Home / Archive / Big Deals: Railyards finally get new owners
Thursday, May 17, 2012
Feature: March 2007
Railyards finally get new owners
The 10 biggest breakthroughs, bombshells and busts of 2006
Story by Rich Ehisen
If a name could be given to 2006, it should be The Year of Big Moves.
Huge decisions were made last year by business leaders, legislators and even California voters that will move our state and our region in new — and hopefully prosperous — directions.
That’s not to say that all the big deals and decisions took us forward. Some were a step — or three — backward in ways that will have an impact on Sacramento’s landscape for years to come.
The impact of many of this year’s big decisions may not be seen or felt for several years, but that should be taken as good news: It’s much better for a region to make forward-thinking decisions than to react to a crisis at the last minute.
As we breathe cleaner air, drive better roads, live safely behind better levees, enjoy new ways to get from A to B, and benefit from a healthy and diverse economy, we can look back to 2006 as the year that made it all possible.
After nearly 10 years and the involvement of an almost countless number of players and personalities, Union Pacific Railroad has signed an agreement transferring ownership of the 240-acre railyards just north of downtown Sacramento to Thomas Enterprises.
The multimillion-dollar transaction (details have not been disclosed) enables Thomas to implement what many are calling the largest redevelopment project of its kind in the nation. When complete, the redeveloped railyards will include more than 1 million square feet of retail space, 10,000 housing units and 3 million square feet of office space. There’s also a spot for an arena and parcels earmarked for museums, a performing arts center, parks and a public marketplace.
The project has several downtown business leaders very excited. “The economic impact of this is somewhere around $9 [billion] or $10 billion,” says Matt Mahood, president and CEO of the Sacramento Metropolitan Chamber of Commerce. “It’s going to help boost our local economy for years to come.” The project is also getting high praise for being a textbook example of smart, transit-oriented infill development.
The idea of that much new retail space has given some downtown business owners a touch of heartburn, but Michael Ault, executive director of the Downtown Sacramento Partnership, says the new residential units will be good for everyone.
“For us not to recognize 10,000 new residents as a potential customer base for everything in downtown would be missing the point,” Ault says. “It’s just going to be vital to ensure that there’s a good pedestrian link between the railyards and the downtown core.”
Ault also says it will be important for retail in the railyards to complement what’s already been established downtown, and to take advantage of the opportunity to do things that can’t be done along K Street. The pending arrival of Bass Pro Shops in the railyards in 2008 is a perfect example. The company is known for constructing massive stores for outdoor enthusiasts.
“There’s no way a Bass Pro Shops could go in along the K Street Mall, but it’s a perfect way to bring new retail to the railyards that complements what’s already downtown,” Ault says.
