A portion of East Sacramento will officially be known as “Little Italy” after the Sacramento City Council approved the new nickname on Tuesday. 49th to 59th streets and J Street to Folsom Boulevard is the area that will adopt the nickname of Little Italy.  Sacramento City Councilmember Jeff Harris requested the resolution that would re-name the area.

According to the Sacramento City Council agenda, the re-naming honors the contributions of Italian-American residents who shaped the history of the city. Italian Americans became the earliest pioneers and settled into Sacramento in the days of the Gold Rush and lived near Southside and Oak Park, where half of the residents were Italian leading up to World War 2.