the city address, the response in the room was overwhelming and positive.

Um, and, uh, you know, I was just in tears.

Everyone was in tears pretty much for that... for that evening.

But then, you know, that's the... that's the folks from the Chamber of Commerce and from the Rotary Club and others.

But the real test was going to be the next day.

And the next day, you know, a bunch of the TV show, TV news folks went out.

They went to Carol's Restaurant, you know, my favorite diner in town, and they were talking to folks, you know, "“Hey, Mr. And Mrs. So-and-so..."” and it was an 80-year-old couple and, "“So, your mayor just said he's gay.

What do you think about that?

"” And... and, uh, you know, their... their answers from the- I remember those clips because they were pretty typical of the mail I was getting too, were... were things like, "“Well, I don't like that.

"” You know, "“I don't believe in that, but you know what, he does a good job and we... we, you know, let's give him a chance.

"” And, uh, so that was the center of the spectrum.

There were certainly lots of folks were like, "“Thank you for doing this.

"” And "“I work for the city and I've never come out myself.

Um, I...

I - you know, I...

I have wanted to move home to West Sacramento, but I didn't feel safe there.

"” Right?

So, there was all of those reactions as well folks, you know, sending me, you know, nastygrams and other sorts of things, so the full spectrum.

Then I was on the ballot just a few months later in November of that year and, uh, I won by the largest margin ever for reelection.

And so, um, uh, my experience, I should say, two years later, I won again, I was reelected by a large margin at the same year that my voters here in West Sacramento voted for Proposition 8.

So, it's... it's an example that of, uh, how, you know, it's not so simple, it's not some inevitable, you know, set of- like, suddenly there's an awakening and everybody changes.

In 2008, voters in West Sacramento said, "“We love our gay mayor, and we don't think he should be able to get married.

"” Um, "“And we want that in the constitution.

"” And so, part of what I've appreciated in this role is the chance to be a part of people's journeys and to help... help... help lead and push them along.

For a lot of folks in my community for much of that time, I was the only gay person that they realized that they knew, um, and that, uh, and help them to... to, you know, to become more, um, accepting and then supportive, um, over the years as well.

Scott: You know, you talk about the journey that people go on and that your community is, and we are on a journey right now as a nation.

How would you describe the moment we're in?

Christopher: Uh, we're... we're in so many overlapping moments at one time, but th- I mean, this is- I think we have... we have seen very plainly who we don't want to be, um, in a... in a lot of contexts.

Um... um, and I think the... the, you... and we're maybe more open than we have been in the past to thinking about what we should be, um, and... and... and... and beyond our own bubbles and our own opinions.

But seeing, I think, more of us are seeing all the other people in a democracy.

And I was...I was in a conversation earlier today about civics education and, uh, you know, folks saying we need to, you know, we need to get back to having civics, uh, education.

And I think, well, I don't think that's really... you know, the problem isn't... isn't that we don't have content knowledge.

Right?

There... there are plenty of folks who were like, uh, storming the Capitol with guns who are quoting the Federalist Papers, they... they know what the Second Amendment is.

Right?

It's not that they don't know, it's not that we don't know as a people, it's that democracy is, um, it's... it's... uh, it's a lot of fighting, uh, I mean by nature, right?

It's... it's... it's in every healthy democracy there is a lot of battling, and mostly most of us, most of the time lose those arguments in democracy.

Um, but we had come to a point where, uh, we don't know how... we don't know how to lose and persevere, and we don't know how to lose with grace.

We don't know how to tell the difference.

Um, and both 2020 and 2021 have underscored that.

And, uh, you know, so... so watching this transition is giving us, you know, it's such a welcome opportunity to reset, um, as a people.

Um, and, uh, and at least I'm...

I'm hopeful, you know, as... as... as, uh, that... that... that... that... that... that has finally arrived.

Scott: If you... you know, you... you have studied, uh, politics and, uh civic change for so long and been, uh, a lead actor in all of that as well.

If you could sit down the leadership of this country, on both sides of the political aisle, and give them any advice whatsoever to move forward, to help us move forward as a nation, what would it be?

Christopher: I...

I would...

I would advise, uh, folks, especially in D.C., the, you know, the... the leadership of the... of the country, the parties, and others, you know, maybe to take a sabbatical as a mayor for a little while.

Uh, and... and... and not because we know something different about the issues, but there is, um, something fundamental about, you know, going to the grocery store and picking up some eggs and some milk and everyone there is, you know, you're... you're fair game.

Um, and what you... what you realize when you're the mayor is -—or in local office more generally -—is that there is- the world is not divided into two tribes of good and evil people.

Right?

I...

I may, you know, let's... let's turn back to 2008, the folks that were campaigning, um, uh, against my right to marry, you know, who, uh... uh, in my own community, you know, they'’d have a law set up for that.

I'll tell you some of those folks were exactly the people I needed on my side when we were trying to get an affordable housing apartment building built on a corner when a bunch of NIMBY'’s who were saying no.

And some of those NIMBY'’s were, you know, very strong LGBT, uh, rights activists later on.

And what you... what you... what you discover, what you learn is in some sense what most Americans know from the Thanksgiving table, or more from the family table, is that there's the- you know, there are different perspectives and we're still gonna be here next year for Thanksgiving.

We're still- As a mayor, you know, Scott, we may be fighting to the death on some issue today.

And... and... and it's not about just being civil and nice.

It's not about forgetting, but we're going- we might be critical allies tomorrow.

That's how a democ- that's the only way a democracy can function.

And where we are at today with our national leadership, as they for- most of them are so disconnected or have forgotten that... that connection, um, between, uh, the- that... that, uh, that we are constantly changing.

And that w- that every one of us is the- has the possibility of being an ally tomorrow or maybe the next day, um, uh, as long as we don't cut each other off.

Scott: Hmm.

As... as we move to our last few minutes, I want to ask you very quickly, what do you consider to be the major challenges that we as a region because you've done so much in terms of regional cooperation what is it that we as a region must confront?

Christopher: Well, I mean, we still, uh, many of the issues that we've been challenge- challenged with over the last decade or two are still there.

Right?

So, we- it's not that we haven't won the battle against, uh, you know, sprawling land use development.

And in fact, all that we've learned is that, uh, that, uh... uh... uh, smarter land use, smarter land recycling, um, and the concentration of resources in existing urban areas, um, is not just a powerful environmental strategy, but it's really important for economic development, for social cohesion, for justice, for all of those things.

So, it's become even more important and certainly, the pandemic has... has highlighted that.

So, the... the con- the policy agenda is still right there in front of us.

We've made progress.

We're a national leader in that space in Sacramento.

I think, but the other dimension to it, I would just add is that, um, it's... in Sacramento, we often get very comfort- very con- self-congratulatory about how collaborative we are and... and all the things that we have done in the past to work together in our networks and all of that.

And we are becoming a much more potent region.

Um, we're- we were growing, we're becoming more powerful, wealthier in many ways, and our problems are becoming even more challenging.

And that... that... that kind of approach of, uh, regular collaboration may not scale to... to the level that we're going.

And we're going to have to keep reinventing our ways of engaging solutions on those problems as well.

Scott: Well, talking about reinvention, uh, what's next for Christopher Cabaldon?

Christopher: Uh, right now I'm trying to sleep.

You know, it's... it's...

I have spent almost... almost my entire adult life, um, as either mayor or a city council member in West Sacramento.

And, uh, but I've been running at a hundred miles an hour.

It's been the... the, you know, the... the... the purpose of a lifetime to be able to do it.

It's been extraordinary.

Um, but, uh, I...

I have the next half of my life now to... to... to figure out, um, and... You know, so, I'm...

I'm looking at some opportunities and some possibilities, but also trying to, uh, force myself to relax a little bit, to play a game, to read a book.

And probably most importantly that to... to finally be able to... to have conversations with my friends that last more than 12 minutes.

Um, but to really, deeply engage in unimportant things, um, that are- that in some sense, are the... are... are... are the most important food for the soul.

Scott: They... they most certainly are.

Uh, Mayor Cabaldon, Christopher, um, thank you so much for your service and we look forward to seeing what's next for Christopher Cabaldon.

Christopher: Thank you, Scott.

Scott: All right.

And that's our show.

Thanks to our guest and thanks to you for watching Studio Sacramento.

I'm Scott Syphax.

See you next time right here on KVIE.

♪♪ ♪♪ Scott Syphax: All episodes of Studio Sacramento, along with other KVIE programs, are available to watch online at kvie.org/video.