Sentinel staff report–
Citrus Heights saw some significant happenings in 2019, with site work beginning on a 260-home development near Sunrise Mall, action being taken by the City Council to develop a plan for the future of the 100-acre mall property, and the city’s purchase of the 11-acre former Sylvan Middle School property at Sylvan Corners. The City Council also voted on a new district map that splits Citrus Heights into five voting districts — a major change that will be first implemented in the 2020 election.
The following are the most-viewed stories of the year, along with a brief update on each.
- Single mom holding yard sale as last-resort to not lose house before Christmas. Following the publication of this story in December, April Koontz said she had been overwhelmed with support and had raised enough funds after the first day of her yard sale to pay rent and stay in her home for Christmas.
- This new restaurant is racking up a loyal following in Citrus Heights. The Angry Bird, which specializes in Nashville Hot Chicken, opened at 5500 Sunrise Blvd. on July 1. The eatery has now earned nearly 300 reviews on Yelp, averaging 4.5-out-of-five stars.
- Elephant Bar Restaurant abruptly closes in Citrus Heights. In May, the popular Elephant Bar Restaurant in the Sunrise Mall parking lot closed abruptly. The future of the former restaurant site is unknown, but the city is working on a plan to guide development at the mall site.
- City takes next step towards major redevelopment of Sunrise Mall. In October, the City Council unanimously awarded a contract for creating a “shovel ready” plan to comprehensively guide future development at the under-utilized 100-acre Sunrise Mall property. A public workshop is slated to take place by March.
- Massive housing project in Citrus Heights sold to new developer. In September, The Sentinel confirmed that the 56-acre Mitchell Farms housing development in Citrus Heights had been sold to KB Homes by Watt Communities for an undisclosed sum. The Sacramento Business Journal later confirmed a sale price of $24.9 million. The project is continuing with site work and construction of the first homes is slated to begin later this year.
The Sentinel’s readers also were actively engaged with local stories on Facebook, with the most-commented on story of 2019 being about wild turkeys in November, closely tied with the news in February that Hobby Lobby would fill the former Citrus Heights Toys “R” Us building. Hobby Lobby has since announced plans to open in early 2020.
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