CARMICHAEL, CA (MPG) - Carmichael’s Property and Business Improvement District (PBID) begins 2022 with a new executive.

Rebekah Evans takes over from director, Rachael Taylor, who guided the organization from 2019. Taylor will join her TV journalist husband Matthew Nuttle for a Honolulu posting. “Leaving Carmichael is hard,” explains the newlywed. “Matthew has always supported my work. Now it’s time for me to support his.”

Successor Evans comes to Carmichael from the 80-Watt (North Highlands) counterpart PBID. Before this post, she led a TBID (Tourism Business Improvement District) in Southern California’s Ventura County. “The Carmichael community and its connection to businesses pulls at my heartstrings,” says the mother of three.

Evans’ background includes the wedding industry and Chamber of Commerce management. For seven years, she was Malibu Chamber CEO and president. “The world knows Malibu as a movie star colony,” she says, “in reality, it’s a tight-knit family-oriented area.” Even so, she got used to celebrities in her stomping ground. “You often hear them before you see them,” she says. “A voice in the street sounds familiar; you look around and there’s Arnold Schwarzenegger chatting as he walks by.

“I’m leaving a restaurant when I recognize a guy; I figure he’s one of my Chamber members. So, I’m shaking his hand; telling him I hope his business is going well. He’s smiling and nodding. I’m walking away and I realize he’s Susan Sarandon’s husband (actor Chris Sarandon). I suppose it happens to him all the time…

“I’m meeting Carmichael celebrities, too. People whose families have been here for generations are VIPs in my mind. Carmichael and the 80-Watt areas are humongously different. In North Highlands, I found a down-trodden area that I helped make a more vibrant business entity. You do it one block at a time; encouraging business owners to take more pride. Each little improvement has a snowball effect. I feel I left the area with a strong foundation, and I’ll continue watching it improve.”

Instigated by businesses, PBIDs are agencies established to aid merchant interests. The Carmichael fiefdom extends through more than three miles of Fair Oaks Boulevard and nearby streets. Its footprint was last year extended to include numerous Winding Way and El Camino Avenue businesses. Property owners are assessed to provide an operating budget: the increased 2022 bottom line ($500,000) enables greater security and maintenance services for merchants increasingly impacted by crime and homelessness.

“Thanks to Rachael and her board, we’re having a new security company take over,” explains Evans. “Sacramento Protective Services will bring more staff, more patrol hours and crime- reporting teamwork to our area. We hope this will deter crime.

“I’m very sorry so many people are hooked on drugs and without a home. But the rights of the homeless should not be put before our community’s safety. That’s my first priority. PBID advocacy is an important part of its role.”

Though a newbie to Carmichael, Evans’ job immersion continues after hours. She is married to Antelope PBID executive Chris Evans, who also operates security for the River District PBID. The couple talks shop from breakfast to bedtime. “We’re always brainstorming,” she reports. “It helps us both.”

Among her January chores is planning a debut public event for her group. A “State of the PBID 2022” dinner aims to unite business leaders and local government on February 10. The public may also attend. Hosted by Tim’s Music Plaza, the program offers a catered meal and speakers. Tickets are $30 in advance. For information visit: www.discovercarmichael.com