A study to map out a streetcar route linking Sacramento to West Sacramento is expected to start this fall, according to city Transportation Department spokeswoman Linda Tucker. More than $400,000 in funding has been set aside for the study -- $310,000 from federal grant funds obtained earlier this year and $90,000 from local transportation funds, said Azadeh Doherty, a principal planner in the department. The current plan for the streetcar includes a path in West Sacramento, but does not lay out a route in Sacramento. Under the most recent plan, the streetcar would run from West Sacramento City Hall, across Tower Bridge and stop in Old Sacramento at the foot of the bridge. The city will

There are few people in this town who have consistently done as much to promote film, music, arts and Downtown Sacramento as Sid Heberger, managing partner of the Crest Theatre.  Now, after years producing, hosting and promoting multiple film festivals, she is receiving the 4th Annual Film Arts Service Award during the opening ceremonies for the 11th Annual Sacramento Film & Music Festival.  From the Festival Program: Sid grew up in Sutter Creek developing an early love for film and historic architecture. She moved to Sacramento to attend college and in 1986 became involved in the re-opening of the historic Crest Theatre, leading to a management position two years later. Now CEO of the C

The Sacramento City Council is set to vote Tuesday night on the developers who will tackle the blighted K Street Mall. The question before the council is whether to support the recommendation of Mayor Kevin Johnson's ad hoc committee to go with the biggest proposal, which has a "Boqueria" public market as its centerpiece, or to back two other proposals to redevelop the troubled 700 and 800 blocks of K Street on $40 million in city-owned land. Only one selection committee had been identified in the city's request for qualifications. Last month, that committee recommended the 700 block be redeveloped by D & S Development and CFY Development, with their Promenade on K project estimated at $

The Downtown Sacramento Partnership (DSP), in collaboration with a consulting team from the UC Davis Graduate School of Management, released a report on the potential economic impacts of an Entertainment and Sports Complex (ESC) in the Railyards earlier this month. The report suggests that a well-integrated complex with parallel investment in Downtown’s core assets, including Old Sacramento, Downtown Plaza, JKL Retail Corridor, and the Convention Center, will maximize economic impact and strengthen the surrounding neighborhood. “We believe that an Entertainment and Sports Complex belongs Downtown and has the potential to stimulate economic activity,” said DSP Executive Director Michael Au

The Sacramento City Council is scheduled next month to pick the developers who will take on the challenge of rebuilding two blighted blocks of K Street Mall. A selection committee created by the city has tapped two teams. D & S Development, Inc., and CFY Development, Inc. — led by Cyrus Youssefi — is being recommended to redevelop the 700 block. The group 700-800 K Street, LLC — led by Sacramento developer David Taylor and Z Gallerie owner Joe Zeiden — is being recommended to take on the 800 block, said Beth Tincher, a senior project manager with the city's Economic Development Department. The Downtown Sacramento Partnership endorsed those selections at a board meeting last week. The two

Vacant building or blank canvas? This weekend, local artists in collaboration with the Downtown Sacramento Partnership will blur the line with phantom galleries and temporary public art installations in vacant downtown buildings. Chalk artists Stephanie Olivera and Jen Cimeglio will transform the façade of 1018 J Street by painting a temporary chalk mural as part of a live Second Saturday show from 3 p.m. to 7 p.m. The two-panel mural will feature a Japanese theme and span approximately 320 square feet. A new mural will be painted live every Second Saturday throughout the summer to commemorate the 20th Anniversary of Chalk It Up! on Labor Day weekend. Contemporary artists Amber Dias, Sal

Yes, that really did happen here. The complaints and rumblings about music in Sacramento have been mounting for years: a perceived disconnect between the local music scene and the community, the glaring lack of consistent all-ages music venues in the downtown area and a debilitating middle child syndrome caused by big name touring acts that often pass the Capitol City over for gigs in the Bay Area. In the face of the retrospective on local music provided by Downtown Sacramento Partnership’s newest walking tour, it becomes hard to find anything to complain about. Entitled “Locally Grown, Internationally Known: The history of the Sacramento Music Scene,” this hour-long tour offers not onl

A mom and pop Grocery Outlet is expected to open in Midtown this summer. An Orange County family is relocating to Sacramento to open a branch of the chain that calls itself the country's largest "extreme-value" grocery retailer. The store is expected to open July 1 in the former Rick's Uptown Market at 17th Street and Capitol Avenue. Mindi and Ken Admire want to set their store apart from other Grocery Outlets by operating a family-friendly business and really getting to know their customers. Their children, Kristina and Kenneth, a recent college graduate, will be an integral part of that. "We hope that we stand out as a different model in that we're going to be completely family-orient

As summer approaches, so do opportunities for more outdoor events. Cesar Chavez Plaza, located on 10th and J streets, is a hot spot for these events because of its convenient location and friendly atmosphere. I Heart Art Craft Market is an event that will take place at the park from 11 a.m. – 1 p.m. every Thursday from May 6 through Oct. 28. Put on by the nonprofit Downtown Sacramento Partnership, I Heart Art is an arena of opportunity for the community to come together and showcase their arts and crafts. “We came up with the idea for I Heart Art at one of our meetings,” Downtown Sacramento Partnership Events manager Annie Stuckert said. It was a collaborative idea of our staff.” 2009 wa

Valerie Mamone-Werder walked K Street Mall on a wet morning last week. Wrapped in a black trench coat, Downtown Sacramento Partnership's new retail recruiter didn't seem to notice the dark clouds bulging with the day's next rainstorm. She seemed too full of excitement. "I love all these old buildings," Mamone-Werder said, standing near a corner of 10th and K streets. She pointed out what's happening near that important spot: the sophisticated vibe The Cosmopolitan cabaret, café and nightclub have brought to a corner once inhabited by Woolworth's, and the work under way nearby to turn a former Hit or Miss clothing store into Dive Bar and Pizza Rock. She also discussed the potential for t

Now that city leaders have dedicated $2.7 million in funding to add cars to the K Street pedestrian mall, what exactly does the city hope to achieve from the effort?
 Mayor Kevin Johnson and city staffers have said that the move to include cars on K Street would be a boon for business and would also make the street safer.
 Johnson said at a Monday press conference that automobile traffic on K Street — banned since the late 1960s — would create numerous advantages for the city. “It increases visibility for all the retail...stimulates our activity in terms of K Street, and pedestrian malls are a thing of the past,” he said, adding that the cars would also improve public safety on the thoro

A Fortune 500 company is consolidating its regional office in Sacramento's central city. Although moving only two blocks, AECOM's choice to remain here and bring more workers to the city's core is cause for some celebration after many regional and divisional offices shrunk in the last two years, local business leaders said. "This is an indication that we're heading in the right direction," said Michael Ault, executive director of the Downtown Sacramento Partnership. AECOM, headquartered in Los Angeles, merged with the environmental, planning and design firm EDAW in 2006. AECOM added construction, engineering, architecture and high-level project management, as well as a global force of 4

The Downtown Sacramento Partnership (DSP) has released the 2010 schedule for the Friday Night Concerts in the Park. The free, outdoor concert series will rock Cesar Chavez Plaza (10th and J streets) every Friday night from 5 p.m. to 9 p.m. starting May 7 though August 13. For the latest concert news, visit www.downtownsac.org/concerts. 2010 CONCERT SCHEDULE* May 7 - Kepi Ghoulie The Kelps, Dog Party, Simpl3jack May 14 - Rick Estrin & The Nightcats Low Down Dirty Dogs May 21 - Dance Gavin Dance Phallucy, Con of Man, Desario May 28 - Mike Farrell Aaron King & The Imperials, One Eyed Rhyno June 4 - Method Echo The Nibblers, Live Manikin June 11 - The Nickel Slots Los Blazing Hangovers

 The Hard Rock Cafe in downtown Sacramento is closing its doors after 12 years. The restaurant was an anchor of the troubled Westfield Downtown Plaza, and is the latest casualty of the poor economy, said Mayor Kevin Johnson. "The Hard Rock closing certainly reflects what is going on with this country and state. It's hitting us very hard," Johnson said at a press conference Friday. "We haven't hit bottom and we haven't come out of it yet, and that's very difficult for all of us." Michael Ault, executive director of the Downtown Sacramento Partnership, said he just heard about the closing Thursday. "We are disappointed," he said. "Hard Rock is an iconic property. The destination it repre

Denver's mayor was in town Tuesday to talk about downtown arenas and the need for strong mayors — two subjects close to Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson's heart. Building an arena downtown could help reinvigorate Sacramento's core, if the success of Colorado's capital city is an indication, Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper said during the Downtown Sacramento Partnership's annual State of Downtown Breakfast. Last week, would-be Sacramento arena developers outlined seven proposals for a new "sports and entertainment center" in response to Johnson's request for such proposals. All but two were proposed to be built downtown. The same day, a Sacramento Superior Court judge issued a tentative ruli

The Firestone Building on downtown's eastern edge has taken the 2010 V.I.B.E. award, the Downtown Sacramento Partnership announced Thursday. The award will be presented Jan. 19 to developers Mark and Jim Cordano, Ken Fahn, and George and Betty Wurster during the partnership's 12th annual State of Downtown Breakfast at Memorial Auditorium, 1515 J St. The 80-year-old building — where Firestone operated a tire station and service center at the corner of 16th and L streets for more than 70 years — now is home to de Vere's Irish Pub, Mix Downtown, Sapporo Grill Japanese Steakhouse and California Pizza Kitchen. A Greek restaurant is reportedly in the works. The project won the award because t

The Downtown Sacramento Partnership on Wednesday identified its primary strategy to help drive downtown's economic development for 2010 and beyond. The business group's board also voted to accept a study of the J-K-L corridor prepared by Downtown Works, a Washington, D.C. retail consultancy firm. The full and final report was presented at the partnership's annual meeting, held Wednesday morning at the Citizen Hotel. Within the next month or so, the business group will identify the "core" three to five strategies out of nearly 30 that were approved for 2010 through 2012. "Probably the most important element that has come out of the study is to restate a concept that has long been consid

Sacramento retailers are still feeling the bitter sting of the recession this holiday season. Local merchants selling everything from kids' snowshoes to William Shatner's first album are mostly reporting decreased sales — although some say 2009 holiday sales haven't been as dire as predicted. "I think the holiday season will be a disappointment to most merchants," said Ed Castro, who owns Ed's Threads at 1125 21st St. "I'm not shooting for the moon, so I'm not going to be disappointed." With the country's economy in its third year of recession, retailers operating downtown and throughout the central city are struggling the same as retailers elsewhere. Industry-wide, holiday retail sale

If you build it, they will come. What's been said about baseball diamonds in Iowa is now being said for downtown Sacramento's future retail market, according to a retail consultancy firm that has just finished a study of the J-K-L corridor. In this case, "they" represent 72 percent of the greater Sacramento area's 1.65 million population: "urban chic" Sacramentans who own homes in the central city; young, child-free metrorenters; "in style" suburbanites who love the gritty city; long-time residents and new homeowners living just outside the core; and connoisseurs who want the best of everything, said Scott Schuler with Downtown Works of Washington, D.C. "You have got to draw people from

Mayor Kevin Johnson on Tuesday announced two community meetings to exchange ideas on reviving K Street Mall and Westfield Downtown Plaza, shortly before an independent analysis comes out. The mayor will meet with business and property owners next Monday, and then with the rest of the public on Oct. 19, as a way to involve the community in the ongoing effort to develop a new strategy for K Street and the rest of the J-K-L corridor, the core of downtown. "We want to create a new vision," Johnson said in his weekly press conference inside city hall. “We need to re-imagine what downtown looks like.” The issue has vexed other mayors and city councils. The meetings will be the first such comm