Kevin Johnson both harkened to his past and set out goals for the future Tuesday night in a speech at his mayoral swearing-in event at Sacramento Memorial Auditorium.

Much of the speech focused on Johnson's plan to address the three issues he said were paramount during his campaign: fostering jobs and economic development, reducing crime and promoting education.

"Typically, the inauguration of the Mayor is a small and private affair," Johnson said in his speech. "I wanted to do something different. I wanted to make it about community. I wanted to make it about civic engagement. I wanted to make it about all of you."

The speech capped the swearing-in event titled "Together We Can," which also featured entertainment from Sacramento area choirs and dance troupes.

Gov.  Arnold Schwarzenegger, Lt. Gov. John Garamendi and several Sacramento-area legislators attended the event, which drew a crowd of about 3,000.

Johnson recalled his modest upbringing in Sacramento's Oak Park neighborhood before attending the University of California Berkeley and later going to the NBA as an All-Star for the Phoenix Suns.

He then talked how after he retired he opened St. HOPE charter school on the campus that was formerly home to his alma mater, Sacramento High School. Seeing the positive impact made there, he said, convinced him he wanted to make a larger impact on the city as a whole, and led him to run for mayor.

"Throughout the campaign, and especially in the last three weeks, I have learned a tremendous amount about the politics and challenges we face as a city," Johnson said. "When I got into this race, I actually did not really know about the depths of the issues we faced in city management."

Johnson laid out his goals as mayor, with a long list that included holding a "gang summit" to address issues with street gangs, instituting open office hours for citizens to share their concerns, and publicizing the city's 311 phone service so that more people use it.

With a speech theme of "Together We Can," Johnson tried to evoke the feeling associated with President-elect Barack Obama's "Yes We Can" campaign theme.

"Together we can make this vision a reality. Together we can create a better Sacramento. Together we make this a world class city. Together we can create a city that works for everyone," he concluded.

Though the event featured a swearing-in, Johnson will not be formally anointed as the city's new mayor until next week.