Thanks to its railyard development plans — one of the largest urban restoration initiatives in U.S. history — Sacramento landed a spot in the August issue of Outside magazine as one of the 20 best towns in America. Although the adventure magazine dubs lackluster Sacramento as a “terminal wasteland,” the capital gets a round of applause for its progress and the opening of 23 restaurants and 37 retail stores since 2007. And Sacramento wasn’t California’s only representative in the issue: Eureka made its top 20 debut with praise for its beauty and “counterculture roots,” and Oakland also appeared with support for Jerry Brown’s housing initiative and for having “the best weather in the country.” The last Capital Regions towns to receive these honors were Truckee in 2006 and Davis in 2005.

— C.S.

*This story was first published in the August issue of Comstock’s magazine. http://comstocksbusiness.com/