Newest articles on The Sacramento Press tagged as "capitol area development authority"

Before R Street Market Plaza development: Photo Essay

2011-03-18T01:51:41Z

The city of Sacramento and Capitol Area Development Authority (CADA) are working on the R Street Corridor Project – an effort to turn a 27-block-long stretch of R Street into a vibrant mixed-use neighborhood.

A two-block section of R Street from 16th to 18th streets will hold the project's centerpiece, the R Street Market Plaz a. Elements of the historic rail corridor and industrial warehouse district have inspired its design, which is expected to be completed in early June.

The public project is intended to spur private development — creating more businesses, housing, services and jobs along the corridor. California state agencies now occupy some of R Street.

The project has been designed to increase R Street’s livability with a plaza that will be constructed to hold sidewalk cafes, festivals, farmers' markets and other special events.

Below are photos of this stretch of R Street before streetscape construction and redevelopment of the buildings begin.

The Crystal Ice and Cold Storage facility built in 1920 is now a lime-green building at 16th and R streets. Crystal Ice was once the city’s primary ice supplier. Additions were made until 1950.

Developer Mark Friedman of Fulcrum Properties is developing plans for a section he has dubbed the "Ice Blocks." He plans to preserve the exterior of the oldest Crystal Ice building at 16th Street, which is a historic landmark. The development is expected to include retail, residential and office space.

The old buildings are popular for professional photo shoots and hobbyists with cameras.

"This area is off the hook," said R.C., a state employee who lives two blocks away and asked that his last name not be used. "You just don't see this anymore."

In the mid-1850s, R Street contained tracks for the Sacramento Valley Railroad -- the stateʼs first railway. Mainline railroad tracks will be kept in place to maintain R Street’s historic integrity and reflect its heritage.

The street later morphed into a warehouse district. Loading docks are still visible at warehouses that once helped form the areaʼs spine.

An empty lot sits on the north side of R Street between 16th and 17th streets. Plans call for the lot to be turned into a parking garage. A-1 Plating Co. and Tom and Toby’s Automotive Clinic once operated there.

A Sacramento Kings billboard was installed on 16th Street on a fence surrounding a vacant lot.

Local residents and state employees use the street to get to and from a Safeway grocery store and restaurants at R Street Marketplace, built by developer Paul Petrovich at 19th and R streets.

"The ants go back and forth from the sugar to the anthill – that's what this is," said R.C., a state employee returning from the shopping center.

The Orchard Supply Co. warehouse at 1731 17th St.

With its metal awning, the warehouse at 1831 17th St. is known for great acoustics. Local musicians who play saxophones and trumpets can sometimes be spotted there.

"The sound just ricochets off the walls," said local resident Ron Johnson, 67.

All the buildings in the two-block stretch are vacant. But space outside the buildings is used for parking.

A woman walks down an alley between 17th and 18th streets.

Graffiti has been painted on the vacant buildings. Much has been painted over, but not graffiti up on the roof of the tallest Crystal Ice Co. building at 16th and R streets.

Construction on the $3.8 million plaza project could start as soon as spring or summer 2012. The city and CADA will apply for construction funding through the Sacramento Area Council of Governments. SACOG is expected to review the request in November. Streetscape upgrades began on R Street from 10th to 13th streets last fall.

Movie in Fremont Park

2010-08-22T09:03:27Z

Fremont Park has put on a few movie nights in the park. On Friday, the delightful 2009 animated Disney-Pixar movie Up was shown to area residents and guests. The Capitol Area Development Authority (CADA) with the help of the City of Sacramento and Friends of Fremont Park held their Movie in Fremont Park screening. The movie was free to the public and had other activities preceding the showing of Up.

Lena Wrightsman, former president of Chalk-it-Up, was at work finishing up a chalk drawing of Carl who is one of the main characters of the movie. Around the Fremont Park fountain Lena had already drawn Kevin, Russell (characters in the movie) and as she finished Carl moved on to draw Dug the dog. As she chalked the Up characters children (and adults) stopped to admire her work. As she continued to draw she answered some questions. We talked about her involvement with Chalk-It-Up. She has been involved in Chalk-it-Up for many years and as she continued to draw I couldn’t help but notice her enthusiasm for the program and for the arts. As she spoke she kept drawing without missing a beat it all looked like second nature to her. Her enjoyment of this art is quite admirable this was more evident as she noted, “I think kids would like doing this, it allows you to use your imagination and you can go as far as you want. If I can just motivate one kid to become inspired In the arts it would make everything worthwhile”. Her passion is very commendable. Chalk-it-Up comes to Fremont Park on Labor Day weekend (September 4 – 6) and celebrates its 20th Year Anniversary. The talent exhibited throughout the weekend is unbelievable, pure talent is exhibited at every age level.

On Friday evening Fremont Park was brightly decorated with balloons to go with the Up movie theme. Attendees were able to feast on free hot dogs, drinks, root beer floats and popcorn. The collaboration between CADA, the City of Sacramento and Friends of Fremont Park did a splendid job putting the event together. A giant floatable screen that looked like a giant TV was used to show the movie on. Families set up their lounge chairs and blankets on the grass in front of the screen. While they waited they were able to enjoy the free food. Some vendors had set up stations to display literature for services they offered.

Supercuts from 1501 16th Street had a station set up to highlight their services. Four members from the Freemont Building salon were on hand to talk about their services and do some hair work mostly on kids. It looked like the kids that had their hair highlighted in colors and spiked enjoyed their dos and liked showing off to adults. Friends of Fremont Park had a table set up to provide literature and answer questions. One of their next scheduled events will be their 2nd Annual Fremont Park Community Yard Sale on Saturday, September 18. Any unsold items can be donated to the Salvation Army. Also on hand for the event was a station for face painting with Rosie the clown at the helm and Mimo the clown doing balloon creations.

Musical entertainment was provided by 18 year-old Stormy Sergent. She had a band of several members that came from San Francisco, Galt, Herald and other nearby places. They played a wide range of music that captivated the audience. Stormy has a very strong and penetrable voice. She also had a strong presence on the Fremont Park stage. I did a little research on the web but could not find a website that was available. I did find some videos of her singing on YouTube. With her voice and talent I’m sure we’ll be hearing more from her.

The 3rd Annual Movie in Fremont Park was a great success thanks to the Friends of Freemont Park, the City of Sacramento and CADA collaboration. Vendors and other organizations at the event deserve to be commended for their participation. I believe this is a good example for other neighborhoods to follow and perhaps create good neighbor relations throughout our cities.

Photos:

1 - Giant Screen

2 - Lena Wrightsman

3 - I Survived the Paparazzi Red Carpet Area

4, 5 - Supercuts Station

6 - Balloon Entrance

7 to 10 - Stormy Sergent and her band

11, 12 - Bring in the Clowns - Rosie and Mimo

13 - Fremont Park Audience

15th and Q gets parking lot

2010-06-22T04:28:25Z

The Capitol Area Development Authority is turning a vacant corner across from Fremont Park into a parking lot, eliminating an eyesore and adding parking spaces to an increasingly busy part of town.

On Monday, a construction crew with E & J Enterprises was busy at the corner of 15th and Q streets. An excavator loaded trucks with dirt to be hauled away during site[-]grading for a temporary surface parking lot.

The corner, which sits in the R Street Corridor, has been vacant for at least 10 years after an old gas station closed down. Neighbors said the 120-by-160-foot lot had become overgrown with weeds and filled with trash.

CADA has been working with the property owner, the McGilvray family, for about two years to take on the parking lot concept until the time is right for more construction. The owner doesn't want to build in the current market, said Todd Leon, CADA's R Street Corridor project manager.

"It's a prominent corner, but it's been gathering weeds and wasn't doing anything," he said. "They want to develop it and put a building on it. But, especially in this market, they don't want to do anything."

The intersection has seen other development, with Naked Lounge coffee house opening on one corner in 2002 and CADA's Fremont Mews Apartments on another in 2004.

The property owner removed three gas tanks, Leon said.

Recent commercial development has put more pressure on parking in the area. Future streetscape work on R Street will temporarily eliminate some existing parking.

CADA, which is paying for the work, will offer monthly parking from 6 a.m. to 6 p.m. for $120 a month. The lot will have 53 parking spaces, including three that are handicapped-accessible. After-hours use of the lot is still being decided.

CADA has a five-year lease for the lot and an option to renew the lease for an additional two years. Under a city ordinance revised two years ago, CADA will need to get a permit for the lot renewed every two years, Leon said.

The ground will be graded and compacted, then a gravel base will be laid. The surface will be paved with asphalt.

The lot is expected to be open for parking after the July Fourth weekend. The property owners could not be reached.

Suzanne Hurt is a staff reporter for The Sacramento Press.

Art Moderne building needs home

2010-06-08T03:20:42Z

The Capitol Area Development Authority is hunting down a new home for a historic fourplex in an effort to save the Art Moderne building from a wrecking ball.

The stucco apartment building known as Capitol Gardens was built at 1517 N St. in 1949 by Sacramento architect and engineer Jacob Loyth. In fall 2011, construction will begin on the site at the northwest corner of 16th and N streets on a $43 million, nine-floor building with 117 condos.

CADA is trying to find a way to relocate the building's historic four front units to reduce the cumulative loss of historic resources and impact on a potential historic district, as directed by an environmental report for construction on the site.

The agency is facing relocation challenges involving the building's size and obstacles created by freeways and light-rail lines.

"So far, we haven't gotten a taker who's actually got a site that's appropriate," said Marc de la Vergne, CADA’s capitol area development manager.

CADA is willing to give the building away and provide $60,000 to move the building in order to preserve it. The apartments are expected to be occupied until summer 2011.

The building is 40 feet wide by 40 feet long — the exact dimensions of a standard city lot. The structure needs to be moved to a location where two lots are combined, unless a zoning administrator were willing to waive the requirement that buildings be smaller than the lots they sit on, de la Vergne said.

At 23 feet, the building is also too tall to fit under light-rail lines, such as those that run down R Street, and raised freeways running along the east and south sides of the city. The top of the structure would reach 26 feet when loaded onto a flatbed truck.

CADA staff identified several central city lots that could hold the building, but none of the property owners have been interested. The owner of a lot at 15th and W streets considered it until learning the building would have to be cut in half horizontally to fit it under light-rail lines.

The site's developers, Em Johnson Interest of San Francisco and Nehemiah Community Reinvestment Fund Holdings of Sacramento, are working with other people in town to find a new location, he said.

The building is among several constructed in the 1930s and 1940s in an area southeast of Capitol Park that has been discussed as a potential historic apartment district. The area contains Moderne and Revival apartment buildings.

A 2002 evaluation determined the building may be eligible for the Sacramento Register of Historic and Cultural Resources, as well as the California Register of Historic Resources — established to help identify and protect historical and archaeological assets.

"CADA has been really concerned to find a way to move it and get it saved, rather than end up demolishing it," said Karen Jacques, who restores historic buildings and sits on the city's Preservation Commission. "CADA has had a really good history with trying — and often being very succesful — with saving historic buildings."

Photos by Suzanne Hurt, a staff reporter for The Sacramento Press.

R St. Market Plaza comments sought

2010-05-12T04:21:29Z

Local agencies will host a community workshop Thursday on the R Street Market Plaza, whose construction is expected to be delayed.

The $3.8 million plaza project is a bit behind, with construction not expected to start until at least 2012. No funding has been secured for the plaza's construction from 16th to 18th streets, said project manager Zuhair Amawi, an associate civil engineer with the city's transportation department.

The two-block plaza is being designed as a centerpiece for the R Street Corridor Project, an effort to turn a 27-block stretch of historic R Street into a thriving mixed-use neighborhood. The public project is intended to spur private development — creating more businesses, housing, services and jobs along a once-industrial corridor that contains remnants of tracks used by the Sacramento Valley Railroad, the stateʼs first railway.

"The idea is to take advantage of the really iconic features in that part of town, but to make it nicer and more accessible to pedestrians," said City Councilman Rob Fong, whose district includes the corridor. "I just think that it's really going to be a neat part of the city that we've reclaimed, when it's all said and done."

The city of Sacramento and the Capitol Area Development Authority (CADA) will hold a workshop from 5:30 to 8 p.m. at 1322 O St. to get public input on the project's environmental impact report, which was released to the public April 21, and to review minor design changes. The public can comment on the environmental document until May 21, said Linda Tucker, Department of Transportation spokeswoman.

Construction had been anticipated to start in 2011 if funding were available, officials announced at a plaza workshop last May.

"There's so much uncertainty," Tucker said Tuesday.

Sacramento's Department of Transportation plans to seek state and federal funding through the Sacramento Area Council of Governments (SACOG) only at this time, Amawi said.

The city already received $790,000 for CEQA and design phases from SACOG and CADA. That money will allow the final design to be completed by early next year, Tucker said.

The city won't be able to apply for more of such funding from SACOG until fall 2011, according to CADA and SACOG.

Every two years in the fall, the SACOG board selects projects to receive state and federal funds administered by the agency. The last round of applications was taken in fall 2009, said Matt Carpenter, SACOG's director of Transportation Services.

The Market Plaza project got its preliminary funding for the multimodal project through the organization's Community Design program. That program's monies come from state-administered Transportation Enhancement funds and federal Congestion Management and Air Quality funds. Additional funding may come from the same program, but also could come through one of SACOG's other programs. If awarded, money would not be available until 2012, Carpenter said.

CADA is considering kicking in tax-increment funds for leverage to get other funding, said Todd Leon, project manager for CADA.

The City Council is expected to vote on whether to accept the environmental document in July, Tucker said.

The project has been designed to increase R Street’s livability with a plaza that can do double duty. The two blocks would function most days as a roadway, street-side parking and a sidewalk wide enough for businesses such as cafés to spill onto. But that section also will be constructed so it could be closed off to hold festivals, farmers markets and other special events.

The design by the HLA Group includes an 18- to 20-foot-wide space, about 200 feet long, that could be used for performance space in front of the oldest Crystal Ice building, a historic landmark being preserved. The design has been changed slightly to reposition and reduce the number of trees in front of the building to make it stand out and to preserve its historic feel, said Leon.

"If you have the trees there, you can't really see the historic building," he said. "They are an inviting feature for the area. But there weren't trees there originally."

The number of trees also was reduced to preserve historic train tracks. There are six fewer trees in the design. Eliminating some trees and moving others, and repositioning some street lights, will provide more open space for musicians, fire dancers or other artists, Leon said.

"Whatever you can dream up, there's space to do it," he added.

16th and N project moves forward

2009-12-04T05:34:33Z

The Capitol Area Development Authority began an environmental review this week for a $43 million, mixed-use building proposed for the East End Gateway.

While a consultant began the environmental analysis of the project's final design, developers Em Johnson Interest of San Francisco and Nehemiah Community Reinvestment Fund Holdings of Sacramento have begun working with the authority to draft a development agreement for the project at the northwest corner of 16th and N streets.

CADA ended its partnership with the first developer, Lambert Development, after that company's proposal was deemed too high-end for Sacramento and progress wasn't made fast enough, said Marc de la Vergne, the authority's development manager for the Capitol area. Building plans have gone through three variations since the authority chose new developers for the project in April.

On Oct. 30, CADA's board accepted the new design, which calls for 117 condos, 5,200 square feet of ground-floor retail space and 136 parking spaces in a two-and-a-half story parking garage. The authority conducted an environmental analysis for Lambert's 15-story design in 2008. Another analysis is required for the new, smaller design.

The eight-story building will be constructed near a commercial office district occupied mostly by state agency buildings and on the fringe of residential neighborhoods with smaller-scale buildings. Architects designed the building in a contemporary architectural style intended to blend with both, said developer Michael Johnson, who owns Em Johnson Interest.

"What we were trying to achieve was an understated elegance with this building," he said.

The building was designed to meet the goals of the city of Sacramento's 2030 General Plan Update, which includes mixed-use high-rise development with access to public transit in the Central Business District.

The exterior will be a combination of glass, beige stone tiles and durable silver cement panels.

The location on a prominent corner inspired a corner of glass-walled condos and a stark vertical blade.

"That is intended to denote a real punctuation for that corner," Johnson said.

The building sports an unusual, multilevel design dictated by its location on a dividing line established in the Capitol View Protection Act, de la Vergne said.

An L-shaped portion facing N and 16th streets and containing the retail and most of the condos will be the highest. The building will contain 22 penthouse lofts that range from 900 to 1,300 square feet, with main floors starting on the eighth story and ninth-level mezzanines reached via stairs in each unit. The highest part of the building will top at 106 feet, well below the 150-foot maximum established by the act for that area. Other portions can't exceed 80 feet.

Plans went from 98 residential units to 110, and 6,000 square feet of retail to almost 5,000. Seven condos were added in the final design when developers realized they could be added on top of the garage, de la Vergne said.

The project also meets the 2030 General Plan's goal of integrating parking into the building. Cars will access the garage through the alley.

Residential units are the most profitable part of the project. But retail also is important because 16th Street is a key transportation corridor in downtown Sacramento. Retail also will help "activate" the street, de la Vergne said.

Five condos open onto the plaza. Most units are platform lofts with raised bedroom areas overlooking living rooms. One-bedroom, 660-square-foot condos are expected to sell for $325,000 and two-bedroom, 975-square-foot condos would start at $399,000.

Other highlights include a private third-story landscaped plaza in the center of the building. Condos over the garage will have roofs covered with no-maintenance grass so tower homeowners will look down on green, Johnson said.

The proposal has gone through the city of Sacramento's Planning and Design Review commissions as well as the necessary state agencies.

The environmental analysis is expected to be completed by Feb. 1. CADA's board is expected to take action on the environmental report at its March meeting, de la Vergne said.

Excavation of soil that contains lead-based paint from previous housing on the site is expected to start in May 2011. The authority would first like to relocate four Art Deco-style units that were built there in the early 1940s. An additional 10 units of that structure will be demolished before excavation begins, de la Vergne said. Construction is expected to be completed in early 2012.

Suzanne Hurt is a staff reporter for The Sacramento Press.

City eyes state buildings for future tax revenue

2009-10-23T04:38:58Z

City officials are eyeing state buildings in Sacramento as a potential source of local property tax revenue. A public affairs official with the state’s Department of General Services confirmed with The Sacramento Press on Thursday that it is moving forward with plans to sell some state-owned buildings in the city.

Sacramento does not receive property tax from state-owned buildings. But if the crisis-ridden state government sells the buildings it owns to private entities, property tax monies would flow to the city as well as to other local governments, such as the county and school districts, according to Assistant City Manager John Dangberg.

Mayor Kevin Johnson and the city manager support the planned sale. Johnson noted in a phone interview that if the state sold some its buildings, it would help its “cash-flow problem.” There are advantages and disadvantages to being the state capital; one disadvantage is the state’s ownership of some of downtown’s prime real estate, Johnson said.

Dangberg said the state needs to make its own decisions about the economic viability of selling its property. If the state sells its properties, the city “would want to be sure it was done in a manner that would allow us to collect property taxes,” he added.

Dangberg said he has talked about the state’s possible sale of Sacramento properties with Zach Miller, an official in the Real Estate Services Division of the state’s Department of General Services.

The Capitol Area Development Authority’s (CADA) role as a recipient of local property tax revenues adds another dimension to the issue. The city is examining the implications of the state’s possible sale of the Capitol Area East End Complex, which consists of five buildings and a parking facility at Capitol Avenue and N Street. The complex is in CADA’s jurisdiction, Dangberg pointed out. If the state sells the complex, CADA would receive all property tax revenues, he said.

In light of this, the city is trying to figure out if it can receive property taxes in areas under CADA jurisdiction, Dangberg said. He noted that the city provides police and fire services to the CADA area.

The state, meanwhile, appears to be seriously pursuing the sale of 17 buildings. The state plans to lease back the buildings after selling them. “Starting in the new year, we’re planning to market them aggressively,” said Jeffrey Young, deputy public affairs director for the Department of General Services. Details about the state’s plans to sell buildings -- including those in the city and county of Sacramento -- are featured prominently on the department’s website.

Kathleen Haley is a staff reporter for The Sacramento Press.

Streetscape workshop set for 16th St.

2009-07-15T01:17:35Z

Residents and business owners will soon have a chance to help fine-tune ideas to improve the look of 16th Street, a major gateway into the capital city.

The Capitol Area Development Authority (CADA) will lead a workshop on Tuesday, July 21, to share updated information on development activities and to collect input on streetscape elements to brighten 16th Street. Those upgrades will be part of a renaissance unfolding there, along with a surge in businesses such as Hot Italian, Mochi, Pronto and Starbuck's.

The ideas that are gathered will be used to help form a cohesive vision for the street. That vision and specific details will be incorporated into a $20,000 conceptual streetscape design that Berkeley landscape design and planning firm MIG is creating for the section from L to S streets, said Marc de la Vergne, CADA's development manager for the capitol area.

The design will build on the 16th Street Public Improvements Design Study crafted for the entire street in 1997 by CADA, the Sacramento Housing and Redevelopment Agency, the city and the state. That plan, which has been shared with MIG, provides relevant ideas but little detail, he said.

"It's serving as a jumping-off point for us," said de la Vergne. "We need more guidance than that study was able to provide."

The improvements will be part of an ongoing effort to upgrade the 16th Street corridor. The workshop is set for 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. at the CADA Event Center, 1322 O St.

Once part of State Highway 160, the one-way, three-lane thoroughfare is not expected to undergo any changes itself. Instead, the workshop and design will focus on upgrading sidewalk amenities for pedestrians, business and property owners, and commuters. Elements to be discussed include plantings, furniture, lighting, public art, sidewalk and crosswalk treatments, bus shelters and signs.

At the workshop, CADA will encourage discussion about installing bike lanes on 16th Street, although doing so would be challenging. CADA's primary concern is how to upgrade such a major thoroughfare.

"It's somewhat limiting in what you can do physically because it's such an important corridor," said de la Vergne. "Many of the improvements we're going to look at don't involve direct changes to the street itself. We're focusing more on sidewalks."

He and two others from CADA -- Todd Leon and Tom Kigar -- will make presentations about preliminary concepts and relevant 16th Street projects, including East End Gateway developments and light rail station improvements. Liz Lagomarsino from Friends of Fremont Park will discuss the community-based vision the organization is developing to make the park more fun, appealing and user-friendly.

CADA hopes the workshop will draw "people who feel 16th Street is an important location and want to have some input on what it looks like or what it could look like," said de la Vergne.

For more information about the workshop, contact Marc de la Vergne at 324-3913.

Suzanne Hurt is a staff reporter for The Sacramento Press. She can be reached at 804-2856 or suzanne@sacramentopress.com.

16th St. streetscape upgrade in works

2009-06-22T04:07:00Z

Revitalization of 16th Street continued Friday as first steps were taken to create an updated streetscape.

The improvements will be part of an ongoing effort to upgrade the corridor, a major entrance into Sacramento giving many people their first impression of the capital city.

Once part of State Highway 160, the roadway deteriorated into a motel corridor that had grown extremely run-down by the 1990s. The street is home to longtime powerhouses like Simon's Restaurant and Luna's Cafe & Juice Bar. Newer businesses including Starbuck's, Pronto and Mochi have set up shop across from renovated Fremont Park.

The three-lane, one-way street has been a major focus for the city, state and Capitol Area Development Authority (CADA) for decades as the agencies seek to promote development around the Capitol and polish the capital city's image.

"What we're trying to do is stitch together a very vibrant, mixed-used street," said CADA Executive Director Paul Schmidt.

On Friday, CADA held its first 16th Street streetscape meeting with the Berkeley landscape design and planning firm MIG. The company was hired Thursday to design a conceptual plan to polish the look of 16th Street from the alley between Capitol and N streets south to S Street, said Marc de la Vergne, CADA's development manager for the capitol area. MIG also designed streetscape for CADA's R Street project.

The community's input on new streetscape elements will be sought this summer in public workshops to be scheduled by CADA, a joint powers authority between the city and state. CADA was set up to help build a dynamic urban neighborhood as part of the capitol campus envisioned in the state's Capitol Area Plan.

Other development is in the works to build on the success of the East End Office Complex, completed in the late 1990s at the east end of Capitol Park. The complex included five buildings -- all but one at 16th and Capitol streets -- and the East End Garage. The complex brought in 4,500 state workers and increased the neighborhood's marketability for new retail, housing and additional office space, he said.

"The fact is, it cleaned up that area," said Schmidt.

That also was the first successful development effort after an aborted attempt to build two office towers there in the 1960s. The colorful Stanford Park townhouses were among the city's first infill projects when they were built across from Fremont Park in the 1980s. CADA's next development, the Spanish-style Fremont Building on the east side of 16th between O and P Streets, brought mixed-use development into the neighborhood.

New housing that allows home ownership is a big part of the plan for 16th Street, Schmidt said.

"People want to live down here. If you build it, they will come," he said.

Both projects drew the attention of developers and kick-started new retail.

Now, there's new movement elsewhere in the East End Gateway project, on CADA-owned land on the blocks stretching north from Hot Italian on Q Street to the alley between Capitol and N streets. Five sites, including three currently vacant lots, are slated for development there.

In October 2010, Em Johnson Interest and Nehemiah Community Reinvestment Fund Holdings are expected to start construction on a $37 million, eight-story mid-rise containing 98 "entry-level" condos, 6,000 square feet of retail and 120 parking spaces. The "Site 1" project at 16th and N streets, across from the site of the future California Unity Center, is expected to be completed by 2012. The 1930s Modernist apartment building currently housing Capitol Gardens is available if someone wants to move it, according to CADA.

Ravel Rasmussen Properties is expected to start building on at least one more vacant lot at 16th and O streets in the next fiscal year, which begins June 30. The company will develop two lots, Sites 2 and 3, on either side of O Street on 16th Street's west side. Designs call for mixed use, including 24 market-rate apartments on Site 2 and 60 market-rate apartments on Site 3.

But with banks now willing to finance only half of a project, getting enough private investors to kick in the rest for two projects at the same time has been a challenge.

"In my 30 years, this has been the most difficult financing market I've ever seen," Schmidt said.

MNA Management, affiliated with Mogavero Notestine Associates, was chosen in May to build apartments and condos at 16th and P streets, currently occupied by an old motel CADA converted into single room occupancy (SRO) housing.

The motel is expected to be torn down in two years. CADA will try to help residents find new housing, but only those with Section 8 vouchers would have relocation rights guaranteed, he said.

Development of Site 5 has been put on hold due to financing. CADA has leased the house and land to a private daycare.

The city, state and CADA and Sac Housing and Redevelopment Agency partnered in 1997 to create the 16th Street Public Improvements Design Study. The $20,000 streetscape conceptual design will build on that study, said de la Vergne.

The plan will propose a "palette" of elements, including plantings, furniture, new sidewalk treatments and signs, he said. The plan will be used in development of Sites 1 through 4, and to help guide other public and private improvements other projects along 16th Street.

The conceptual plan is expected to be finished by September. The plan would include proposals for how much of the streetscape should be financed by developers. CADA will then work aggressively to raise funds for future phases of planning and installation of the streetscape, he said.

"We're looking forward to working with the city on this project. The city really has had an interest in 16th Street for a long time," he said.