Comstock’s Magazine published a terrific article in this month’s edition discussing the need for Sacramento commercial property landlords to relax long-standing tenant requirements for attracting startup tech companies that desperately need space to foster innovation. The article explains how Hacker Lab, a non-profit technology incubator, recently expanded its commercial space by more than 10x by relocating to a Midtown Sacramento office / warehouse building that lends itself to creative work space. 
Sacramento commercial real estate broker Brian Jacks, who handled the lease transaction, was quoted in the article as saying “it wasn’t an easy deal, but fortunately the landlord was willing to take a chance.” A few short months later, Hacker Lab finds itself at the epicenter of a movement that is culminating with Startup Weekend, a global event in local cities that brings programmers, designers and entrepreneurs together to launch their own startup company in 54 hours. Excitement is building. The City of Davis recently announced a new staff position called ‘Chief Innovation Officer’ that was assumed by industry veteran Rob White. White toured a mixed-use commercial building last week, located just one block from the U.C. Davis campus, which he agrees would be a perfect fit for a Hacker Lab type organization. Students and industry professionals need a place other than coffee shops where they can meetup to collaborate on technology and innovation projects that will help take the Sacramento region to the next level. Click here for related article.
Sacramento commercial real estate investors who own property near the proposed site of the Downtown Arena are now one step closer to potentially significant increases in value. The Sacramento City Council voted 7-2 in favor of approving the arena financing proposal, which creates the opportunity for investors to form a competing bid to acquire the Sacramento Kings. News 10 caught up with Sacramento commercial real estate broker Brian Jacks to find out what this could mean for commercial properties within the immediate vicinity of the proposed arena. Click here for News 10 story
McClellan Park recognizes Brian Jacks of East West Commercial Real Estate in the December 21, 2012 issue of Sacramento Business Journal for signing a 10 year lease for 72,021 sf with Jackson Sports Academy. Click here for the press release.
East West Commercial Real Estate is pleased to announce its successful relocation of Jackson Sports Academy (JSA) to McClellan Park in Sacramento County. Effective December 1, 2012, JSA is taking over 72,000 square feet of primarily warehouse space, 
which represents only a small portion of the 8.5 million square feet of commercial real estate that comprises McClellan Park.
The new space will provide sufficient room for 12 volleyball courts, which is currently the predominant sport for JSA. Other sports to be offered will include basketball, soccer and tennis. According to Dwayne Jackson, Executive Director of JSA, “we’re most excited about the massive parking lot, large upstairs offices with training room, hospitality suite and parent’s lounge, 38-foot high ceilings, plus free-span building without interference from structural support poles.”
Click here for related article by the Sacramento Business Journal or recent news story by Good Day Sacramento.
South Sacramento’s Southgate Plaza is once again the subject of serious interest in commercial real estate circles. First, it was the unfortunate departure of Walmart in 2009, 
which resulted in the closing of its 135,000 square foot retail store on the southeast corner of Florin Road and Franklin Blvd. The approximate 300,000 square foot commercial shopping center was decimated as remaining tenants gradually moved out due to lack of foot traffic. Following a foreclosure on the property just one year later, the new operator and Sacramento commercial real estate brokers have been desperately trying to attract new tenants (see related article for progress update). Unfortunately, Walmart still controls the lease and is now doing its best to block a subsequent retailer from taking over its space for competitive reasons. County of Sacramento officials are furious and pressuring Walmart to reconsider its position for the good of the community. Brian Jacks of East West Commercial Real Estate’s Sacramento office was quoted by Kelly Johnson in an article, published in the Sacramento Business Journal. In addition, News 10 ran this story about the subject.
Empty restaurant buildings continue to sit idle throughout much of the greater Sacramento area. Not so for the old Jolly Burger located at 7150 Auburn Blvd (historic Route 40) in Citrus Heights. Under a new operator, the local burger stand will re-open with the same name on Saturday, November 10, 2012.
Jack and Sue Darting were the original proprietors of Jolly Burger for many years and worked hard to create a memorable dining experience. 
In addition to friendly staff, customers were always greeted by a three dimensional cheesy hamburger affixed atop the building… one of Jack’s personal creations. The Dartings offered good old fashioned quality food including burgers, sandwiches, frosties, sundaes and shakes. Their food was always a hit with the locals and especially students from Sylvan Elementary and Middle School, right across the street. One can still find amazing consumer reviews on various websites like Yelp, Urban Spoon and Insider Pages.
The last few years of economic distress has clearly taken its toll on the Sacramento commercial real estate market. One prime example involves the 2009 closing of a 130,000 square foot Wal-Mart facility in Southgate Plaza, located on the southeast corner of Florin Road & Franklin Blvd in South Sacramento.
As the main anchor for this 300,000 square foot community center, Wal-Mart’s departure ultimately created a mass exodus of tenants who had successfully lived off its draw of local shoppers for many years. Holes began to appear with “FOR LEASE” signs being posted by a property manager anxious to re-lease the empty spaces.
Click here for related story by Sandy Nax of the Sacramento Business Journal.
People who live and work in California’s State Capitol of Sacramento are still reeling from the de-leveraging effects of the housing collapse. Many workers lost good paying jobs and could no longer maintain their mortgage payments, ultimately losing homes to foreclosure. Others, who were able to keep their jobs, experienced such a dramatic reduction in home values that equity lines of credit were cut off and refinancing to take advantage of historic low rates became impossible.
East West Commercial’s Regional Vice President, Brian Jacks, is featured in the Sacramento Business Journal for the recent lease of Hacker Lab. Mark Anderson of the Sacramento Business Journal writes,” Gina Lujan took a big leap of faith Monday, agreeing to move Hacker Lab in September from its 850-square-foot office to a 10,480-square-foot building in downtown Sacramento. Hacker Lab rents desk space and office space to startups ranging from software developers to web designers. The collective shares some equipment and some of the tenants mutually support others with equipment and expertise.” Click Here to continue reading!
Get ready for an infusion of entrepreneurship and software development that is now steadily growing in the Capital region.
Early this year, Gina Lujan (Founder & CEO of Hacker Lab), a native of Sacramento, left the Bay Area to return home. 
After successfully creating a collaborative workspace environment for software developers in Berkeley, she decided to replicate the business model and expand the vision in Sacramento. Around March 2012, Hacker Lab signed a commercial real estate lease for 850 square feet of second floor office space above Pangaea Café, located at 2743 Franklin Blvd in Sacramento. The space was used to provide rented desks and/or offices for local software developers who wanted to work in a tech community environment.
* Click here for Good Day Sacramento news story and Sacramento Business Journal article.
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