Houses to spill south of Highway 50
By Tony Bizjak, Sacramento Bee
Folsom will begin its long-planned march across Highway 50 this summer, a move that eventually could bring 10,000 new homes to an expanse of rolling hills now dotted mainly with oak trees. The move sends a strong signal that the market for new suburban housing in Sacramento is recovering from the near-knockout blow dealt by the recession.
Drought and climate change concerns loom, however. City officials acknowledge they are still working to secure the water agreements they likely will need for the expansion, and critics question whether the city will have enough water in dry years to provide for both new and existing residents.
Folsom’s new frontier contains 3,500 acres of mainly grassland stretching south from Highway 50 to White Rock Road. Annexed a few years ago, it expanded Folsom’s boundaries by 25 percent, although nearly a third of the land, an oak forest along Alder Creek, will remain open space.