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ISSUE | RANCHO CORDOVA ARENA PROJECT: Rancho Cordova could soon be home to a new arena and entertainment district, a project that calls for significant financial participation from the city.
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The Downtown Dova project would be anchored by a 7,500-seat indoor soccer arena near Kilgore Road and Trade Center Drive, where two Major Arena Soccer League teams would play. The developers envision a larger district with housing, hotels, retail, restaurants, a card room and the city’s first movie theater, though future phases would require additional approvals.
Supporters have said the arena and surrounding development would boost the city’s economy and create a downtown destination, while opponents have raised concerns about the city’s financial support, traffic and environmental effects.
The project was advanced through the Planning Commission in late September, and the City Council, which has final authority over the project and its financial agreements, is expected to consider it in late October.
All four candidates running for Rancho Cordova City Council this November have expressed support for the project, but they have emphasized different potential benefits and considerations. Three — incumbent Linda Budge and challengers Tegan Mauldin and Lilia Darbinyan — are running for the District 5 seat. Elliott Stevenson is running unopposed in District 2. Here’s what they have said so far.
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Linda Budge, incumbent
Budge, 79, has represented Rancho Cordova since the city incorporated in 2003. She is running for re-election and to represent the 5th District.
Budge said in a September interview with The Bee that she supports the arena because of the opportunities it would bring to the city.
“It’s really wonderful for District 5,” she said. “It’s also good for the city as a whole.”
Budge said in late September that city leaders would ensure that “public dollars are spent wisely” and that the city gets a return on its investment.
At a City Council meeting last year discussing the project, Budge said the project was part of the “future” of Rancho Cordova and that she was “truly” in support of the project.
Tegan Mauldin
Mauldin, who is running to represent the 5th District, is chair of the city’s Planning Commission. In a September interview with The Bee, she said that Rancho Cordova was “primed” for a project like the arena and that she had heard from residents who wanted more entertainment opportunities in the city.
Mauldin, 45, said one of her priorities was ensuring that the amount of private and public funding backing the project was “in balance.”
Mauldin voted in favor of advancing the arena project through the Planning Commission in late September.
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“A project of this scale requires really careful scrutiny, and all of these are really important considerations, as is the need to be transparent and hold people accountable,” Mauldin said at the meeting, in response to concerns raised by residents.
Lilia Darbinyan
Darbinyan, a principal and small business owner, is running to represent the 5th District. In a September interview with The Bee, she said she supported the arena project and other entertainment district projects like it because she wanted to “make the city more interesting for younger families.”
She said the arena would be valuable to the city because it could encourage residents to spend money in the city rather than travel to neighboring cities like Folsom and Sacramento for entertainment.
“I’m really excited about the arena,” Darbinyan, 32, said, adding that the city needs more entertainment opportunities like it.
Elliott Stevenson
Stevenson, 43, is running unopposed for the 2nd District seat. He currently sits on the Rancho Cordova Planning Commission.
In a September interview with The Bee, Stevenson said the arena was a priority project for him because of the range of jobs it could bring to the city, as well as the revenue it could generate. He also said it could create a sense of “community pride” and serve as a “hub for the area.”
Stevenson voted in favor of advancing the arena project through the Planning Commission in late September.
Why it matters
Rancho Cordova is considering about $185 million in financial participation over 35 years in the project over 35 years.
An estimated $25 million to $40 million would consist of fee waivers and city-paid impact fees, some of which would be covered with money from the general fund. The remainder would come largely from an agreement to share tax revenues generated by the project for 35 years after it is built, including hotel, sales and card room taxes.
The city’s financial participation agreement also includes a potential agreement to pay supplemental public safety costs related to the project for up to 15 years, according to a presentation by city staff.
City spokesperson Maria Kniestedt said Sacramento Metropolitan Fire District Community Facilities District services are currently estimated to cost the city $500,000 per year, and police services may cost an additional $500,000 per year, though details will become clearer as the financial agreements are discussed further.
Joshua Wood, co-founder of the development firm behind the Downtown Dova project along with business partner Charanjeet Kaur Tiwana-Purewal, said the firm hopes to break ground by year’s end, with the arena potentially hosting its first games in the first quarter of 2028.
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