Competition heats up for former school district headquarters in midtown Sacramento
Published: Tuesday, May. 6, 2014 - 12:00 am
Last fall, a developer started talking to Sacramento City Unified School District staff about swapping a piece of south Sacramento land to the district in exchange for its long-vacant former headquarters at 16th and N streets.
Since then, other potential developers have emerged, and the competition for the increasingly choice piece of midtown real estate has become intense.
The 1.2-acre parcel at 1619 N St. is occupied by a historic 1923 structure that once housed the Thomas Jefferson Elementary School. State Senate President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg had hoped to build a unity center there to promote racial tolerance, but the plan fizzled in 2011 for lack of funds.
Three different development teams are now floating proposals that include stores, housing, a boutique hotel and a Native American health center. The school board has scheduled a May 15 meeting to consider how the interested parties will compete.
Developer John Hodgson, working with Cresleigh Homes, has proposed a $40 million project that would include retail and market-rate housing. He called the area around 16th and N – which is undergoing a boom of new housing development –“the crown jewel of midtown.”
Hodgson began talking with school district staff last fall, ultimately proposing a land swap. He said that approach would have eliminated the legal need for the district to seek bids from nonprofit agencies and other developers.
A few weeks ago, Hodgson thought he had a deal ready to go before the school board.
Other developers also had their eyes on the property, however. Earlier this year, DomusCompetition heats up for former school district headquarters in midtown Sacramento - Real Estate - The Sacramento Bee: