Steve Ly

Ly has taken credit for building a Costco, aquatics center, animal shelter, veterans hall, community center, and senior center.[6]

The City of Elk Grove has approved plans the construction of a hospital by Dignity Health. Ly has championed a second hospital and a biotech center, though the project is mired in controversy.[9]

During the 2020, Ly sent voters a mailer with the photo of a retired Sacramento County Sheriff's Sergeant and the official photo of Elk Grove's Chief of Police. The retired Sergeant was quoted as saying Ly had been exonerated of all charges leveled against him by local women. Ly included a quote taken out of context from a prior statement made by the Chief of Police to suggest Elk Grove Police had investigated and cleared him of all charges. The quote was actually taken from a statement the Chief had made concerning a complaint made by one woman about harassing phone calls from Ly supporters and not the other allegations under investigation by the Grand Jury.[12]

On September 29, 2020, Ly was scheduled to debate his mayoral opponents, Bobbie Singh-Allen and Brian Pastor, at an event sponsored by the Elk Grove Chamber of Commerce Political Action Committee and broadcast online throughout the community. Ly supporters surrounded the debate hall holding electric megaphones. Each time Ms. Singh-Allen was called upon to speak, they blared loud sirens to drown out her words. The sirens stopped when Ly spoke. Debate officials asked Mayor Ly to direct his supporters to stop disrupting the debate. He refused, claiming he had no involvement in the protest. Later, video revealed that Ly campaign staff were leading the crowd, including of Ly campaign director. The debate had to be suspended early. Singh-Allen and Pastor issued a joint statement criticizing Ly for his refusal to request the crowd to stop.[13]

Ly accepted more than $48,000 in contributions from the proponents of a proposed hospital project. The project was mired in controversy and opposed by the Federal Fish and Wildlife Service, California Department of Transportation, Audubon Society, and numerous environmental and community groups. Despite the controversy, Ly insisted that he supported the project and that it was not inappropriate to accept nearly 20% of campaign funds from proponents of the project. At the proposed hospital site, Ly dispatched a city aide to confront the protestors. The aide later resigned.[14][15]

The California North State University Medical Center was going to be the first teaching hospital in this region, however City of Elk Grove planning commission did not approve after political pressure. After this, the City of Sacramento took on the project.[16]