Discover Arts, Culture and More in Elk Grove!
Elk Grove is a high-spirited and vibrant city that takes pride in the rapid growth of its flourishing community while still maintaining that "small-town" feel. In addition to award-winning schools, good paying jobs, an array of affordable housing options, Elk Grove families also have access to world-class cultural amenities and an abundance of recreational opportunities!
Near and Not-So-Far: Elk Grove Arts and Culture With the State Capital of California located just 15 minutes away and the San Francisco Bay Area just 90 miles to the west, Elk Grove has easy access to world-class, highly sought after cultural amenities of an urban area such as art galleries, ballet, opera, symphony and numerous theater companies. Residents of Elk Grove also enjoy popular local family-friendly events such as the Strauss Festival, the Elk Grove Western Festival, a live outdoor summer concert series, the Dickens Faire and much more.
Elk Grove is also home to a tight-knit community of artists whose works can be seen the first Friday of every moth during Old Town First Fridays--a monthly arts, crafts and entertainment celebration in the historical area of Elk Grove. Various local art groups exist to support and promote the local art scene. Elk Grove Artists (EGA)--a non-profit organization that started more than 20 years ago with members from a wide variety of artistic backgrounds--holds fundraisers and offers art lectures and demonstrations.
The Elk Grove Fine Arts Center is a dynamic presence in Old Town. Established in 2007, the center offers workshops, classes and a gift and fine art gallery.
"Despite the economy, people are still enjoying the art and we have a lot of people coming through and artists are continuing to join the center," said photographer and Elk Grove Fine Arts member, Victoria Boyd. "It's fun to be a part of the Elk Grove Fine Arts Center!"
Elk Grove Civic Center--Cultural Hub of a Growing City 
Elk Grove has sights set on turning nearly 80 acres of land into the Elk Grove Civic Center with a hopeful first groundbreaking taking place within the next two years, according to the City of Elk Grove's economic development coordinator, Heather Ross. The City Council selected world-renowned London-based Zaha Hadid Architects to lead the design team.
"The Civic Center will create a sense of place and an area where all residents can come together whether it's for entertainment or just to do their everyday business with the City," said Ross. "It will be a place where there's a little something for everyone."
Although plans are not yet finalized, uses identified for the Civic Center include: a library, children's museum, community and performance centers, a hotel and conference center, restaurants, integrated retail, sports field, aquatic center and an indoor gym.
"The Civic Center will be a solidification of Elk Grove's identity--it will be an iconic site with iconic buildings that people will think 'Elk Grove' when they see the Civic Center and think 'Elk Grove Civic Center' when they think of Elk Grove," said Ross.
Close to the future home of the Elk Grove Civic Center--in addition to the expansion of Mercy's Methodist Hospital and the growth in the Elk Grove Automall--is the suburban community of Madeira that will feature a total of 7,500 residences when complete with access to trails, parks and walkways.
Abundance of Recreational Opportunities in Elk Grove 
Elk Grove is served by interstate highways, transcontinental rail, an international passenger and freight airport, a cargo port that provides not only ready access to national and global markets, but also short, scenic commutes to skiing in Lake Tahoe, sightseeing in San Francisco, or wine tasting in Napa Valley. Sports fans cheer on the NBA's Sacramento Kings and watch the AAA Sacramento River Cats play ball just minutes away.
However, families in Elk Grove don't have to leave town to find an entertainment venue for the whole family to enjoy. Strikes Family Entertainment Center converted nearly 200,000 square feet of empty warehouse space into one of the biggest regional sports centers in the Sacramento area. In addition to 44 lanes of bowling, the 73,000+ square foot facility includes an arcade, high definition video walls, billiards room, bar area, full-service restaurant and live music. Families aren't the only ones who can join in on the fun, as Strikes also offers an abundance of meeting space and staff development/team building activities for businesses in Elk Grove.
Residents can also experience unparalleled scenic beauty and recreational opportunities like canoeing, boating, hiking, fishing, bird watching and wildlife viewing within the region's abundant open spaces--more than 18,000 acres of seasonal wetlands and wildlife preserves, and 5,000 acres of recreation along the American River Parkway. Areas include the Laguna Creek Parkway, Stone Lakes National Wildlife Refuge and the Cosumnes River Preserve.
The Cosumnes Community Services District provides parks and recreation services to Elk Grove. Amenities include more than eighty-five parks, trails, picnic areas, softball fields, skating, swimming, two golf courses and a number of driving ranges--more than 700 acres of parks, trails, open spaces and landscape corridors in Elk Grove. Projects such as the Laguna Creek Parkway and the Park "Quality of Life" Awareness Program have earned the Department local and national honors and recognition--the American Greenways Award and several "Awards of Excellence" from the California Park & Recreation Society.
For More Information:
If the good life is what you're after, then Elk Grove is the place to be. Come "Discover Elk Grove" for yourself on October 21 as speakers and vendors come together and showcase the best Elk Grove has to offer (see "News From the EGEDC" below for summary). For more information contact the EGEDC at (916) 691-3895 or send email to
info@elkgroveedc.org.
