(The Associated Press issued the following on September 4.)
SACRAMENTO, Calif. — Sacramento is planning for 15,000 homes north of its downtown, most of them on the site of a former railyard.
The homes, condominiums and townhouses will be built in anticipation of future housing needs. Area planners project that continued high gas prices will discourage people from living in distant suburbs, where they will face long commutes.
The abandoned railyard is north of the state capital and main downtown business district. It is bordered by Interstate 5, the American River and the city’s Amtrak station.
The 24-acre site would have some 12,000 homes, the first scheduled to be built in 2012. An adjoining parcel would have another 3,000, with construction to start in two years.
Some $200 million in infrastructure work, including new streets and a realignment for Amtrak trains, is scheduled to begin next summer.