Business Journal: Rocklin Golf Course, Placer Fairgrounds, Trifecta, Burgerim

In Rocklin, the now-closed Sunset Whitney Golf Course could someday be turned into new housing. Business partners are proposing a 42-acre development on part of the property.

The Sacramento Business Journal's Digital Editor Sonya Sorich says this is the third time in the last decade that property owners have proposed housing on a portion of the site.

"The Rocklin City Council rejected those previous proposals," says Sorich. "And the golf course closed for periods of time in the past because of financial issues. With the most recent closure, neighbors have reported trespassing and vandalism on the property. They want the city to find a new use for it."

The golf course closed in 2015. Under the current proposal, the city would preserve part of the property as open-space.

The Placer County Fairgrounds in Roseville is getting a makeover this summer. Placer Valley Tourism is taking over management in July and plans to repair and refurbish buildings and parking lots. Sorich says the property was managed by a different agency in the past.

"It was previously handled by the Placer County Fair Association which at one time was funded by the state," says Sorich. "Now that funding stopped with the recession, which led to deferred maintenance at the property. And the county has been looking for an operator and manager of the fairgrounds since 2015."

Placer Valley Tourism is also exploring the possibility of building an indoor sports and event center at the fairgrounds.

A hamburger chain that started in Tel Aviv is expanding its U.S. presence. Sonya Sorich says Burgerim opened a site in Auburn this month.

"Sometimes all it takes for these things to happen is one ambitious franchisee," says Sorich. "The local owner is Brett Magorian. Some people might recognize him as the assistant softball coach at Sierra College. He was apparently looking for an investment opportunity and chose this concept."

The restaurant serves mini-burgers which diners can customize with patty options like lamb, salmon and turkey. Burgerim has locations in multiple countries and plans to add more Sacramento area locations.

The Sacramento Kings, this week, announced the winner of its contest for startups, or new businesses. An organic meal delivery company called Trifecta has won the Kings Capitalize competition. Sorich says Trifecta is based in West Sacramento.

"It was founded by two siblings," says Sorich. "They value healthy eating. But they were tired of preparing meals at home or using all the existing delivery services. For winning the startup contest, Trifecta will get a monetary prize as well as a chance to pitch their idea to angel investors."

Urijah Faber - the mixed-martial-arts star and local entrepreneur - is a managing partner at Trifecta. One of the finalists in the contest was Text To Ticket, a Sacramento startup that created an app people can use to film someone texting and driving and then submit the footage to police.