Midtown's MARRS Building has a full house again with three new tenants coming on board this month.

Two spaces have been vacant for several months after business owners left without a word and without paying all their bills — which really hurts after the effort the company made to help them be successful, said building owner Michael Heller of Heller Pacific.

"We help these tenants. We help them get their permits, we help with their construction, we market them," he said. "So when they don't honor their obligations, it's hurtful to us."

New tenants in the block-long building, whose renovation was completed in 2007, include a shop that sells jeans, a sandwich shop and a comedy club. All three show promise for the location on 20th Street between J and K streets, he said.

"They're all scrambling to get ready for the holiday season," Heller said.

The Denim Spot is expected to open this month after leasing the store vacated by DV8 Boutique and doing minor renovations, including painting.

"He's going to want to put his touch on it," Heller said.

The owner has "a strong base" of female clients interested in the jeans sold at a range of prices, Heller said. Landlord and tenant are trying out a short lease to see if the arrangement works, although Heller would not disclose the terms.

Many yogurt operators contacted Heller Pacific about leasing the former yogurt shop. The company was concerned about the over-saturation of yogurt shops in the central city, so they signed a traditional, longer-term lease with the popular Mr. Pickle's Sandwich Shop, which has franchises in Northern California and Nevada. Sacramento has at least nine others.

The owners are "really cool guys that we hit it off with," who want to give this shop an artistic vibe that should work well in the location, Heller said. The shop will include a mural or hanging art, plus a neighborhood board where businesses and residents can post things.

"They understand they're in Midtown now and Midtown has a culture," he said. "I think it's going to fit in really nice with the building and the neighborhood."

The Comedy Spot has already opened in the space formerly occupied by the Solomon Dubnick Gallery, after the gallery moved to its new Midtown home as planned.

"The art gallery was here from the beginning," Heller said. "They were gracious enough to come to MARRS and create the art vibe we wanted there."

Heller said he was excited to lease to the club, whose owner wants to incubate local comedians.

"MARRS is really an entertainment type of place now," he said. "Especially at night. It's a very simpatico type of use."

Suzanne Hurt is a staff reporter for The Sacramento Press.