Before I take my tour of California into the Bay Area, I thought I'd post some pictures of two cities I visited over the holidays to see friends and family. Both Roseville, off highway 80, and Folsom, off highway 50, are fast growing suburbs of Sacramento, but, started as towns in their own right.
Folsom, CA
In most people's mind, Folsom's claim to fame is being the location of one our most notorious prisons, Folsom Prison. But, it is now a thriving (read sprawling) suburb of Sacramento with approximately 70,000 people. I thought about adding these to my Gold Country thread as the historic downtown is a typical old west style, but, given its ties to the Sacramento region, it seemed more appropriate to include here.
Downtown redevelopment beckons...
Recently expanded Light Rail into Folsom
Roseville, CA
I think Roseville represents the quintessential California suburban city. The city of approximately 106,000 is an old railroad town that became a bedroom community and edge city-retail mecca. Any big box store or chain restaurant you could want is either already built or on the development list. Roseville does have an Amtrak station but, egregiously, no LRT stations at present. I lived here for a number of years and enjoyed it. Some of these pictures are from last summer, others from earlier this month.
Symbols of Roseville
Downtown
Railroad tracks separate downtown from the "historic" downtown.
Railroad past even figures into modern retail
Even more places to shop coming soon...
Wide avenues abound
Office-Corporate Park expansion into Roseville has been phenomenal since I lived there
Historic downtown has a relatively "active" bar scene
If you like surburban living, Roseville is as nice a place as any to call home.
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Tour of California
1: Los Angeles,
2: Hollywood, Glendale, Pasadena, Beverly Hills,
3: Riverside, Santa Ana, Long Beach,
4: San Jose,
5: San Diego,
6: Fresno,
7: Stockton, Modesto,
8: Gold Country,
9: Eureka, Arcata,
10: Monterey, Carmel,
11: Santa Cruz,
12: Sacramento Pt One, 13: Sacramento Pt Two