Mayor Kevin Johnson’s volunteer task force on Thursday continued its second session of challenging proposals presented by prospective developers of a new arena in Sacramento. The 12-member task force heard presentations from Thomas Enterprises, the Kamilos Group, Natomas ESC Partners and Tripp Development. The prospective developers explained their financing plans, among other issues. Task force member Mike Kvarme asked how much of Thomas Enterprises’ project financing would rely on obtaining federal funding. “It’s a large part of it,” said Suheil Totah, vice president of Thomas Enterprises. Totah also commented on the site’s location at the railyards in Downtown. Thomas Enterprises is

Maintenance work began Wednesday on Union Pacific railroad tracks in the Downtown Sacramento railyards, while ongoing upgrades continue at the historic Sacramento Valley Station. Union Pacific has started rail maintenance work on existing tracks. Rail cars that are part of a track replacement train known as the TRT 909 are pulling up the rail and replacing railroad ties underneath, said Aaron Hunt, public relations director for Union Pacific. "We have track improvement projects going on throughout the state currently," he said. The work is not part of the $60 million Downtown track relocation project, said Richard Rich, development director of Thomas Enterprises' Railyards project. The

The ongoing drama over a new Sacramento arena was kicked up a notch Thursday when a consortium of investors and local developers, together with the NBA, proposed a complex real estate deal involving the Railyards, Cal Expo and Arco Arena. Whether or not that deal eclipses all the other proposals on the table remains to be seen. But regardless of which arena proposal ultimately becomes reality, it will be a game-changer for Sacramento. Just how much depends on which of seven proposals the city and the Sacramento Kings' owners agree on. The Maloof/NBA proposal involves real estate deals that would lead to Cal Expo being sold to private developers for a mixed-use neighborhood, Arco Arena an

Helping to save $20 million in local federal stimulus money, the state of California on Thursday ponied up $31 million in Prop. 1B funding for projects connected to Sacramento's future regional transportation center. The Sacramento Area Council of Governments and the city of Sacramento told the California Transportation Commission this week that the city would lose the federal stimulus funds unless the agency paid out the Prop. 1B money as promised, said Erik Johnson, SACOG spokesman. The bulk of the $31 million will be used for a $60 million railroad track relocation, the first phase of the train station and public transit center being built in the 244-acre historic railyards adjacent t

Westfield Downtown Plaza and a citizens' group lost legal challenges against the Railyards development, developer Thomas Enterprises and the city announced Monday. The lawsuits against the city of Sacramento, the city's Redevelopment Agency and developer Thomas Enterprises argued that the poject's two environmental impact reports (EIRs) were inadequate and did not comply with the California Environmental Quality Act known as CEQA. Sacramento County Superior Court Judge Lloyd Connelly ruled in favor of the city and developer on all points raised by the Downtown Plaza and three people represented by attorney Bill Kopper. Those individuals — Robert Castro Jr., Linda Powers and Chris Rich —

Piles are growing at the city's old railyard. Inside the long-abandoned Southern Pacific railroad shops, there are piles of metal, wood, debris and contaminated junk. Up on roofs, white-suited, specially trained abatement workers are pulling up roofing material and roofing adhesive containing asbestos. Outside one of the shops lies a makeshift salvage yard. Georgia developer Thomas Enterprises and a contractor, Allied Environmental of Placerville, are three months into a $5 million cleanup of the historic "Central Shops," which will form the centerpiece of a 244-acre mixed-used district dubbed the Railyards. The developers envision the shops as the cultural heart of a district that will

Test pile-driving began Tuesday at Sacramento's historic railyard as the site's developers prepare for bridge construction. The sights and sounds were a sample of what's to come in about four months when foundation work starts for bridges on Fifth and Sixth streets. At that time, the developers at Thomas Enterprises realize some neighbors may be annoyed by the booms of about 400 piles being driven into the earth. But the noise won't be the same to all ears, they said. "To us, it's the sound of progress," said Leslie Valpey, the project's development coordinator. "And activity at a time when there's not a lot of activity." That sound also represents the historic Southern Pacific railyar

The city of Sacramento and Railyards developer Thomas Enterprises expect to move forward Monday on attempts to put a price tag on key land needed for a future regional transportation center. The city exercised its right to request an independent arbitrator after both sides failed to agree on the price of 33 acres needed to build the transportation center, an expansion of the historic Sacramento Valley Station into the 244-acre Railyards development. A public hearing has been set for 9 a.m. Monday at Sacramento County Superior Court to help narrow down the list of potential arbitrators qualified to set a value and price for the land, which will also contain relocated railroad tracks and o

Cleanup of historic Southern Pacific railroad shops is expected to begin late this month as the next phase of the Sacramento Railyards project kicks into gear. Hazardous materials including lead paint, asbestos, metals and other industrial toxins need to be removed from the shops, which were built starting in 1868. Georgia developer Thomas Enterprises has put the abatement project out to bid and expects to award the contract in the next few weeks, said Richard Rich, development director for the Railyards project. In its heyday, Southern Pacific practically owned the town. The railyards drove Sacramento's economy, and nearly a third of all the city's residents worked there. The shops lay