"The city of Isleton is nestled between the Sacramento River and the county's southernmost border. On any given day, the only sound coming from the area is the passage of cars on Highway 160. The main street looks and feels straight out of the 1920s, because it is. In the early 1900s, the city was bustling with 1500 residents, mainly Asian immigrants, who worked at asparagus canneries."
"But that was over 50 years ago and now, the city is in serious trouble. At the end of August, city leaders came to Sacramento County with a request- an $800,000 loan to help avoid bankruptcy. The city said in a letter to the county they are set to default on a $500,000 bridge loan in November, using three city buildings as collateral. The county denied the loan."
Isleton, a small city of about 800 residents in Sacramento's Delta, has experienced long-term decline from an early-1900s peak of 1,500 canning-industry workers to a downtown with only a handful of businesses. The city faces imminent financial distress after city leaders requested an $800,000 county loan to avoid bankruptcy and revealed a looming default on a $500,000 bridge loan secured by three municipal buildings; the county denied the request. Residents fear potential disincorporation or bankruptcy and the loss of local services. Meanwhile, statewide actions included vetoed reparations bills and a new law requiring police to disclose AI assistance in reports.
Read at Kqed
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