Zócalo Public Square

California’s Central Valley is widely regarded as rural and agricultural, even by those who live there. But its reality and future are profoundly urban. The valley’s cities appear small only in comparison with the mega-metropolitan regions along the California coast. After struggling to build infrastructure equal to their growing size and importance, valley cities finally seem to be catching up with their urban needs—adding more cultural venues, revamping downtowns, and developing new transit and water systems. The Sacramento Bee editorial page editor Dan Morain, Fresno State president Joseph I. Castro, Valley Vision managing director Meg Arnold, Davis City Manager Dirk Brazil, and Placer County Schools superintendent Gayle Garbolino-Mojica examined those questions at a Feb. 15 Zócalo/The California Wellness Foundation event at the Capitol Event Center in downtown Sacramento.