Historical Articles of Solano County

Friday, March 20, 1981

America Should Move Forward - Vacaville, Too

John Rico

LET’S GET AMERICA ROLLING - HOW ABOUT VACAVILLE, TOO? - Many of the larger business corporations across the country are calling attention via newspaper and television announcements, that it’s about time “We get America rolling again.” That’s not a bad suggestion, but it is going to take more than words to accomplish a new-born forward movement in the United States and Vacaville.

For too many years we have treated the word progress as though it was an undesirable malady; a malaise that should be shelved; an unnecessary evil which burdens the people with heavy expenditures and the beginning of the end to all good things which we should be able to enjoy.

Let’s not overlook the fact that we do have problems. Inflation is rolling along unchecked; we are depleting our wealth by trading billions of dollars for oil imports; we have attempted to put into operation nuclear generating plants without considering the consequences of disaster and the unsolved problems of disposing of the residue from these installations.

But on the asset side of the ledger from border to border, we possess advantages beyond description; potentials yet untapped which will stagger the imagination.

Now that we have embraced a conservative mood it is becoming more and more difficult to know just where and how we should retrench without going into a regression which could become a calamity.

If we expect to achieve the lowering of interest rates; the high prices of houses, automobiles, and every other item we need, then the status quo needs to go out the window and we should look forward to a considerable change in our present lifestyles.

President Ronald Reagan and his administration have embarked on a cost-cutting program which he hopes may balance the federal budget by the time his four-year term comes to an end. There is every possibility this may be accomplished. But let’s hope in those four years in achieving the budget balancing act, that we have not sacrificed in the fields of accomplishments which are constantly needed to give the people the conveniences they deserve.

We are in for a lot of changes, so do not become alarmed when they come your way.

A Sacramento automobile dealer may be setting the pace when he advertises the line of cars he sells will usher in catalogue sales. This will do away with the need for expensive flooring by the dealer which in turn should reflect in lower prices for the vehicles. But on the other hand it will do away with impulse buying, because there will be a delay in delivery of your vehicle after you have made the catalogue purchase.

Without playing the part of the Monday morning quarterback, I would like to go back into Vacaville’s history and review some of the actions we took, and just what would have happened had reverse action taken place.

For years Vacaville’s governing body instituted a limited growth pattern for the city, cutting down on the number of homes built here when the demand was prevalent. Vacaville continued to grow under these obstacles, but just what kind of a growth would we have experienced without control?

What would have happened with a favorable vote to issue $750,000 in general obligation bonds to be used as the initial expenditure for a Vacaville hospital? This was back in November 1964. Would that venture have proven an error, or would we now have a 100-bed facility here instead of none?

Then there was the proposal to redevelop 11 acres of the downtown central core area bordered by Main, Merchant, Mason and Davis Streets. A Vacaville Urban Renewal Agency was selected by Mayor Albert Porter and instructed to ask for financial assistance from the federal government in a plan to revitalize the area.

The program became highly controversial, and was a political target in the 1962 city elections. Candidates opposed to the plan won majority control of the city council and redevelopment was scrapped, followed by the resignation of City Manager Robert Meyer, who was a proponent of redevelopment.

Here again, had redevelopment been successful would there be a modern shopping center in the area today? There is talk of redevelopment in sections of the downtown area, but from lessons learned in the past, the possibility of any success is remote and could be a waste of time.

There are those little quirks of momentary temptation which have paid dividends here. Let’s take the urge of ex-Fire Chief Warren Hughes wanting a firehouse for Vacaville. With a promise from the city council to furnish some cash, Hughes and his volunteer firemen pounded the nails culminating in the initial phase of the Dobbins Street fire station.

The late Leila McKevitt often remarked that had it not been that her home was destroyed by fire in 1915, and firemen were without a mechanized piece of equipment, Vacaville would not have purchased its first fire engine back in 1916.

Vacaville has come a long way since 1900, boasting of a population increase of nearly 41,000 residents in the 80-year span. But despite the fact we have added all these new residents, there remains much to do in the community. Remember, the day of little gremlins making things happen seems to have come to an end.

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