Business Journal: Lady Bird Home, Kimpton Sawyer Condos, The Falls Event Center Elk Grove

Kimpton Sawyer Hotel Condos

The first sale of a condominium atop the Kimpton Sawyer Hotel in downtown Sacramento at 6th and J streets has closed escrow for $4.1 million. The Sacramento Kings and their partner, JMA Ventures of San Francisco, started marketing the hotel's 45 condos over a year ago.

"Construction only wrapped up in recent months," says The Sacramento Business Journal's Digital Editor Sonya Sorich. "We don't know the exact square footage of the condo that sold for $4.1 million, but people familiar with the deal say the sale likely sets a per-square-foot record in Sacramento for a condominium."

Analysts say the sale could be encouraging for other developers who are considering condo projects in the urban grid, but still need to find financing.

Lady Bird House For Sale

A home featured in the Oscar-nominated film Lady Bird is for sale in East Sacramento. Not the well-known big blue house, but the brick house in the movie's opening scenes. It's on 45th Street near Folsom Boulevard. And Sorich says it's listed for $3.895 million.

"The home is 6,600 square feet and has six bedrooms, along with amenities such as a basement converted into a wine cellar," says Sorich. "The home was built in 1942, but the current owners have apparently done a significant amount of work to make it modern."

The current owners have lived in the home for about 10 years and have decided to move to another house on a larger lot in the Sacramento area.

The Falls Event Center Elk Grove

There's some uncertainty about the future of a popular wedding venue in Elk Grove called The Falls Event Center, and that's got some brides and grooms pretty nervous. Sorich says a notice at the property indicates the event center could be sold at auction in a trustee sale at the end of this month.

"The notice cites an unpaid balance of $8 million on a construction loan," says Sorich. "The facility is currently open, but its future is unclear. And that's concerning for brides who have put down deposits to use the venue in the future."

The Falls Event Center's parent company is based in Utah. And it’s facing some problems of its own, including a lawsuit filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission. It's accused of falsely claiming its event centers were profitable as it raised $120 million from investors. The Falls has eight event centers, including one in Roseville. That site will not be included in this month's auction.