Mayor Linda Budge has been honored by the American Planning Association of California for thirty years of community leadership. Budge, a planning consultant, received the 2008 Distinguished Leadership Award from the Sacramento Valley section of the association. This is the second term as mayor for Budge, as she was first elected to office when Rancho Cordova incorporated in 2003. She was previously a citizen activist on teams that wrote Sacramento County’s Bicycle and Pedestrian Master Plans and the Mather Regional Park Master Plan, the County’s Jobs Housing Balance, the Regional Transit District Light Rail (LRT) Station Area Re-Use Plans, and the Mather Regional Park Master Plan. She has also chaired the County’s Subdivision Review Committee for more than 18 years.

The American Planning Association of California consists of professional planners, planning commissioners, students, and others who support the planning process. The Association gives seven awards per year to honor the great work that is being accomplished in the Sacramento area.