Preservation Sacramento

1882 Foundation Chinatown Tour
Saturday May 30, 3:00 PM
415 Chinatown Mall, Sacramento

This event is organized and hosted by the 1882 Foundation, who have offered an extra tour for Preservation Sacramento members and friends on Saturday May 30 at 3:00 PM--see registration information below. These events are not being put on by Preservation Sacramento, but please feel free to contact the 1882 Foundation (contact information is below) if you have any questions about these events. To sign up for the tour, use the registration link (below or use link in our profile), and sign up for the 3:00 PM tour.

From James Xiao, Sacramento Office Manager, 1882 Foundation:

On May 30, we are partnering with the Friends of Sacramento Chinatown Square and UC Davis's Pan-Asian Youth Coalition to offer a variety of activities exploring our shared heritage and the future of Sacramento Chinatown. Acclaimed architect and Sacramento native Brian Lee will lead a tour (tour tickets very limited). RSVP link in comments.

Inside Sacramento wrote about the recent restoration of the historic Capitol Fountain, and highlighted the role of Preservation Sacramento members in its protection! We will celebrate the Capitol Fountain on Monday, May 18 at 10 AM in front of the Unruh Building (Treasury Building) at 9th & Capitol north of the rotunda, followed by a walking tour of Capitol Mall at 11 AM, led by Bruce Marwick of Sacramento Art Deco Society. This event is open to the public!

Water Works
It took awhile, but Capitol Mall fountain is back

For the first time in more than 15 years, the historic fountain at the east end of Capitol Mall is alive again. Water arcs into the air where a dry basin once sat, restoring movement, sound and drama to one of the city’s most symbolic public spaces.

The fountain’s return is more than a technical achievement—it’s the outcome of years of advocacy, public pressure and persistence led in part by Preservation Sacramento.

Constructed in the early 20th century as part of the formal approach to the Capitol, the fountain was designed as a visual anchor and gathering point. For generations, it welcomed visitors, framed photographs and softened the monumental scale of Capitol Mall.

But in 2010, the California Department of General Services turned off the fountain, citing infrastructure failures and the need for renovation. What was initially described as a temporary closure stretched into more than a decade.

The dry fountain became a familiar but unsettling sight—especially in a city defined by its rivers and historic role as a center of water engineering.

At various points, state officials explored whether to decommission and remove the fountain. That possibility raised concerns among local preservationists who viewed the fountain as a historic civic asset.

Preservation Sacramento, the nonprofit organization dedicated to protecting the region’s architectural and cultural heritage, emerged as a major advocate for saving the fountain.

With public statements, social media campaigns and outreach to members and policymakers, the organization framed the question as one of stewardship rather than nostalgia.

“This fountain is part of Sacramento’s civic DNA,” says William Burg, Preservation Sacramento’s board president. “Once we start removing historic elements instead of caring for them, we quietly erase the stories that give our city depth and meaning. Restoration isn’t about the past. It’s about what kind of city we want to hand forward.”

Preservation Sacramento encouraged supporters to submit public comments, contact legislators and speak out against any plan to dismantle the fountain. Their advocacy helped ensure the conversation remained focused on preservation rather than elimination.

A turning point came when the state launched the rehabilitation of the nearby Jesse M. Unruh State Office Building. As that project expanded to include upgrades to surrounding grounds, the fountain’s restoration was incorporated into the scope.

Fountain repairs were extensive. Crews rebuilt internal systems, addressed long-term deterioration, upgraded lighting and electrical components, and restored surface finishes. Modern technology was integrated to allow the fountain to comply with water-use standards.

When the water finally returned—briefly at the end of 2025, then more fully in January—it marked the end of a long journey. Barriers came down. Pumps hummed. The fountain reflected the Capitol dome and sky above it.
Today the fountain signals that historic public spaces still matter, that advocacy can shape what a city chooses to save.

If the city would revisit restoring other fountains on city properties, we’d go a long way toward improving the beauty and serenity of Downtown.

Written by Cecily Hastings
Photography by Aniko Kiezel

Cecily Hastings can be reached at [email protected]. Follow us on Facebook, X and Instagram: .

May's quarterly Preservation Roundtable happens this Saturday, May 9, at Sammy's Restaurant, 2021 Del Paso Boulevard at Cantalier Street. Sammy's is a diner serving breakfast and lunch, coffee and drinks--we encourage our members to purchase breakfast or lunch during the Roundtable! There will be plenty of seating at the restaurant tables where we will hold our program.

The Roundtable starts at 10 AM with our regular program of speakers, followed at noon by a walking tour of about one mile up Del Paso Boulevard, where we will visit several local businesses and nonprofits operating on the Boulevard today.

Speakers will include:

* Updates about the plan to restore the historic North Sacramento School

* Sacramento Safe Streets, discussing their ballot initiative for transit and street improvement

* Updates from the City of Sacramento's Preservation Department

* Vacancy Fee Sacramento will discuss their proposed solutions to long term building vacancies

* Announcements about the 2026 Preservation Sacramento Historic Home Tour

* Jane Jacobs Walk up Del Paso Boulevard departs at noon!

Preservation Sacramento is a sponsor of this year's California Preservation Conference, this year held in Riverside. It's always inspiring and enlightening to hear how other California cities, big and small, are addressing historic preservation throughout the state, whether it's sharing solutions and case studies or commisserating over today's challenges, but the opportunity to socialize and celebrate is also important (like this opening reception at the ). Bringing lessons and valued contacts home, and fresh inspiration, is an important part of any big gathering like this, and Preservation Sacramento is proud to be a member and supporter of California Preservation Foundation.

Preservation Sacramento board member Luis Sumpter leads about 30 people on a tour of Alkali Flat & Mansion Flats neighborhoods, May 3, the first of this year's Jane Jacobs Walk tours. Next tour is Saturday May 9, starting with a 10 AM Preservation Roundtable at Sammy's Restaurant on Del Paso Boulevard, followed by a walk through downtown North Sacramento at noon!

Alkali Flat/Mansion Flats Jane Jacobs Walk
Sunday May 3, 11:00 AM-12:30 PM
Starting at Goodside Coffee, 1430 H Street, Sacramento

Preservation Sacramento is launching our 2026 Jane Jacobs Walk season with a tour of Sacramento's oldest surviving neighborhoods, Alkali Flat and Mansion Flats! Generally located north of H Street and west of 16th Streets, these historic neighborhoods contain some of the oldest surviving homes in the city, some dating back to the 1850s, and neighborhoods dating to the days of mule-drawn streetcars. Led by Preservation Sacramento and Alkali Flat/Mansion Flats Historic Neighborhood Association board member Luis Sumpter, this 90 minute tour will stroll past historic homes and contemporary infill housing, civic buildings and community spaces, in a tree-lined neighborhood just a few blocks from City Hall and K Street. This tour is free and open to the public. Link to all Jane Jacobs walk tours in comments.

Shared via Donovan Rypkema from Shelterforce: We're Making Housing Harder to Preserve than it Should Be. Link to article in comments.

Getting ready to start the first of 2 Japantown walking tour. There are available spaces on out 1:30 PM tour, if you would like to take the tour, meet us at VFW Post 8985, 1515 4th Street, at 1:30 PM! (You can join this tour whether or not you are a Preservation member.)

Attention Preservation Sacramento members: if you missed the January members-only walking tour of Sacramento's lost Japantown, there will be another pair of tours on March 28; watch your email inbox for the promo code, or contact us by email, [email protected]!

Back by popular demand! 📣 A new date has been added for member-exclusive tours of Sacramento’s Lost Japantown. 🏙️

Complementing the California Museum’s “Kokoro: The Story of Sacramento’s Lost Japantown” exhibit, Preservation Sacramento President William Burg will lead two additional tours this March, offering members of both organizations another opportunity to explore a once-thriving community erased by redevelopment and forced removal.

🕚 Saturday, March 28, 2026 at 11:00 am or 1:30 pm | 90-minute tours
🎟️ Free for California Museum & Preservation Sacramento members + their guests
📩 California Museum members can receive their discount code and registration link by emailing [email protected]

Not a member? Join today at CaliforniaMuseum.org/Membership