The City of Folsom City Council approved the Central Business District Vision plan at its meeting of November 12, 2024 This important retail and commercial corridor is located along East Bidwell Street from Riley Street to Blue Ravine

The Vision Plan is organized into existing conditions, potential Transformative Ideas with examples from other jurisdictions or design features and Implementation Measures. No specific development is proposed at this time. As development is proposed in the future, it is envisioned that staff will review the document annually to identify priorities and use the document for guidance to ensure that development supports the community’s vision for the area.  
 
The Vision Plan is intended to be a long-range vision (10-20-year plan) that helps guide development going forward by aligning land uses, public infrastructure projects and the vision/branding of the area with the values of the community. No land use changes such as a General Plan amendment or rezoning are proposed as part of this effort. The Vision Plan was funded with American Recovery Plan Act (ARPA) funds.

• Mixed-use residential development
• Economic development
• Commercial corridor revitalization
• Placemaking and design, lighting, and landscaping
• Traffic calming
• Pedestrian and bicycle improvements
• Safety
• Parking strategies
• Outreach strategies

On August 22, 2023, the City Council formed the Central Business Advisory Committee and appointed 18 stakeholders representing economic development, local business and property owners, residents, recreation, transportation and mobility, tourism, and education/student advisors to help provide input into the process. The Advisory Committee met eight times over a year to provide meaningful input and guidance into the Vision Plan.  Their recommendations were incorporated into the Final Vision Plan  

Public Outreach Touchpoint: Community Questionnaire and Pop-Up Activities 

As part of an ongoing collaborative planning effort, the City’s project team hosted an online community questionnaire to obtain early input on community values, priorities, and vision for the planning area from Folsom residents and visitors. The survey was open for three weeks and more than 800 participants responded.  

The project team also hosted several pop-up events to build awareness about the planning effort and encourage participation in the community questionnaire. On Saturday, December 16, 2023, two project team members hosted a pop-up event outside Karen’s Bakery as well as at the Historic Folsom Farmers Market. In addition to providing community members with cards that included a QR code link to the questionnaire, project team members asked the community to respond to two questions: what uses/amenities would you like to see expanded or created in the project area? And what ideas could support the area as a “destination” with a unique identity and “sense of place”?