Elk Grove City Hall Leaks Mayor's Email Scheme to Make SacRT Light Rail Seem Imminent, Distract Residents from Traffic Problems
Document suggests coordinated effort to shape public perception as traffic frustrations grow
A purported internal email sent in the early morning hours of March 26 appears to show the Elk Grove mayor directing staff to create an illusion that a long-discussed and unfunded light rail extension to the city is close to fruition.
The email, obtained from an anonymous City Hall source and reviewed by Elk Grove News, was sent at 2:53 a.m. and addressed to multiple departments, including public works, the city manager’s office, fire services, the sewage department, the city attorney, and innovation teams.
This is the two-page email released by the source who asked for protection out of fear of retribution from Mayor Bobbie Singh-Alan, who authored the email edicts.
Stamped prominently with “DELETE FROM COMPUTER AND SERVERS IN 24 HOURS,” the document outlines what it describes as an “IMMEDIATE — Coordinated Messaging Strategy on Light Rail & Public Narrative Control.”
In the message from Ms. Singh-Alan, staff are instructed to shift focus away from ongoing concerns about traffic congestion and rising fatalities and instead emphasize the perception that Sacramento Regional Transit’s light rail expansion is nearing arrival.
“We have a perception problem, not a planning problem,” the email states, adding that the public must believe light rail is “essentially on the way,” regardless of existing funding gaps or planning phases.
The document directs the city’s public affairs team to produce weekly messaging using optimistic language such as “advancing” and “on track,” while avoiding references to uncertainty or delays. Other departments are instructed to develop visuals and timelines that make the project appear “tangible and imminent.”
The email also emphasizes strict message discipline across departments, warning that “no one freelances” and that contradictions in public communication would result in consequences.
In unusually blunt language, the mayor expresses frustration with residents raising concerns about worsening traffic and safety conditions, calling complaints “constant whining” and suggesting those issues cannot be solved quickly but can be redirected.
The message further instructs staff to avoid revisiting her previously proposed “five-point traffic plan,” describing it as unrealistic and no longer relevant.
The most striking passage warns that failure to execute the communications strategy could lead to repercussions within City Hall.
“Heads at City Hall will roll like dice at a Sky River craps table,” the mayor declared in the email.
The document concludes by urging staff to begin developing a future, attention-grabbing initiative to maintain control of public discourse, suggesting that large-scale proposals — even hypothetical ones, such as developing the 100 acres set aside for the mayor's failed Sacramento Zoo relocation project into an Olympic Training center — could be used to shift focus away from ongoing concerns.
The command to immediately delete the email from the city server at the top and footer of the email violates the California Public Records Act. The City Hall employee who leaked the document said that the illegal command was a primary reason for the release.
However, as District 2 Elk Grove Councilmember Rod Brewer demonstrated, breaking the public records and government meeting laws is part of the City Hall playbook. In 2024, Mr. Brewer openly admitted during a city council meeting to willingly breaking the Ralph M. Brown Act, which governs California government meetings.
City officials have not responded to requests for comment on the document, and its authenticity has not been independently verified.
The email was ironically leaked on April Fools' Day, underscoring a broadening practice of Elk Grove polticians with their pie-in-the-sky promises, like the mayor's 2020 campaign five-point traffic relief promise and their desire to hoodwink constituents long enough to win reelection or advance to their next elected office, which for the mayor is the U.S Congress.
HAFD
