Meet the District 2 Candidates Running To Represent Neighborhoods In North Sacramento

Sacramento’s District 2, which encompasses neighborhoods like Del Paso Heights, Woodlake, North Sacramento and Robla, has a contested race this year between two-term incumbent Allen Warren and newcomer Sean Loloee. 

While both candidates feel the district has been overlooked by progress that’s happened in the central city, the two have different strategies for how to go about making more investment happen. 

Loloee is a newcomer to politics. He owns the grocery chain Viva Supermarkets in North Sacramento and says he’s running for city council because he believes the district needs more “hands on” interaction with its council member.

Warren has held the District 2 seat since 2012. He said he believes improvement in the district is slow, but it’s happening with the help of housing and youth programs he’s put in place. 

CapRadio’s Sarah Mizes-Tan spoke with the two candidates about their plans for the district council seat if elected. 

These interviews were edited for clarity. 

Why do you feel you’re qualified to represent District 2 on City Council? 

LOLOEE: I've done business in this district. In 2015, we opened a supermarket, which was the very first supermarket in the past 15 or 20 years that had opened in that area. And what I noticed was that in the last six to eight years, I noticed that our community is sort of, instead of going forward, we’re starting to go backward. We started noticing more problems as days go by, whether it's safety, the crime rate increasing, obviously, the homeless rate increasing exponentially in our community.

And, you know, as far as the budget of the city goes, I've always felt that District 2 is not getting its fair share of the investment that needs to come back to infrastructure in District 2. And these are some of the initial issues that made me decide to run solely to be able to represent the residents of this community.

WARREN: Well, you know, when when I took office, there were a lot of things that needed to happen and was really the primary reason that I ran. District 2 was a food desert, you know, that was one of the platform items that I ran on. It was also lacking in terms of health services for people. So people had to really lead the community to receive the kinds of things that they get in normal traditional communities. And so then seven, almost eight years since I've been in office, we've opened three new grocery stores. And then also we have a brand new medical facility that will be opening next month as well. And, you know, these things take time. 

The reason that I am running again is because there's still work to be done. And as I looked out at the landscape, I didn't see anybody that was really ready to step in. I am not a lifelong politician. I have no desire to be. But I am a problem solver. And I've had a lifetime of really giving and trying to make every place that I've been better, including District 2, which is where I'm born and raised. 

What are some of the issues you’ve seen with the direction of District 2 right now? 

LOLOEE: You know, District 2 is probably one of the most diverse districts in the city of Sacramento. And it has within District 2 — you have communities and each community has their own association. So they meet on a monthly basis, they discuss some of the issues within the community. Not making the time and meeting with their associations or at least the association presidents to see what the community needs, I think it's one of the biggest things that this administration has failed at. And we see the results of things that are happening that the community is a 100% against. 

WARREN: I don't agree with his assessment. I think we've started laying the groundwork for real sustainable growth. You know, if you look at when I came into office, real estate prices are up in some places — 100%. So that speaks to me what people really think about what's going on here when they're investing their money. There's been tremendous investment in District 2, a lot of it is in housing. But as I said before, you need housing before you can really support the kind of retail that you've seen in other communities. And so we've been doing that. So it's just going to continue to move forward. With the right leadership.

What are your plans for District 2 if elected?

LOLEE: This district has been kind of pushed back in the past years, as I indicated, kind of back of the line. So as other districts have flourished, we're still waiting to see what are we going to get, and that's very frustrating. And when you look at Sacramento as a whole before the pandemic, Sacramento is a very, very thriving city. The businesses were booming. Revenue was at its highest. Yet, I believe that District 2 was not represented well enough to make sure that it does get its share of money from the general fund within the city to get invested in this community, to upgrade our infrastructure and, you know, to bring more lighting in on some of the streets that are lacking those lighting, to make sure our parks are well-kept and are safe for our kids to go and play in. So these are the things that I'm hoping that, once elected, I'll be a voice of the community and challenge the city and make sure that we get our fair share of improvement. 

WARREN: Well, I think we want to continue working. You know ...we got health care is a big issue. It's going to continue to be a big issue. And so affordable housing, health care, the homelessness issues are things that I will be continuing to work on. Continuing to build on our youth programs. We have an issue right now around mental illness and depression. Some of it is a direct result of COVID, but some of it existed before that. We want to continue to build on that, you know, through the city structure. We want to bring all levels of service citywide up to a certain standard. You shouldn't be able to go to one community and see a drastic fall off in city services. 

Why are you uniquely positioned to lead change in District 2?

LOLOEE: I'm very proud to say I'm not a politician. I'm a businessman. I know what it takes to get a job done. I know what it takes to negotiate and convince people why the deal is good and what needs to be moved forward. So that is what I'm bringing to the table. And I'm very glad I have zero political background, because sometimes that clouds your judgment. And I've seen it with some of our politicians. But the fact of the matter is, I decided to run for this seat not because of a title or not because of a financial gain. It was only to represent the residents of District 2 and try to push the district forward where the residents of District 2 can be comfortable and safe. 

WARREN: I think you got to have your real finger on the pulse. And for me, this is not a campaign issue. You know, this is a commitment to trying to help improve the community. From the time I was a young adult sitting on committees in the neighborhood, you know, helping two young people, you know, with homework and go to school. So, I mean, this is just an extension of that, you know? And so I'm hopeful that after this next term, there will be somebody that's capable and understands the community and is really committed to the community, somebody who really lives in the community, you know, and not just kind of moves in to run for city council. But … I mean, this is a community that will, if you're not authentic, it will root you out.