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Welcome to the City of Rancho Cordova's news page. Read current and archived news, and access media contacts and press announcements.

RCPD Brings Drone Technology to Life for Local Youth

Post Date:08/22/2025 12:07 PM

POP Officer Gordon recently did a “show and tell” to some young members of our community and explained how RCPD and law enforcement utilizes drones (UAS) to help do our jobs more effectively, efficiently, and safely! Officer Gordon is part of the SSO SCOUT Team - a team of dedicated UAS pilots who have been trained and certified under FAA standards to operate UAS devices in a law enforcement capacity. SCOUT members are spread out throughout all the SSO Divisions and Rancho Cordova.

The SCOUT Team is available to respond to incidents within the City of Rancho Cordova, and throughout the County of Sacramento to provide another tool to aid in searching for missing persons, suspects, victims, high risk searches, or help with crime scene reconstruction/overviews. The SCOT Team has drones of various sizes, from palm size to very large multi-propeller systems, as part of their inventory.

Additionally, the utilization of UAS devices acts as a force multiplier in that more can be done in a shorter period of time with less manpower expended and kept available to respond to calls for service, and they can be used to increase officer safety in instances where observation of potentially armed suspects must be maintained that would otherwise pose a risk to personnel.

The use of technology in law enforcement is increasing on a regular basis, and RCPD has always been able to stay on the cutting edge of current technological trends and tools to bring the best public safety assets to our community!

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Press Announcements

Media Contacts

Maria Chacon Kniestedt
Communications & Public Affairs Director
916.851.8791
916.200.6181 (cell)
mkniestedt@cityofranchocordova.org

Samantha Mott
Senior Communications Officer
916.851.8796
916.579.0671 (Cell)
smott@cityofranchocordova.org

Danielle Hale
Communications Officer
916.851.8792
916.809.0465 (cell)
dhale@cityofranchocordova.org

Lauren Burke
Communications Officer
916.851.8723
916.247.2587 (Cell)
lburke@cityofranchocordova.org

City of Rancho Cordova Opens $8.4M Youth Center

On November 3, 2022, the City of Rancho Cordova opened the Rancho Cordova Youth Center, the first youth center in the community. The Youth Center will provide a welcoming, central and safe environment for year-round youth programs, build relationships with local youth, and show local youth how much the community cares about their success and future in Rancho Cordova.

City of Rancho Cordova Breaks Ground on Citywide, Ultra-High-Speed Gigabit Broadband Network

On February 28, 2022, the City of Rancho Cordova, SiFi Networks and GigabitNow announced the launch of Rancho Cordova FiberCity®, a revolutionary infrastructure project to bring a fast, affordable, and reliable all-fiber internet network to every home, business, and institution in Rancho Cordova.

For more information, please contact Danielle Hale at 916.809.0465 or dhale@cityofranchocordova.org.

Mather Veterans Village Dedication Event

On October 12, 2021, Mercy Housing California, Nation’s Finest, the City of Rancho Cordova and the County of Sacramento celebrated the completion of all three phases of Mather Veterans Village, the first permanent supportive housing development for homeless and disabled veterans in the Sacramento region.

These documents are password protected. Please contact Danielle Hale at 916.809.0465 for access.

Crime Drops in Rancho Cordova by 61%

The City of Rancho Cordova is proud to announce that violent crime and property crime combined has decreased by 61% from 2004-2019 when adjusted for population. Since the city incorporated and established the Rancho Cordova Police Department 18 years ago, the city has implemented creative and proactive policing programs that have led to this significant drop.

Media Advisory about Crime Drop in Rancho Cordova
Fact Sheet on Programs
Speaker Bios from Crime Drop Announcement
B-Roll, Photos and Crime Statistics (This is password protected. Please contact Ashley Downton at 916.542.3875 for access.)
News Release: Crime Drops in Rancho Cordova by 61%

Rancho Cordova Breaks Ground on Rio Del Oro Development

Elliott Homes, Inc. and the City of Rancho Cordova are breaking ground on Rio Del Oro, the largest development in the city’s history. Rio Del Oro spans 3,800 acres in Rancho Cordova and could fit Downtown Sacramento in its footprint. The development will feature thousands of new homes, over 7.6 million square feet of commercial, professional and industrial space, one of the largest parks in the region at 130 acres, and the city’s next high school.

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