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Category: Business

  • Local store rebranding, relocating from Sunrise Mall

    Local store rebranding, relocating from Sunrise Mall

    6100 Birdcage Centre Lane, Suite 112.
    6100 Birdcage Centre Ln,, Suite 112, behind Jamba Juice and Verizon Wireless. // SB Williams

    By Sara Beth Williams–
    A jewelry repair shop that operated inside the Sunrise Mall for decades has rebranded and is relocating to the Marketplace at Birdcage shopping center.

    According to notices posted on the doors of the former location in the Sunrise Mall dated April 14, Fast Fix Jewelry and Watch Repairs has rebranded as Flawless Fix Fine Jewelry and Repair and is relocating to 6100 Birdcage Centre Ln., Suite 112.

    Leasing documents for the Marketplace at Birdcage show Flawless Fix coming soon to the Marketplace at Birdcage behind Jamba Juice and Verizon Wireless. A Sentinel staff visit to the new location last week found construction ongoing inside the building. Signs on the former location’s doors indicate an anticipated opening in May.

    Trish Gonsalves, director of leasing with Gerrity, a property management company for the Marketplace at Birdcage, confirmed that Fast Fix has rebranded as Flawless Fix and is anticipating opening on May 17.

    According to the company’s website, Fast Fix operates other locations throughout California and repairs watches, jewelry, and glass frames. The shop also offers custom jewelry design, engraving, ring resizing, and appraisal services.

    Multiple stores within the mall have closed or relocated in the last year amid the city’s efforts to redevelop the Sunrise Mall. A directory map on the Sunrise Mall’s website that still shows multiple stores that have since become vacant prompted a visit by Sentinel staff in April to confirm which stores remain open. Currently, four other jewelry stores still operate at the mall, including Kay’s Jewelers, Ron’s Jewelers, Sam’s Jewelers, and Infinity Jewelers.

    According to the company’s website, Fast Fix opened in December 1984 in a mall in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania, and currently operates over 150 franchise locations in 26 states as well as five locations in Ireland. Fast Fix typically operates stores in regional malls and shows a location on Galleria Boulevard in Roseville, as well as one in the Solano Town Center shopping mall in Fairfield.

    Representatives of Flawless Fix could not be reached for comment. Multiple requests for comment from mall management were not returned.

  • Long-vacant storefronts across from Costco now fully occupied

    Stock Ranch Plaza
    A once-vacant building is now fully occupied on Auburn Blvd. // SB Williams

    By Sara Beth Williams–
    Long-unfilled vacancies are now a thing of the past for a five-tenant building constructed in 2019 on Auburn Boulevard, with the coming of a new restaurant and dentistry location.

    West Coast Sourdough, which signed a lease in June 2023 for a 2,400-square-foot suite anticipates completing construction within the next two months. The building is also home to Sport Clips, Crumbl Cookies, AT&T, and most recently Citrus Heights Smiles Dentistry.

    West Coast Sourdough shows a new location coming soon on their website, at the address 6920 Auburn Blvd., suite 100. A visit by Sentinel staff found that the suite is currently under construction inside, and construction crew members estimated it would be another four to six weeks before remodeling was complete.

    Related: New sandwich shop coming to long-vacant spot in front of Costco – Citrus Heights Sentinel

    New construction in the commercial-zoned district is governed by the Stock Ranch Guide for Development, passed by the City Council in 2001 and most recently updated in 2015.

    The building where West Coast Sourdough resides was intended to be fully utilized by five retail or food tenants. The concept for a fully built out Stock Ranch Plaza includes nine more buildings, varying in size but similar to the five-tenant building, according to prior reports.

    The development of the plaza began with the construction of the Costco building in 2003 and Walmart in 2005. Applebee’s Bar & Grill opened in late 2015. Additional construction was anticipated in 2017, but modifications to the traffic loop inside the plaza to improve traffic flow contributed to the project’s delay.

    West Coast Sourdough menu items include sandwiches, soups, and salads, along with kids’ meal options, the company’s website shows.

    The company has grown at a rapid pace since being founded in 2020. The Stock Ranch Plaza location will be the first in Citrus Heights for the deli chain, which lists 46 locations on their website that are open or planning to open in California, including multiple locations in Roseville, Sacramento, and Elk Grove.

  • Citrus Heights home with unusual lot back on market for $849k

    8117 Glen Canyon Court
    Aerial view of 8117 Glen Canyon Court. // Google Maps

    By Sara Beth Williams–
    A four-bedroom, three-bath home in Citrus Heights with a large lot and an unusually long driveway access was relisted last month at $849,000, after being taken off the market last year, according to real estate site Zillow.

    The 2,728-square-foot home located at 8117 Glen Canyon Court has been on the market multiple times. Between 1998 and 2003, the property sold three times, with its lowest sale price in 1998 listed at $179,000 according to public records. The property sold again in 2021 for $720,000.

    Two years later, the property was relisted at $899,000, but sales history shows the price dropped by $1,000 and then again dropped to $850,000 before the property was eventually removed from the market in November.

    The two-story home, which sits on almost half-an-acre, boasts a two-car garage along with additional parking spaces suitable for RVs or boats according to the listing description. The description also indicates that the home has had $150,000 in renovations including a new roof, bathroom, lighting updates, a kitchen remodel, and more.

    Real estate agent Zhanna Movsisyan with ZT Real Estate could not be reached for comment on Tuesday. It was not immediately apparent as to when renovations on the home took place.

    Sacramento-area residential appraiser and housing market analyst Ryan Lundquist said in a May 2 update that the housing market is seeing some “red flags.”

    “Consumers are feeling economic pain, and we need to talk about some of the things that are brewing,” Lundquist wrote, noting data showing a recent uptick in mortgage delinquencies as well as in credit card and auto delinquencies.

    The property on Glen Canyon Court is currently listed at $311 per square foot. Another home on Kingswood Drive, with almost 1,000 more square footage, was previously listed for $849,000 in March. The price has since dropped to $799,000 as of May 2, bringing its cost down to $222 per square foot.

    Related: Real Estate: Check out this $849k home in Citrus Heights – Citrus Heights Sentinel

    “We see properties all the time that are listed as record-breaking listings, but a record is really only broken when a property actually sells,” Lundquist previously told The Sentinel. While listing prices typically are set using comparative data of similar properties, he said “sometimes properties are simply overpriced.”

  • Lights Out: Sunrise Mall’s last restaurant leaves food court

    Naija Cuisine opened in 2022 at Sunrise Mall, but is now vacant. // M. Hazlip

    By Mike Hazlip—
    The last remaining restaurant space occupied by a business in the Sunrise Mall food court is vacant after Naija Cuisine recently moved out.

    A sign on the menu of the West African eatery says the business moved to 2720 Northgate Blvd. with a phone number and ordering information. Owner Adeola Adedayo opened the restaurant at the mall in 2022, The Sentinel previously reported.

    Prior to their move to Sunrise Mall, Adedayo operated Naija Cuisine out of a “ghost kitchen” next to Yalla Yalla bakery at 7800 Sunrise Blvd., according to The Sentinel.

    No reason was given for the move and The Sentinel was not able to reach the business by phone or leave a voicemail.

    The move leaves Seva Khripunov and his coffee cart as the last business still operating in the food court. Khripunov said he now stocks frozen foods that the prepares for patrons and employees of the mall.

    Taco Bell and Pretzelmaker closed as of Jan. 15, leaving Naija Cuisine as the only operating restaurant at the mall, according to The Sentinel. Khripunov said the minimum wage increase led to the closures, however, The Sentinel has not been able to independently verify the claim with franchise owner DG Smith Enterprises.

    Businesses at Sunrise Mall continue to come and go, while plans to guide redevelopment of the nearly 100-acre mall property were approved by the city in 2021. Development requires partnership with private developers and is expected to take 20 years to complete, likely coming in four phases starting with the unused parking areas around the mall.

    The first phase aims to develop the unused parking areas over the next five years. The second phase would incorporate office space, retail, dining, and an extended stay hotel. The third and final phase includes redeveloping the existing mall into a 21st century main street.

  • Q&A: When will that care facility on Dewey Drive finally open?

    Shadowbrook Gardens, 5915 Dewey Drive.
    Shadowbrook Gardens, 5915 Dewey Drive. // SB Williams

    By Sara Beth Williams–
    Eight years after building permits were issued for the project, construction fencing still surrounds a planned 40,000-square-foot acute care nursing facility off Dewey Drive on the border of Citrus Heights.

    Multiple residents who live nearby the building have reported to The Sentinel that the facility appears to have been nearly complete for several years, yet the premises remains closed. Prior reports indicate the property was under construction in May of 2020, with construction continuing during the pandemic.

    A visit to the facility in April by Sentinel staff found construction fencing blocking off two driveway entrances to the facility while the outside of the building and the grounds appeared well-maintained. Signage with the name and address has been erected in front of the building, but no opening date has been posted.

    Due to irregular boundary lines, the nursing facility, called Shadowbrook Gardens, is technically located outside the boundary of Citrus Heights at 5915 Dewey Drive, in Fair Oaks.

    Although parcels on either side of the facility are located in Citrus Heights, county documents show the facility itself sits on a narrow finger of land that puts it in an unincorporated part of Sacramento County. Because the property is in Fair Oaks, building permits are not issued by the City of Citrus Heights.

    In the case of nursing facilities, building permits are also not issued by Sacramento County, but by the Department of Health Care Access and Information (HCAI), according to Eric Stackhouse, Associate Planner with Sacramento County Planning and Environmental Review.

    Building permits for Shadowbrook Gardens were first issued in April of 2016 by the HCAI, according to project details listed on the department’s website.

    Andrew Diluccia, public information officer with the Department of Healthcare Access and Information told The Sentinel that, as of an April 17 inspection by HCAI, construction is “90 percent complete.”

    Owner Shyrel Gaskey with Auburn Manor Holding Corporation previously spoke to The Sentinel in 2020 regarding construction progress, and said the building is to be used as an acute rehabilitation facility for patients discharged from area hospitals. Plan documents on the Department of Health Care Access and Information website are consistent with Gaskey’s statement, indicating the facility is an acute care hospital building.

    Gaskey told the Citrus Heights Messenger in January that the building was targeting a date in March 2024 to be ready for occupancy, but added it could take a few months longer for the project to be signed off. Gaskey also said in January that an agreement for the operator to run the new facility was continuing and yet to be finalized. Multiple attempts by The Sentinel to reach Gaskey for comment went unanswered.

    Project documents show the facility will have space for dining, kitchen, and physical therapy. Currently, there are two entrance points from Dewey Drive and another access point off Shadowbrook Way.

    Prior use for the 3.8-acre parcel was residential, according to a county staff report that describes a single-family home on the property built in 1952.

    Mike Hazlip contributed to this story.

  • Citrus Heights businessman optimistic about return of office space demand

    MealPro founder Andy Sartori. // M. Hazlip

    By Mike Hazlip—
    Andy Sartori, owner of Citrus Heights based MealPro, sees reasons to be optimistic that demand for office space will increase, 1.85 million of them, he said.

    Sartori acquired 11231 Gold Express Drive last month for $1.85 million, telling The Sentinel that he would have preferred to make the purchase in Citrus Heights, but did not find suitable office space in the city.

    He plans to keep the manufacturing facility for MealPro, Sartori’s meal delivery business, at 7421 Greenback Ln. in Citrus Heights where he says the business can continue to grow.

    “We are incubated and probably even more than incubated in Citrus Heights,” Sartori said. “Citrus Heights is still like a growth stage of business, always based in Citrus Heights and we’re just looking for a different type of setup.”

    Sunrise Mall could be an ideal location for future office space, he said, something that is part of the Sunrise Tomorrow plan.

    Related: Sunrise Mall ‘Tomorrow’ plan to get a piece of $22.5 million grant

    The move comes after a bearish report on office space in the Sacramento region by Colliers. The report says there was an increase of 24 basis points in the market vacancy rate for the year-over-year fourth quarter of 2023. About 20 percent of the total office space in the Sacramento region was vacant at the time of the report, marking six consecutive quarters of occupancy losses, Colliers reported.

    In Citrus Heights alone, there was 845,416 total square feet of office space, with about 12 percent vacancy, according to Colliers. The fourth quarter net absorption was -6,694 square feet of Citrus Heights office space with a year-to-date net absorption of 24,775 square feet in 2023.

    The report predicts a peak in employees working from home in the Sacramento Region, based on a slight decline from 23.3 percent in 2021 to 19.8 percent in 2022.

    “The office sector has experienced significant upheaval over the last four years,” the report says. “The rapid pace of change has created uncertainty and speculation on the future of the office. Analyzing current trends, it appears the Sacramento office market will see additional occupancy losses and rising vacancy rates throughout much of 2024.”

    In a follow-up email about the Colliers report, Sartori said there is more to the office space market than what he called the report’s quantitative analysis shows. Several qualitative factors played a role in his decision, including high-end finishes, floor-to-ceiling windows, overall layout, and street visibility, he said.

    Citing a positive net absorption for the downtown central district, Sartori said properties with more appealing architecture and interior amenities are still in demand.

    “Suburban class B appear to be struggling the most,” he said, noting that while the buildings are more affordable, they don’t have the “wow” factor due.

    Converting some class B office buildings to light industrial might be one way Sartori says could bring tenants and employees to un-leased suites. His own MealPro business uses the former Lucky Derby casino in Citrus Heights to produce meals that are shipped to his online subscribers.

    Sartrori is betting on a return of employees to the workplace, saying shared office space helps teamwork and makes it easier to manage productivity. Working together is encouraged in other sectors, he said.

    “From my perspective, I have 1.85 million reasons to believe that office is better,” he said. “If we’re all in the same room, I just think it’s easier to see how the culture comes together and, to have more cohesion.”

    From 2021: An inside look at MealPro’s new Citrus Heights headquarters

  • Plans withdrawn for large new church building near Sylvan Corners

    Plans withdrawn for large new church building near Sylvan Corners

    Vacant lot near Sylvan Corners
    An undeveloped lot near Sylvan Corners where plans were withdrawn for a proposed 16,00o foot building. // Google Maps / CH Sentinel

    By Sara Beth Williams–
    Plans submitted by a local church seeking to construct a nearly 16,000-square-foot building near Sylvan Corners have been withdrawn from consideration, according to the city.

    The construction project, submitted by Mission Rock of Salvation Church in December 2022, was to include a church building. The proposed facility would have occupied parcels totaling about two acres of land near Sylvan Corners, with access from both Old Auburn Road and Auburn Boulevard. Development plans were withdrawn in February 2024 by the applicant, according to City of Citrus Heights Communications Officer Marisa Brown.

    Previous plan documents indicated that the 15,897-square-foot building would have allowed for an occupancy of 351 people in its sanctuary, and would have included a lobby, coffee and snack area, and offices. Improvements for accessibility, walkways, underground utilities, and landscaping, were also listed in the previous documents.

    Related: 16,000-square-foot church proposed near Sylvan Corners – Citrus Heights Sentinel

    Currently, the Mission Rock of Salvation Church resides at 7140 Auburn Blvd, Citrus Heights, adjacent to the undeveloped property. The pastor and his wife, who had previously spoken to The Sentinel regarding construction on the undeveloped land, declined to comment to The Sentinel last week regarding the withdrawal of development plans.

    The site was once home to several boarded-up buildings, which belonged to the former property owner and were left abandoned after the owner’s death.

  • New eatery coming to renovated Citrus Heights shopping plaza

    File photo, new archway signage is installed outside the renovated Sunrise Village shopping plaza in Citrus Heights. // CH Sentinel

    By Sara Beth Williams–
    A popular frozen yogurt chain is returning to Citrus Heights, several years after shuttering a prior location near Sunrise Mall.

    Pinkberry, which offers frozen yogurt bowls with customizable toppings, was recently added to leasing materials for Sunrise Village, located at the northwest corner of Sunrise Boulevard and Madison Avenue in Citrus Heights, according to Sacramento Business Journal.

    Sunrise MarketPlace Executive Director Kathilynn Carpenter confirmed that a new Pinkberry is scheduled to open at Sunrise Village but could not confirm an opening date. Carpenter also confirmed that Pinkberry used to occupy a space next to Chipotle at 5855 Sunrise Blvd, on the corner of Sunrise Boulevard and Macy Plaza Drive in the Target shopping center. Carpenter could not confirm a closing date for the former location. According to Yelp reviewers, the former Pinkberry location opened in July of 2010.

    Jersey Mike’s Subs, which opened in 2023 according to the Sacramento Bee, is now the current tenant next to Chipotle.

    The frozen yogurt franchise surged in popularity in the early 2000s, but encountered difficulty with over-expansion and high competition from other frozen yogurt eateries, and the company closed several locations throughout the country beginning in 2015 according to multiple online reports.

    The new location of Pinkberry coming to Sunrise Village will join a cast of tenants including The Habit, Joann Fabric and Crafts, Olive Garden, Starbucks, and Firehouse Subs.

    According to the eatery’s website, Pinkberry was initially inspired by European gelato and was established in January 2005 with a store in Los Angeles. Pinkberry operates over 300 stores worldwide.

    Locally, Pinkberry currently operates locations throughout Sacramento, including in the Arden-Arcade area, Folsom, Elk Grove and downtown Sacramento.

  • What’s going on with the plans for a hotel at Sunrise Mall?

    Corner of the Sunrise Mall parking lot
    The corner of Sunrise Boulevard and Greenback Lane is under review for proposed subdivision. // SB Williams

    By Sara Beth Williams–
    After a year-and-a half-under review, plans to subdivide a 2.8-acre parcel in the corner of the Sunrise Mall parking lot into three parcels are expected to be completed by the end of 2024, according to Patrick Ellwood with Ellwood Commercial Real Estate.

    Plans to subdivide the corner lot at Sunrise Boulevard and Greenback Lane include a “footprint” for a potential hotel and were submitted in October 2022, according to application data online.

    In an email to The Sentinel, the city confirmed that the proposed map under review does not include demolishing the bank, but focuses on the surplus parking area in the eastern half of the parcel with the hopes of attracting developers for a future hotel.

    “As part of the [Sunrise Tomorrow] Plan development, market data, as well as feedback from the community, calls for the development of a hotel at this location,” the city wrote in an email, adding that the Sunrise Tomorrow Specific Plan calls for an “intensification and diversification of land uses at the Sunrise Mall site.”

    Related: City says developer considering hotel at Sunrise and Greenback – Citrus Heights Sentinel

    The tentative parcel map shows potential outlines for the division of the 2.8 acres into three parts, including the outline of a building which could be home to a hotel in the future. The tentative map shows the retention of the existing US bank on .9-acres, and additionally includes site improvements required to make room for the potential hotel building, such as removal of existing trees and parking lot curbs.

    The remaining division of the parcel is listed as just under one-third of an acre. According to the city, the third and smallest division is anticipated to attract a food or beverage user.

    Ellwood told The Sentinel on Friday that the city is “very interested in bringing a hotel to Citrus Heights, and so are we,” but noted high interest rates and construction costs aren’t making it easy.

    The Sentinel previously reported that the 289-page plan for Sunrise Tomorrow was developed at a cost of over $1 million to the city, including an extensive Environmental Impact Report in an effort to make the property “shovel ready” and as attractive as possible to developers.

    The plan envisions creating a walkable “21st Century Main Street,” with five big ideas guiding the plan: creating an economic engine, livable neighborhoods, streets for people, connected green spaces, and making the site a “community and regional destination.”

    The four-phase plan is projected to take 20 years to be fully completed, with the first phase likely being to develop unused parking areas.

    The second phase is expected to incorporate office space, retail, dining, and an extended-stay hotel. The third and fourth phases include redeveloping the existing mall into a “21st Century Main Street.”

    The current map for the subdivision of the 2.8-acre corner at Sunrise Boulevard and Greenback Lane does not include a formal development proposal. A separate permit would be required for the design of a future hotel building, following the approval of a parcel map.

    The city told The Sentinel last week that the current tentative map is “ready to move forward as soon as the owner is ready.”

  • New Citrus Heights ‘game cafe’ gives opportunity to unplug, connect

    Owners Melisa and Robert Roden, Galaxy Game Cafe
    Owners Melisa and Robert Roden, inside the new Galaxy Game Cafe. // SB Williams

    By Sara Beth Williams–
    A new game cafe opened on Sunrise Boulevard last weekend, featuring more than 700 board games, card games, tabletop games, and a Star Wars display gallery.

    The Citrus Heights Chamber of Commerce welcomed the new business Galaxy Game Café in a post on their Facebook page and invited the community to join in the business’s grand opening on April 13. The business is located in the shopping center on the southeastern corner of Sunrise Boulevard and Antelope Road, where Leatherby’s and Family Fitness are also located.

    Owners Melisa and Robert Roden said there was a steady stream of people throughout the grand opening, with an overall “really positive reception” from the community.

    The cafe describes itself as a “family-owned play space” on Yelp, with the motto of: “Unplug. Connect with others.”

    “We really want people to disconnect from all of the virtual stuff and really engage with people they’re hanging out with,” Roden told The Sentinel, adding that the café has no Wi-Fi, no screens on the walls and no outlets where patrons can plug in electronic devices.

    The concept for the business was motivated in part by Roden’s love of board games, and her husband’s love of Star Wars. Roden said playing board games together “has been a huge part of our family,” and her six children were able to learn reading, math, strategy concepts and positive sportsmanship through consistently playing board games.

    When Roden and her husband married, she discovered he had an extensive Star Wars collection. Her dream, Roden said, had always been to find a way to bring everything out of storage and put it on display.

    The Galaxy Game Café meshes both passions into one, featuring over 700 board games on shelves along the back wall and an extensive Star Wars collection displayed in glass cases around the shop.

    After earning an MBA in entrepreneurship, Roden said she “turned her thesis into a business plan” and began pursuing the idea of opening a shop for gaming in 2018, but plans were stalled in 2020 during the pandemic. Roden picked the idea back up in May 2023 and began searching for a location to open up shop.

    The building they found in Citrus Heights was “perfect,” Roden said, because it was in a familiar area where she spent a lot of time while growing up, and because the facility had plenty of space for the business to grow.

    “We could see ourselves being here really long term,” Roden said, adding that the open game play area has a seating occupancy of 130 people, and plenty of room for the Star Wars gallery.

    Roden and her husband plan to expand beyond offering only an open gaming area and are building inventory for a retail space in the front portion of the store. The retail space will be open to the public, while the open game space, will require a $10 fee to play.

    The Rodens also plan to offer games to go, which are boxes with sets of games based around a theme that patrons can rent and take home for a day. Roden also wants to establish after-school gaming camps and summer camps for kids and teens which focus on STEM games and strategy building games.

    Along with kids’ activities, Roden plans to initiate weekly events for adults, including Dungeons and Dragons sessions, gaming tournaments, singles meet-ups, and possibly Magic: The Gathering sessions and couples’ nights. Roden said she encourages community suggestions and has placed suggestion boxes around the shop.

    Roden also plans to offer classes where patrons can learn specific aspects of gaming such as how to play Settlers of Catan, or how to create Dungeons and Dragons characters.

    Unlimited game play costs $10 per individual, with a restriction on building reentry, according to Roden. In the near future, the shop will establish memberships, which begin at $30 a month per individual and include unlimited free play as well as unlimited in and out access to the facility. Roden said she is in the process of updating the shop’s website with new information, but the café regularly posts news and updates on their Facebook Page.

    The Galaxy Game Café is located at 7700 Sunrise Blvd Suite 1900 and is currently open from 11 a.m. to 9 p.m. Wednesday through Sunday.