Sacramento: 301 Capitol Mall: A New Plan for The Towers Site

[innov8]

Sacramento's most ambitious and largest construction project ever

Let me know if I missed anything


The Towers on Capitol Mall
3rd and Capitol Mall
www.sactowers.com
Developer: Saca Development
Architect: Mulvanny G2
53-Stories 615 ft, 834 Condo Units, 65K Two Levels Retail
2.1 Million Square Foot
200 Room Intercontinental Hotel
10K The Spa at La Borgata
40K California Family Fitness Gym











Link to first thread: Sacramento--Construction of Twin 53-Story Towers
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...=58694&page=99

Link to second Thread: http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=101021


Here's a brief history and back ground of the project...

Capital may get 52-story skyscrapers
The two hotel-condo towers would dwarf existing buildings.
By Mary Lynne Vellinga -- Bee Staff Writer 10/30/2004



A Sacramento developer is seeking to dramatically elevate the downtown skyline with two new 52-story condominium and hotel towers at the western edge of Capitol Mall. John Saca, who normally builds shopping centers, filed an application Friday with the city of Sacramento to erect a condominium and hotel project called The Towers at 301 Capitol Mall, former home of the Sacramento Union newspaper.

His buildings would be 22 stories taller than downtown Sacramento's loftiest existing structure, the 30-story Wells Fargo Center at 400 Capitol Mall.

Saca's proposal, along with several other high-rise plans in the works, prompted some local leaders to say it's time for Sacramento to have a communitywide discussion on the changing cityscape, focusing on how tall downtown should become. City ordinances contain no height restrictions for the Capitol Mall site.

"Clearly there is a scale and comfortable size to Sacramento's downtown that people will want to have considered," said Mayor Heather Fargo. "But I also think a lot of people are really excited that we may be building condominiums with real views."

John Dangberg, executive director of the Capitol Area Development Authority, said high housing prices have made it economically feasible for downtown's housing market to go vertical. He is planning a February workshop on the topic.

"It's really time for us in the city of Sacramento to step back and think deeply about this new era we're marching into," Dangberg said. "We're going to be creating a skyline that's going to impact the city for 100 years or more, and we're also creating an impact at the street level that also will be felt for 100 years."

If approved by the city, The Towers would be built in two phases. The timetable for construction of the second tower depends on how well the condominiums in the first one sell, said Eric Rasmusson, a spokesman for Saca.

The first tower would contain 276 hotel rooms and 300 condominiums, while the second tower would be composed entirely of 400 condominiums.

Saca's proposed project, which would cost $300 million to build, is the largest of three combined condominium and hotel projects planned for downtown Sacramento. Such projects have become fashionable in large cities, including San Francisco, but have yet to appear here.

By making his buildings the tallest, Saca hopes to have cachet over potential rivals.

"We want to make this an icon in the city, and an address that people want to live in," Rasmusson said.

Designs for the building are not finalized, so Saca declined to release renderings.

He is in a hurry to get his application through the city and start preselling condominiums so he can nail down financing and begin construction in summer 2005, before the housing market cools down.

Lenders normally require a substantial number of buyers to sign up in advance before lending money for such projects. Saca plans to start marketing condominiums in January.

"That's when you're going to find out if the project is real," Rasmusson said.

Saca plans to sell his units for $400 to $500 per square foot, a price that until recently would have seemed out of reach, but which developers increasingly view as realistic as prices for suburban housing soar.

Saca probably won't be the first to hit the market, however. Another developer is already in line to pioneer the hotel/condominium concept in Sacramento - though on a much smaller scale.

Downtown developer Tony Giannoni said he expects to break ground within eight weeks on a 15-story building at 15th and L streets with 30 luxury condominiums on the top three floors. A 239-room Marriott Residence Inn will occupy the bottom 12 floors.

Yet another proposal is being prepared by downtown property owner Moe Mohanna and his partner, John Lambeth.

The pair plan to build a 32-story building on a piece of J Street property Mohanna owns across from the Sacramento Convention Center.

It would include a 200-room hotel (Lambeth said they are talking to Hilton) and between 80 and 100 condominiums on top.

Mohanna and Lambeth have yet to submit an application to the city, but Lambeth said they will do so in the next two weeks.

Developers said pairing condominiums and hotels downtown makes financial sense.

Downtown hotels are expensive to build and until now have required hefty public subsidies. But condominiums - if they fetch high-enough prices - can produce enough profit to subsidize the hotel construction.

And putting condos on top of hotels provides views of the Sacramento Valley and surrounding mountains now enjoyed only by tenants in downtown high-rise office buildings.

"It offers a lifestyle choice for people who want those views of the Sierra but don't want to be on a mountainside," Dangberg said.

Being connected to a hotel also gives residents access to amenities such as room service, laundry, maid service, fitness centers and spas.

Saca's project includes 85,000 square feet of retail space, which he plans to fill with restaurants, along with a 40,000-square-foot gym and a large spa.

"This is five-star living," Rasmusson said. "You can spend $850,000 for a house in El Dorado Hills, or you can come back to the urban core and purchase a high-end living experience."

Saca has not signed up with a particular hotel company yet, but is talking to several upper-end chains, Rasmusson said.

Those who have studied the Sacramento housing market agree that downtown and midtown are ripe for more condominiums, at higher prices, than have been offered before, and that downtown's hotel market is relatively strong.

Yet some doubt that downtown can support all the hotel rooms and condominium units now being discussed.

"Let's just say I'm pleased we're only building 30," Giannoni said. "I question the depth of the market."

Noted sources for article : John Saca, www.skyscraperpage.com,





Lofty plan for state capital skyline
Sacramento developer wants to build 52-story hotel and condominium project

Dan Levy

Sunday, December 26, 2004

Move over, Arnold. You may soon be only the second-biggest thing in Sacramento.

A twin-tower, 52-story hotel and condominium project -- by far the tallest building ever proposed for the city -- could rise on the site of the old Sacramento Union newspaper building, under recent plans submitted by local developer John Saca.

It's still just a gleam in Saca's eye, but the 1.8 million-square-foot complex would sit on the parcel bounded by Third Street, Fourth Street, L Street and Capitol Mall, next to Westfield's downtown shopping center. The $400 million project, dubbed Capitol Towers, would be built in two phases.

Phase one includes a 577-foot tower with 300 condos and an upscale 276- room hotel sitting atop a podium with retail space, a 40,000-square-foot gym, a spa and an outdoor pool.

Phase two would be a second tower with 400 condos.

"We have a completed and accepted application," said Eric Rasmusson, a spokesman for Saca. "Next, we begin the environmental review process, which could last six to nine months."

Compared with the current Sacramento skyline, where the tallest building tops out at just under 400 feet, Capitol Towers would be a giant. (San Francisco's tallest building, the Bank of America tower, is 853 feet tall.) <---TAP? No wonder the SF Comical is still a second rate newspaper, they can't even get buildings in their own city straight.

"It's very exciting for the city," said city planner Jeanne Corcoran. "We're trying to bring residents back to the downtown area. While we have adequate office employees, downtown (after work hours) has been fairly desolate."

Mayor Heather Fargo has signaled her support for the project, but she has also called for a broader discussion on height limits downtown. Currently, there are no height restrictions for the site.

The old Union newspaper, which counted Mark Twain as a contributor more than a century ago, inhabited the low-rise office and production building until it shut down in 1994.

Since then, the building has housed state office workers, among other tenants. Saca plans to buy the structure from Sacramento developer Danny Benvenuti Jr., then raze it, but the $21 million sale has not yet closed.

Saca comes from a Sacramento family and made a name building large suburban retail centers in Placer County with anchor tenants such as Office Max. Capitol Towers would be his first high-rise.

"We'd like to pull building permits by next summer," Rasmusson said. "The towers would have unobstructed views to west, pretty much forever. There's nothing between it and the Sacramento River."

Webcor has signed up to be general contractor, and Seattle's Mulvanny G2 is the architect. A sports club and hotel operators are in discussions with Saca.

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cg...EG1QAGI6C1.DTL



Marketing for condo tower starts in April

John Saca, the developer planning a 52-story condominium and hotel project at 301 Capitol Mall in downtown Sacramento, will start marketing the 765 pricey condos in April as he prepares for a possible start to construction this year.

Planners aren't sure they can process the project fast enough to meet Saca's schedule, but city approval ultimately seems likely. The question is whether Saca can line up the financing, hotel and homebuyers needed to enable the $300 million project.

The Towers on Capitol Mall could be a toughie -- it would be the first housing project on the city's main financial corridor, and it's really big. Hotels and homebuyers could shy away from the project, making lenders elusive.

Some observers said they would be surprised if Saca can start this year, unless he comes up with a hotel to anchor the first tower or lots of pre-sold condo buyers. But Saca, a successful shopping center developer and scion of the family that owns Filco Inc., seems determined.

"Financing won't be an issue," said Greg Krape, a vice president with MulvannyG2 Architecture, the firm designing the project. "Lots of lenders are looking for smart development like this."

The project's cheering section includes Robert Fountain, an economist at California State University Sacramento. "This is the kind of project the city should look at for its longer-term future," he said, "if we think of downtown as the regional center for a population of 4 or 5 million."

Penthouse to podium
Saca applied for two towers at 301 Capitol Mall, once home to The Sacramento Union newspaper. The old building would be razed. The first tower would hold 340 condos and a "four-star, 276-room hotel," said Marcia Neese-Ooley, of Augustine & Associates, the PR firm handling marketing.

She said Saca is in talks but hasn't nailed down a hotel.

The second tower would hold 425 condos. Neese-Ooley said there would be 60,000 square feet of retail in all on the ground floors.

The target is the well-heeled homebuyer, wooed with ritzy amenities including a roof-top sun deck with a barbecue, kitchen and outdoor fireplace. Other features include wine storage, a concierge, room service, valet service, a 10,000-square-foot spa, a 7,000-square-foot ballroom, a conference room, and a 40,000-square-foot fitness center plus "resort-style pool."

The condos would sell from the low-$300,000s to the $800,000s, Neese-Ooley said. Sizes would generally range from 650 to 1,600 square feet, although penthouses can be custom-built up to 16,000 square feet -- the whole top floor.

Between the towers would be a 10-story "podium" building with a lobby for the towers, as well as retail, a ballroom/meeting room, the fitness center and the big spa.

Condo reservations
To market the condos, Saca started a list of potential buyers last week and now has 50 parties on the roster. Some will be pre-qualified for loans, and in April can find out more about the project and reserve a unit.

Lenders will probably insist on a certain number of buyers under contract before putting up cash, said John Schleimer, owner of Market Perspectives, which studies the new-home market.

Some developers and other observers, who asked not to be named, said Saca could have a tough time lining up either a hotel or buyers. Others say his chances are good.

"They are expensive condos," Fountain said. "But that location is at the center of downtown. It would be hard to beat."

"There is an opportunity for a mixed-use high-rise condominium building with a hotel component that offers services to the homeowners," Schleimer said. "They have to be fully amenitized to be successful."

But, he added, no one knows how big the demand is. If Saca is the first to offer a significant number of high-rise condos, his project could be the market test.

Optimally, the several proposed condo projects would overlap, he added.

Two other big condo towers are proposed downtown. St. Anton Partners and the Cordano Family plan a 23-story project at 11th and J streets with 200 condos, although the builders have said they could build it as an office tower or mix uses.

Developers Mohammed Mohanna and John Lambeth have proposed a 32-story tower with a hotel and 100 condos.

The trend
While Saca is testing local waters, the high-rise condo is almost old hat in some West Coast urban centers. In Vancouver, British Columbia, Seattle, San Francisco and others, development ate up land, leaving the short supply of buildable acreage and terrible traffic congestion that made high-rise city condos inviting, said architect Krape.

MulvannyG2, based in Bellevue, Wash., has designed 25 condo high-rises and is designing two more in Seattle and two in China, Krape said.

Like successful similar projects, he said, the Sacramento towers would be destinations with a mix of housing, hotel, fitness, retail and events space.

"So, if you want, you can just hang out there," he said. "You could live in a condo and be part of a convention or New Year's event at the hotel."

Donald Trump really kicked off the whole trend with his high-rise condo and hotel projects near Central Park in New York City, said Mike Lyon, chief executive officer with Lyon Real Estate. Hotel chains like Hyatt and Marriott are getting into such projects, partly because they can rent out the condos when the owners go on vacation, offering the renters maid service and the like from the hotel, he said.

Saca plans to start construction in the fourth quarter, demolishing the existing building on the site about a month before that, Krape said.

The towers will likely go to the Planning Commission by early fall, though it is possible some pre-construction work can be done before that, said Stacia Cosgrove, the city planner handling the project

http://sacramento.bizjournals.com/sa...28/story7.html





High hopes for condo towers
A developer planning a 53-story project downtown needs to find buyers for half the units to gain financing for the first phase.
By Mary Lynne Vellinga -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Tuesday, March 22, 2005

John Saca is selling pieces of Sacramento's blue sky - complete with high-end restaurants, maid service and massages.
On billboards, in newspaper ads and in bus shelters, Saca's proposed pair of 53-story condominium and hotel towers is dramatically superimposed on Sacramento's modest skyline.

With slogans such as "Where Donald Would Live," "The Place to Live in Sacramento," and "An Address with Altitude," Saca and his advertising team are trying to turn The Towers - still just a lofty concept - into a reality in the minds of potential buyers.

"We're not going to have a steak here for about three years, so we're really going to concentrate on the sizzle," said Tony Ammirato, account manager with the Ryness Co., a real estate brokerage handling sales in The Towers.
The full-press marketing campaign is aimed at recruiting buyers willing to put down deposits for at least half of the 340 condominiums Saca plans for his first tower at the west end of Capitol Mall, on the site of the former Sacramento Union building. Without such a commitment, he said, banks won't provide construction financing.

"Our biggest hurdle will be whether we can sell enough units at a high enough price to make this thing financially feasible," he said.

Construction of the second tower would come later, if the market appears strong enough to absorb it. In all, Saca proposes to build abut 760 condominiums and 250 hotel rooms.

Amenities will include an upscale grocery, restaurants, maid service, a spa, pool and town car service.

Saca is venturing onto unproven ground. Unlike cities such as San Francisco and San Diego, Sacramento has never really tested the market for high-rise condo living.

The downtown Sacramento skyline consists of office towers that top out at 30 stories. Saca's 53-story buildings would be equivalent in height to a 42-story office building, he said, because residential floors aren't as tall.

"It's not going to be like having the Empire State Building next to a five-story building," he said.

Units would average about 1,100 square feet, not counting the two-story penthouses, which could be customized to a variety of sizes.

Prices would start in the mid-$350s and could go to more than $1 million.

Saca says he is pleased with the number of people who have registered on the project's Web site (www.sactowers.com), but he would not release the full list or say how many people are on it, partly because of concerns about competition.

The sales team plans to hold a May event at which prequalified buyers can put down $5,000 refundable deposits and choose a floor plan. Later in the summer, buyers will be asked to commit, and their deposits will become nonrefundable.

One of those on Saca's interest list is Derrick Fong, chief executive officer of the Mikuni Japanese restaurant chain.

Fong, 47, lives in a 4,000-square-foot home in Granite Bay, but he said his children will be out of the house in a few years and he's looking for an easier, more urban lifestyle.

"Maintaining a house is just a big chore," he said.

"We're such a flat city," he said. "Height, to me, would be nice. And to get a view of the Sierra Nevada would be good."

Fong said he knows "20 or 30 associates" who are interested. "Based on what I've seen and heard, I think (Saca) should do very well."

Saca is currently completing the environmental review for his proposed project, and hopes to bring it before the city Planning Commission by summer. He would like to begin construction by fall.

Jeanne Corcoran, a senior planner with the city, said staff members are "very supportive of the project because it does introduce a new lifestyle."

A recent regional planning effort overseen by the Sacramento Area Council of Governments concluded that Sacramento ought to develop more densely packed housing to avoid consuming vast amounts of farmland over the next half century. The Towers would be a dramatic step in that direction.

Those attending public forums on the project haven't complained that the towers are too tall, Corcoran said.

But Mayor Heather Fargo continues to express reservations.

She said Monday that the community needs to decide how tall it wants downtown to be, and whether the western end of Capitol Mall is right for such lofty structures.

"I'm trying to reserve judgment until I can really understand it all and see how it's going to look and feel," she said.

Saca said his buildings will be more slender than Sacramento's office towers and set back to preserve views of the Capitol and downtown.

"The responses I've been getting from the community have been really phenomenal," he said. "I think it's going to be great for Sacramento."

http://www.sacbee.com/content/news/s...13459728c.html




The Towers on Capitol Mall Pre-Sales Reservation Event
It's here! The highly anticipated Towers on Capitol Mall Pre-Sales Reservation Event has finally arrived and invitations to RSVP have already been sent. The event date has been set for July 16 th and 17 th 2005, and all future Residents from our priority list that would like to attend must RSVP by the July 9 th 2005 deadline.

Only future Residents who have been pre-qualified through one of our preferred lenders prior to May 31 st 2005, will be receiving an invitation to RSVP for our event. If you have been pre-qualified prior to May 31 st 2005, but have not received an invitation by July 6 th 2005, please contact our Sales Team immediately.

Due to the overwhelming response that we have had for The Towers on Capitol Mall, we unfortunately cannot invite everyone that has expressed interest in the community at this time. In addition, due to space limitations we may not be able to schedule space for everyone, even if you successfully RSVP by the July 9 th deadline . We would like to apologize in advance for any disappointment this may cause.

This will be our first event with more to come in the near future. Please be assured that anyone that has been added to our priority interest list will still have their position preserved by the date and time stamp on their original loan application. Invitations to participate in future sales events will be based heavily on this information.

This is an extremely exciting time in the history of Sacramento and we are very pleased to be such a big part of the future of our city! Once again, we would like to thank for your support during this historical time and for your interest in The Towers on Capitol Mall. THE place to live in Sacramento .





Towers on Capitol Mall sells first 250 condos

Developer John Saca has insisted all along that interest was high for his proposal to build two 53-story towers with 765 condominiums and 276 hotel rooms in downtown Sacramento. This weekend, he proved it.

The first release of more than 250 condominium homes at The Towers on Capitol Mall sold out to the tune of more than $150 million during a weekend sales event. That's 250 condos in one weekend, selling for an average price approaching $600,000. The figure is well above the Sacramento County average of $286,767 in the second quarter, according to The Gregory Group.

Positioned between the state Capitol and the Tower Bridge on the site of the former Sacramento Union newspaper building, the Towers would be bordered by 3rd, 4th, Capitol Mall, and L streets. The first tower would include more than 300 condominium homes. A luxury hotel, by an as-of-yet unnamed brand, would occupy the first 20 floors. The second tower would have more than 400 residences. Homes at The Towers on Capitol Mall would have up to about 1,600 square feet. Penthouses can be custom designed with flexible square footages.

"This is the largest sales launch we have ever experienced," said Robert Pontarelli, senior vice president for the Ryness Co., the sales and marketing firm for The Towers, in a press release. "The amenities and location of The Towers has made this the greatest value of any high-rise building in the entire region. This sales event has broken records not only in Sacramento but in the entire state of California."

Among the selling points for homeowners are: 24-hour room and concierge service, housekeeping, town car service, valet service, valet dry cleaning and a fully staffed lobby. Residents will also have access to a 7,000-square-foot hotel ballroom, conference rooms for functions, a $15 million 40,000-square-foot fitness center with a basketball court, a 10,000-square-foot spa and salon, 80,000 square feet of retail, a business center, privately walled and "lushly landscaped" grounds, a wine cellar with temperature-controlled private lockers, secured garage parking and a rooftop pool with barbecues, an outdoor fireplace and a full kitchen.

The release this weekend was the first of several planned, Ryness said, with an announcement on the next release to be expected "in the next few months." Only those who register on the Web site, www.sactowers.com, and are pre-qualified by one of The Towers' lenders will be allowed to purchase.

Earlier this month, Saca said construction of his $300 million project is set to start at the end of this year.

In a separate interview two weeks ago, Saca told the Business Journal that he has plans to build two high-rise towers of up to 500 condominiums, plus ground-floor retail, on the 700 and 800 blocks of K Street in downtown Sacramento.

Saca said he won't build the towers unless the city commits to creating a master plan for the two blocks, including the L Street side, that includes moving out the Greyhound bus station and the downtown hotels where low-income people live.

© 2005 American City Business Journals Inc.


From todays SacBee Opinion/Letters to the Editor page

The view of Sacramento
Re "Things look up for the Towers," Aug. 4: It's unfortunate that Dan Visnich and members of the Capitol Historic Preservation Society have such a narrow view of historical preservation. As a lifelong resident of Sacramento, I have watched endless sprawl negatively impact our community. Most notably we have seen valuable agricultural land give way to congested roads, subdivisions and strip malls. Over the years, the once visible Sierra mountain range has slowly disappeared behind blankets of smog and haze.
The residential high-rise proposals represent an opportunity to change the way Sacramento looks at growth. Visnich and his group are more concerned with ensuring no buildings are constructed taller than the Capitol than in embracing smart growth principles, such as high density residential development downtown.

The Capitol Historic preservation Society should take notice that those of us who support smart growth principles and preservation of our environment are ready to meet their challenge head on. It's time that Sacramento got serious about curbing sprawl.


(Urban_Encounter), Sacramento
Vice Chair, Sacramento Area Citizens
For Responsible Growth

Sacramento Towers Project Secures Final Approval
8/31/05

The Sacramento Planning Commission has given its final approval to the start of construction on what will become the city's tallest buildings.

Commission members voted unanimously Thursday to allow construction to begin on the 53-story Sacramento Towers on Capitol Mall hotel and condominium skyscrapers to be located at Third Street and Capitol Mall in downtown Sacramento.

The 615-feet twin towers conceived by developer John Saca will include more than 700 condominiums, retail space as well as a 276-room four-star hotel. $10,000 refundable desposits have ready been paid by 250 prospective condo buyers in the new development. The luxury condominiums sell for between $300,000 to $1 million per unit.

"I'm excited not just for myself, but for the city of Sacramento and what this is going to do for downtown," Saca said. "I hope it's the start of more projects like this. Bring people downtown, bring more restaurants, more retail and make Sacramento a 24 hour city."

Critics have taken issue with the size of the buildings, arguing the massive structure will block out views of the nearby State Capitol.

With city approval secured, demolition crews are expected to begin clearing the lot next month. Construction on the two towers would begin simultaneously by year's end, allowing the first condominium owners to move in by late 2007.



IN DEPTH:
From the August 26, 2005 print edition

Condo towers to be built without structural steel

Not only is developer John Saca planning to build Sacramento's tallest buildings -- two 53-story luxury condo towers slated for Capitol Mall -- but the design will be an engineering first, of sorts, for the region.

The proposal is a sleek design, with no structural steel and each floor separated by 8 inches of concrete. Just about everything in the structure would be concrete, from the columns and beams to the walls.

If built, it would be the first Sacramento-area high-rise to use a "performance-based" concrete design, which has its advantages but presents the city building department with some challenges, too.

"Concrete structures are traditional for residential around the country," says Saca, a successful shopping center developer.

Using concrete, structural engineers say, is typical in residential high-rises because of better acoustics and a shorter floor-to-floor height. The builder, Webcor Builders of San Francisco, says building with concrete is faster and less expensive than steel.

The project needs to get past a series of approvals, but Saca's design-and-build team are well at work. Magnusson Klemencic Associates of Seattle is taking the lead on structural engineering, Saca says. Local engineers for Miyamoto International Inc. are taking care of administration duties, and possibly permitting.

Webcor is one of the largest high-rise builders in the state, says vice president David Claveau, and also routinely builds concrete frames for other builders.

Saca, whose family owns electronics and appliance chain Filco Inc., expects his second round of condo sales in late September or early October. During the July round, he says, The Towers drew more than 4,000 pre-qualified potential buyers from an interest list of 17,000. Saca invited 250 to put a deposit down and sold 280 units, making nearly $2 million in one weekend.

From concept to concrete: Claveau estimates The Towers will take less than three years to build.

The project, designed by MulvannyG2 Architecture, was still in the city's planning department at press time. Saca was expecting his proposal to go before the planning commission Aug. 25 for approval. The city's chief building official, Ron Beehler, says nothing has been submitted to his building department yet, though he has met with a structural engineer to talk about safety features.

Because of its performance-based design, the building code requires another firm to review the structural plans in a peer review. Those affiliated with the project say no firm has been chosen yet, but at least one local company's name consistently pops up in conversations about The Towers: Buehler and Buehler Structural Engineers Inc. The firm was the structural engineer on the 26-story US Bank Plaza.

After the peer review, the city hasn't decided whether it will review the plans in-house or hire a consultant, Beehler says.

"It will depend on our work load," he says. "By the time the city sees it, there has already been a major structural engineering firm that designed the plans and another major firm signing off on the design. It's going to be a safe building."

But the size of this project is daunting, he says."We can work on this great big project for a month and a half and forget about the other 800 projects that might come our way at that time," he says. "This is still way early in the discussion because we are still talking to engineers about concept."

The nitty gritty: The design is more rigorous than minimums set by the building codes, engineers say. On a basic level, the builder will use cast-in-place concrete. The concrete parts have embedded steel cables. After the cement dries, the cables are pulled like a rubber band and tightened.

This post-tensioning method is already being used in Sacramento. Builders of the Plaza Lofts project on J and 9th streets are using pre-cast concrete and post tensioning for the seven-story condominium building. The Sheraton Grand hotel also used pre-cast concrete and post tensioning, but was not performance-based.

On Saca's towers, no structural steel will be used, builder Claveau says, but some accessories to the building might be made of steel. For example, there is still talk of steel helicopter pads.

While concrete is a less expensive alternative to steel, those involved with the project say the material is just as safe. A project like this typically uses a high-strength concrete of 8,000 pounds per square inch, says engineer Larry Karlson, a principal with Magnusson Klemencic. By comparison, a small tilt-up would typically use material with half that rating, he says.

An office building with a steel frame usually has a floor-to-floor height of 13 feet, but The Towers will have a shorter height of 10 feet. The main reason is because the only thing separating each floor is an 8-inch concrete slab, as opposed to a steel structure with layers of concrete and steel separating each floor.

Karlson says he couldn't think of any challenges to using the concrete frame instead of steel.

Greg Krape of MulvannyG2 Architecture agrees with structural engineers who say this design is common in high-rise residential buildings. What isn't common, Krape says, is Sacramento's high water table, so parking would start on the third floor, with retail and hotel space on the bottom floors.

Earthquake and wind safety: Performance-based engineering is more common in upgrades and renovations than new construction. In new buildings, this engineering typically makes sense in buildings taller than 240 feet, Krape says. At this height, the building code requires a "dual lateral system," a structural system built to meet tougher seismic and wind requirements.

To test for earthquake safety, the project is using a computer simulation known in the industry as a nonlinear time-history analysis. "(This) analysis tries to predict, based on studies and data, how the ground at the project site, under the worst-case scenario, might move in an earthquake," Beehler says. Up and down, and sideways, or up and to the side at the same time."

Engineering firm RWDI Group of Canada is performing a wind tunnel test, where it builds a model of The Towers and subjects it to minor winds and winds up to 75 mph.

Japan has more than 2,000 structures using performance-based engineering, says local engineer Kit Miyamoto, president and chief executive of Miyamoto International. The United States only has a fraction of that. Miyamoto used performance-based engineering on the Ziggurat in West Sacramento to achieve its hollow pyramid shape.

Building codes were written for typical buildings, Miyamoto says, and a 50-story building is not typical.

"Performance-based is a better approach, that's the bottom line," he says.

© 2005 American City Business Journals Inc.


This email was sent out by "The Towers" today Saturday August 27th 2005



The Towers on Capitol Mall in Sacramento Makes History!

On Thursday August 25th 2005, The Sacramento city Planning Commission made local history by giving The Towers on Capitol Mall final approval to move forward with construction. This approval represents not only the local support for The Towers on Capitol Mall, but it is also a sign of the support for the growth in our entire downtown region. In the very near future Sacramento will be well on it's way to taking its place in California as one of the great cities in the State with a thriving downtown lifestyle. The Towers on Capitol Mall is sure to be the catalyst for many other projects both large and small in our downtown region, and we are very pleased to be such a big part of this local history. We are looking forward to starting demolition of the existing building within the next few weeks, and starting construction of The Towers on Capitol Mall by the end of the year.

In addition we are very pleased to announce that our first pre-construction sales event was a tremendous success! The 250 available residences that were released in Tower One were all reserved, breaking all records in the Sacramento region, totaling over 160,000,000 dollars of real estate! This successful event was due to the extreme interest of our buyers.

Those of you who did not get the chance to reserve a residence at our first event may still have an opportunity in the near future. We still have two-thirds of the project to release and we anticipate the next pre-construction sales event to occur within the next 60 days. Please note that pricing will only be available at our next event.

We are happy to announce that we will be opening our sales office shortly. We encourage you to come visit us to address any questions or concerns that you might have, view the features and upgrades for your new home, and see the model of our Towers Project.

In the meantime, please feel free to contact us @ 916-443-2200 or by email at info@sactowers.com . Thank you for your continued interest and support in The Towers.....The Place To Live In Sacramento!














Rise and Shine it's Demo Time











































Hopes rise as building tumbles
Demolition of the Union site is a step toward construction of the tallest residential complex on the West Coast.

http://www.sacbee.com/content/news/s...14626704c.html

Crews began demolishing the former Sacramento Union building Friday to make way for two 53-story high-rise condominium and hotel towers planned for the Capitol Mall site.
The clearing of the block of land at Third Street and Capitol provides the first physical sign that developer John Saca will be able to defy skeptics and pull off the most ambitious high-rise project in Sacramento history.

At about 10 a.m., before a crowd of several dozen people, crews started tearing apart the old concrete Union building with heavy wrecking machines that easily pierced the building's side and clawed chunks off its eaves.

The perpetually cash-strapped Union closed in 1994 after nearly 143 years of publication.

"It's sad," said Bob Carlson, a former mailroom foreman for the Union who worked in the building for 20 years. He asked the workers from Two Rivers Demolition if he could have a Union sign that still hung on one side of the long-empty structure.

"It used to be real shiny," Carlson said.

If built, Saca's towers would soar over any existing buildings in town, and would be the tallest residential structures on the West Coast. The complex would contain 810 condominiums, along with a luxury hotel.

Saca is still hunting for construction financing and an equity partner to join him. But in the meantime, he has committed at least $8 million of his own funds to clear the site and to finalize construction documents, said project spokesman Eric Rasmusson.

"We're being careful not to call it a groundbreaking ... but obviously it's a huge milestone," Rasmusson said of the demolition work that began Friday. "It's further evidence of John Saca's commitment to this project."

Saca already has taken 280 refundable deposits of $10,000 each on the first tower, which will include 360 condominiums and about 250 hotel rooms, Rasmusson said. He plans to hold a sales event on Nov. 12 to identify buyers for 300 units in the second tower, which will have a total 450 units.

Rasmusson said lenders require developers to hold some units off the market at the beginning of construction in case costs rise later, and prices have to be raised to cover those costs.

Once construction is ready to begin, and Saca has identified a construction lender, prospective buyers will be asked to increase their deposits and allow them to become nonrefundable.

When Saca announced his high-rise project in October 2004, it touched off a flurry of similar proposals by local and out-of-town developers. At least 2,500 condominium units are now being planned for downtown and midtown.

Some real estate experts have voiced skepticism that a significant percentage of these projects will come to fruition, especially in a softening housing market. They are watching Saca with interest to see if the shopping center developer, with no experience building high-rise projects, can successfully introduce luxury skyscraper living in Sacramento.

"Where are all these people going to come from to live in downtown Sacramento?" asked William Ayres, a land specialist with brokerage company CB Richard Ellis.

Downtown revitalization is a nationwide trend, and real estate experts say Sacramento's downtown will likely see much more housing in the future. "How much, how fast, is always the question in our business," said Charles DeLoney, senior vice president of multihousing properties for CB Richard Ellis.

He praised Saca and others pursuing high-rise projects as the "pioneers in our industry who take these calculated risks and make a city better because of it. They're wonderful projects, regardless of how successful they may be for the developers. They're putting a fabric in the downtown that's very positive."

While Friday's demolition may have marked the future of Sacramento's skyline, it also removed a significant piece of the city's past. Office workers attracted by the noise and the shaking ground came out to the sidewalks to watch.

Occupying an entire city block near the foot of Capitol Mall, the Union building was erected in 1968, two years after Copley Newspapers of San Diego bought the venerable paper.

Copley sold the Union in 1974, and it struggled under a succession of subsequent owners. In 1989, then owner Richard M. Scaife sold the paper and its assets to developer Daniel Benvenuti Jr. and his partner, David Kassis.

Saca bought the property from Benvenuti.














Pre-Sales Reservation Event

It's here again! One of the most highly anticipated projects in Sacramento history, The Towers on Capitol Mall, is having our second Pre-Sales Reservation Event. Invitations to RSVP have already been sent, and the event date has been set for November 12 th and 13 th 2005. All future Residents from our priority list that would like to attend must RSVP by the October 30 th 2005 deadline, which has been extended from the original October 25 th 2005 deadline.

Only future Residents who have been pre-qualified through one of our preferred lenders and have registered for information on our web site will be receiving an invitation to RSVP for our event. If you have been pre-qualified by one of our preferred lenders and have provided us with complete contact information on our web site, you should be receiving an invitation no later then October 25 th 2005. If you have not received an invitation by October 26 th 2005, please contact our Sales Team immediately @ (916)443-2200 or info@ sactowers.com

Due to the overwhelming response that we have had for The Towers on Capitol Mall, and space limitations, we may not be able to schedule space for everyone who successfully RSVP's by the October 30 th deadline. We would like to apologize in advance for any disappointment this may cause. In addition, we are only sending invitations to future Residents that were added to our priority list between the dates of March 18 th , 2005 and August 31 st , 2005. Again, we apologize for any disappointment that may have been created.

Please be assured that anyone that has been added to our priority interest list will still have their position preserved by the date and time stamp on their original loan application. Invitations to participate in future sales events will be based heavily on this information.

The people of Sacramento have spoken, and we listened. Tower II has been partially re-designed to reflect some of the requests our future Residents have been asking us for, including larger floor plans. Tower II floor plans will be available for viewing on our web site in the very near future, and hard copy sets will be mailed to each future Resident that will be attending the event.

This is an extremely exciting time in the history of Sacramento and we are very pleased to be such a big part of the future of our city! Once again, we would like to thank for your support during this historical time and for your interest in The Towers on Capitol Mall. THE place to live in Sacramento .

Sincerely,

The Towers Sales Team




Business News - Local News
EXCLUSIVE REPORTS
From the November 25, 2005 print edition
200 more pony up for downtown tower
Mike McCarthy and Kelly Johnson
Staff Writers

Buyers have put deposits on the first 200 units offered in developer John Saca's second proposed condo tower on Capitol Mall.

The payments boost the odds that both of the 53-story high-rises will be built at the same time.

Saca took reservations on the first 250 units in The Towers on Capitol Mall in July. Plans call for the two towers at 3rd Street and Capitol Mall to have about 800 condos total, currently priced at an average of about $600,000.

Collecting 450 reservations and $4.5 million in refundable deposits builds the venture's credibility. But the project will pass a big test once the builder can start collecting nonrefundable deposits, said John Schleimer, analyst for Market Perspectives, a local company that studies the new-home market.

The state Department of Real Estate should clear Saca to accept nonrefundable deposits and sign sales contracts starting in December, said Tony Ammirato, an account manager with The Ryness Co., the brokerage for the project. Saca will probably wait until February to do both.

The results so far are impressive, Schleimer said, because the towers represent a new kind of housing venture for the region and the depth of demand had been unknown.
Millionaires on top

Saca's success has been helped by his decision to include a mix of uses in the towers, including an upscale hotel that would share services with the condos, a health club, and ground-floor stores and restaurants.

Ammirato said prices for the units start in the mid-$300,000s and exceed $1 million for the penthouses.

At an average of $600,000, the total sales price for all the housing works out to $480 million.

Saca is holding back about 300 units because prices are expected to rise during the 21?2 to 3 years that the towers are being built, said Marcia Neese-Ooley of Augustine & Associates, the firm handling the projects' advertising and public relations.

Construction has begun. During the past month, Saca's crews demolished the old building on the site that once housed The Sacramento Union, formerly the city's second daily newspaper.

Ammirato estimated that pile-driving can start in January. Work on the foundations might start late next summer.
Rival says his tower is advancing too

Saca has competition in Aura, a 39-floor condo tower that Denver developer Craig Nassi intends to build on Capitol Mall. Its site is next to the office high-rise David Taylor is building at 621 Capitol Mall.

Nassi said he has collected deposits for all his units and will start construction Jan. 1, with Turner Construction Co. as the contractor and financing from an undisclosed source.

His tower would have 265 condos and 14,000 square feet of retail.

"I do not think there is enough demand for more than one to succeed at the same time," Schleimer said.

But the full size of the market for high-rise Sacramento condos remains unknown. Maybe Saca's venture will satisfy the demand, or maybe more interested buyers are in the wings.

Various other condos have been proposed at several ventures in central Sacramento, prompted by the apparently rising demand for downtown homes. Other U.S. cities are seeing similar trends.
Who's buying

Most of Saca's buyers are from the Sacramento region, partly because Saca focused his initial marketing here to give local residents a first shot at the new lifestyle, Ammirato said.

All of the buyers were prequalified with lenders in a process that began with filling out applications on the project's Web site, www.sacatowers.com.

The buyers' incomes range from around $70,000 to "off the charts," Ammirato said. Many are business owners and professionals. Others are empty-nesters ready to leave suburbia for an urban life.

The buyers include Larry Gury and Russ Kuhn, co-owners of the California Family Fitness chain. They both put down deposits on separate condos in the first round of sales. Gury said each has young adult relatives who might live at The Towers.

















LATEST NEWS
Sacramento Business Journal - 12:42 PM PST Friday

Downtown condo venture lands swank British hotel
The Towers on Capitol Mall has lined up its luxury hotel -- a 230-room InterContinental.

The deluxe British chain will open the hotel on the lowest 18 floors of the first of the two 53-floor towers that developer John Saca plans to build at 301 Capitol Mall in downtown Sacramento.

The hotel would be the second InterContinental in California -- the other is on Nob Hill in San Francisco -- and the 14th in the United States. There are 130 overall, in 60 countries.

Saca and InterContinental have finalized a contract to bring the hotel to Sacramento, Saca said Friday in a press release. The deal shows, he said, that Sacramento is ready for the chain's "impeccable services and amenities."

The InterContinental is the most luxurious brand in a reservation network that includes Crown Plaza, Holiday Inn, Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites. People who live in The Towers will have access to the hotel's services, including concierge, maid service and valet.

As of late November, Saca's company had accepted refundable $10,000 deposits on 450 of the approximately 800 condominiums planned for The Towers. This month, the owner of a plush El Dorado Hills spa has been making plans to buy space in the high-rise for what would become the area's largest luxury spa.

Saca also plans to add a fitness center, stores and restaurants to his project, and has intended all along to add a hotel. But he didn't say which one until today.

Crew recently demolished the former building of the Sacramento Union newspaper to prepare for The Towers' construction. Saca expects to start building the condos in January.

InterContinental Hotels Group PLC bases its U.S. operation in Atlanta.

© 2005 American City Business Journals Inc.



Test driving of piles begins today Wednesday February 1st.













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Saca's huge towers to go to city planners in phases

Developer will save money and speed up construction

Sacramento Business Journal - April 14, 2006by Mike McCarthyStaff writer

Developer John Saca has arranged with the city of Sacramento to phase the $11.5 million in building permits for his twin condominium towers on Capitol Mall, reducing his up-front costs and speeding construction.

It's a small savings in the $500 million project, but the kind of money management that will make things easier for Saca.

The phasing of permits is one of the new options in the Matrix program, devised by city manager Ray Kerridge and Bill Thomas, the city's development director. Matrix makes the development-approval process faster and more user-friendly.

"Years ago, you'd come in with 400 pounds' worth of blueprints for the whole project," Thomas said. "Now you can phase it."

The first permit, Thomas said, would be for driving 2,900 piles 70 feet into the ground to give the huge towers a firm footing.

The two 54-story towers (each one story taller than in previous plans) would hold 804 condominiums -- ranging in price from around $450,000 to more than $1 million for upper-floor and penthouse units -- plus a hotel, a health club, spa, stores and restaurants.

The complex would encompass about 2 million square feet, twice the space of the standard regional mall, Thomas said.

Saca expects to begin construction next month. The towers are expected to open 21?2 years after construction starts.

At 615 feet, the towers at 3rd Street and Capitol would be the highest edifices in Sacramento. Nearby Wells Fargo Center is 423 feet tall.

Saca cinched a deal last week with the California Public Employees' Retirement System, which will invest $100 million in the project. Along with cash from Saca, the money virtually ensures the project's construction.

Thomas said phasing the city permits is not a subsidy.

The staged permit program is also being used by developer Greg Nassi and his 38-story Aura condominium tower, being built on Capitol Mall at 6th Street. Nassi said that three-quarters of the project's 265 units were sold last weekend.

The first development in the phased permit program was the Marriott Residence Inn under construction at 15th and L streets. Developer Tony Giannoni got into the Matrix program last year.

The idea of phased permits was suggested by the city-appointed Development Oversight Commission because it allows construction to start sooner and saves the builder from borrowing more money for the project, said development consultant Brian Holloway, former chairman of the advisory body.

The Matrix also includes assigning teams of planners from various departments to consult with applicants throughout the process. The interaction is coordinated by a team leader.



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Developer gets $375 million loan to build downtown condominium-hotel tower
By Jon Ortiz -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 4:27 pm PDT Thursday, June 1, 2006



Sacramento developer John Saca has signed a $375 million loan agreement that will allow him to start construction this month on the region's tallest building, a 54-story condominium and hotel project near the state Capitol.
Saca singed the deal -- likely the largest ever for a privately-financed construction project in the region -- with Germany-based Deutsche Bank. It is the final piece of the financing puzzle that Saca needs for The Towers and will likely quiet naysayers who have criticized the 600-foot-high building as unrealistically ambitious.

"A lot of people didn't think that I'd get this done. They said that there isn't a market here for this kind of project," Saca said Thursday. "This proves that I was right. We're creating the market. I'm golden with (Deutsche Bank)."


Officials at Deutsche Bank's New York office confirmed that the firm signed the pact Thursday morning, but declined to talk specifically about The Towers or criteria it used to assess the project.
Saca said that about 200 of The Towers 804 units are claimed with non-refundable deposits and that "about a half-dozen" units are selling each day for about $600 per square foot.

He expects to begin foundation work at the site later this month.



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High-rise in fast lane
54-story condo, hotel project gets $375 million lift via loan
By Jon Ortiz -- Bee Staff Writer
http://www.sacbee.com/content/busine...15076240c.html

Sacramento developer John Saca on Thursday signed a $375 million loan agreement that will allow him to start construction this month on the region's tallest building, a 54-story twin condominium and hotel project near the state Capitol.
Saca signed the deal -- likely the largest ever for a privately financed construction project in the region -- with Germany-based Deutsche Bank. It is the final piece of the financing puzzle that he needs for the Towers and will quiet naysayers who have criticized the 600-foot-high project as unrealistic.

"A lot of people didn't think that I'd get this done. They said that there isn't a market here," Saca said. "This proves that I was right. We're creating the market."

Officials at Deutsche Bank's New York office confirmed the firm signed the pact Thursday morning, but declined to talk specifically about the Towers project.
Many in the commercial real estate community derided the Towers as an overly ambitious $500 million dream, particularly for a city that has no high-rise condos, even after Saca landed the giant California Public Employees' Retirement System as a $100 million investor in April. Saca is using his own money for the balance of the project.

Al Gianini, who heads the local office of commercial broker CB Richard Ellis, admitted Thursday that he was among those early doubters.

"I was talking to someone in commercial real estate the other day about what's going on downtown," Gianini said when informed of Saca's deal with Deutsche Bank. "We almost think that some of us have been in Sacramento so long that we have trouble seeing what's in front of us."

Outside investors with high-rise development experience in other communities are coming into Sacramento, sending an objective signal that the market is ready for high-rise development, Gianini said.

"What's amazing about (the Towers) is that there was no intermediate step," Gianini said. "It's like going from zero to warp speed."

Sacramento officials greeted the Deutsche Bank news as a sign the city is maturing and praised Saca's vision.

"He's on the cutting edge, pioneering a product that has never been seen here before," said Sacramento development director Bill Thomas. "John will be the fifth and sixth crane on the skyline that we'll see later this year, and the largest project under way on the West Coast."

Over the past few years, other developers have caught high-rise fever. Danny Benvenuti has said he wants to build a 31-story condo-office tower at Seventh and L streets. Angelo G. Tsakopoulos has submitted plans for a 25-story granite and glass building topped by a two-story penthouse at 500 Capitol Mall.

Construction is under way on David Taylor's 25-story U.S. Bank Tower at Seventh Street and Capitol Mall.

Meanwhile, Denver developer Craig Nassi is taking non-refundable deposits for his 38-story Aura condo tower next door to the Taylor project. He recently secured $100 million in financing from Chicago-based Corus Bank and signed Tishman Construction Corp. of New York as the builder.

The ultimate test for Nassi, Saca and others is how many condo units they can sell. Units in the Towers and Aura go for around $600 per square foot.

By comparison, homes that sold this year for $500,000 or more in El Dorado, Placer, Sacramento and Yolo counties fetched an average of $309 per square foot, according to DataQuick Information Systems, a research firm based in La Jolla.

Nassi said Thursday that he has taken non-refundable deposits on "the majority" of Aura's 265 units, selling for between $386,000 to $1.24 million. In April he told The Bee that three-quarters of the units were sold during a three-day grand opening.

"We still have units left and we're selling every day," Nassi said. "We're not holding back anything."

Saca said that "about 200" buyers have put down non-refundable deposits of 10 percent of the cost of the condos in the Towers, where units sell from the high $300,000s to $6 million. His sales staff continues to schedule daily appointments with prospective buyers.

"Things are moving along really well," Saca said. "This thing is going to happen."


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[URL=http://imageshack.us][/URL ]

I just got this email from The Towers:

Hello future Neighbors,

At this time we are extremely pleased to announce the official ground breaking ceremony for The Towers on Capitol Mall. We would like to take this opportunity to extend an invitation to you to join us for this festive and historical event. There will be cocktails, appetizers, and live entertainment performed by The Cheeseballs.

Please join us on July 20th 2006, as we close down Capitol Mall between 3rd and 4th Streets for our ground breaking event and concert. The festivities will begin at 4:00 PM and last until approximately 8:00 PM. The attire is business casual, and this is sure to be a good time. Invitations and tickets will be mailed to you in the very near future, and we hope to see you all there.

We would like to thank you in advance for your participation and for your interest in The Towers on Capitol Mall... THE place to live in Sacramento.

Sincerely,

The Towers Sales Team



Bob Shallit: Party just starting for Towers builder
By Bob Shallit -- Bee Columnist

Published 12:01 am PDT Wednesday, July 19, 2006
Story appeared in Business section, Page D1

Developer John Saca is blocking off part of the Capitol Mall for a day to celebrate the launch of his twin 54-story residential project.

A street party is on tap in downtown Sacramento on Thursday, a celebratory construction launch of what's being called one of the West's tallest residential structures.

Developer John Saca got city permits to block off Capitol Mall between Third and Fourth streets between 4 and 8 p.m., hired the retro rock band Cheeseballs and is inviting all comers to party down.

Starting next week, the first of about 2,400 piles will be driven for the 54-story twin-towers condo and hotel project, the first tangible sign that Saca's vision is becoming reality. At the same time, a new sales push begins to meet requirements set by the project's lender, Deutsche Bank.

The bank wants half of the Tower's 804 condo units sold before providing its $375 million loan. So far, about 300 people have put down nonrefundable deposits.

Isn't it risky to start building before receiving a construction loan? Not according to Saca, who is using his own money and a $100 million equity investment from CalPERS to fund the current site work.

"The buyers are there," he says. What's needed is to secure nonrefundable deposits from interested parties "and then find a few more."

The new sales push includes ads in Bay Area newspapers and the Wall Street Journal, a billboard on I-80 near Dixon, advertising banners locally, as well as Internet marketing -- all to promote a $500 million project that includes a 230-room InterContinental Hotel. The start of construction, Saca says, will prompt some potential buyers "to pull the trigger more quickly and get others to come out of the woodwork."

Part of the sales pitch is that buyers who make hard-money commitments now will get pre-construction discounts -- "smoking deals," says marketing director Tony Ammirato. Units currently start at $380,000 and go to more than $3 million for a standard penthouse. Once the project starts taking shape, Ammirato expects demand -- and pricing -- will rise.

]THE TOWERS
Video: Brian Hickey Reports
KCRA.com

Towers Project Kicking Off In Sacramento
Condos, Hotel Will Be Part Of Complex

POSTED: 7:56 am PDT July 20, 2006
UPDATED: 8:09 am PDT July 20, 2006

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Prospective buyers, investors and other local officials are expected to be on hand today for the groundbreaking of a landmark condominium and hotel project in downtown Sacramento.

The 54-story project, known as The Towers on Capitol Mall, will include 804 condos, a hotel and spa.

"We've been putting this project together for the last two years and we're finally now breaking ground and getting the project moving," developer John Saca said.

Saca said workers will begin pile driving for the project within a week. At the peak of construction, more than 1,000 workers a day are expected to be on the site. Officials are aiming to have the first residents move in by late 2008.

The project will take shape on Capitol Mall between Third and Fourth streets on land formerly occupied by the Sacramento Union.

Officials said more than half of the condos are sold. Prices range from $300,000 to $3 million.

The groundbreaking party will take place at the site from 4 p.m. to 8 p.m. A ceremony to mark the start of construction is set for 4:30 p.m.

http://www.kcra.com/news/9548130/detail.html


Looking west on Capitol Mall & 8th


From the 24th floor at the Sheraton Hotel


Looking west at L & 10th


My ticket.. thank you, you know who


John Saca saying it's the buyers who have made this happen.




Official ground breaking



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]Condo high-rise seeks subsidy
Proposed $11 million from city would help furnish posh hotel.
By Mary Lynne Vellinga - Bee Staff Writer

With work already well under way on his twin 54-story condominium and hotel towers, developer John Saca is still wrapping up important financial details, including obtaining an $11 million subsidy from the city and closing on his construction loan.

Caught between rising construction costs and a slumping housing market, Saca has seen the budget for his $500 million project, which would be the tallest residential structure on the West Coast, tighten.

A few months ago, Saca began negotiating with the city for a subsidy, something he said he had previously viewed as "a last resort."

"We absolutely need it," he said. "What's happened is our construction costs for the project have gone up well over $100 million from last year."

The money would be used to help pay for furnishings and fixtures in the luxury InterContinental Hotel slated to occupy the lower 18 floors in one of the two towers at Third Street and Capitol Mall.

Saca's project faces plenty of competition. The city has received subsidy requests totalling $116 million for the $35 million remaining in its downtown redevelopment fund. But John Dangberg, assistant city manager, said it will likely get the money.

"We're definitely going to try to help this project," Dangberg said. "It's just too important for downtown."

The towers will generate more than $7 million annually in new taxes for the city, offsetting the loan in less than two years, Saca said. In addition, he said, the city would not contribute its subsidy until the building was completed and it was time to buy the hotel fixtures.

"There's no risk to the city that they're going to give the money and the project won't get built," Saca said.

Dangberg noted that nearly every hotel built in the city in recent years has required a city subsidy. Earlier this year, the City Council approved spending $9.9 million in redevelopment funds to help convert a historic office building at 926 J St. into a boutique hotel.

"The cost to develop hotels exceeds revenues generated through your room rate," Dangberg said.

InterContinental brings a new, unproven level of luxury hotel to the market. Dangberg said the hotel won't be able to count on conventions or state worker stays, because its prices will exceed what employers are willing to pay.

Saca said the luxury hotel is a crucial component of his project, because it allows him to provide services to his residents that would otherwise cost too much.

Condominium owners will have access to a spa, room service, a concierge and other hotel-style amenities in return for homeowners' dues of $500 a month, far less than those charged in many new high-rise condo projects.

"This is the first high-rise residential project to be built downtown," Saca said. "To compel people to move out of their homes in east Sacramento or wherever, you've got to give them amenities."

Another piece of the financial puzzle that Saca has yet to complete is the closing of his $375 million construction loan with Germany's Deutsche Bank.

The developer said he needs to obtain "less than a hundred" more non-refundable deposits before he meets the requirements for closing the loan.

So far, Saca said, he has collected non-refundable deposits on about 400 units at prices ranging from the high $300,000s to $4 million.

"We are really close to hitting the number we need for our lender," he said. "It's not a concern for us now."

In the meantime, construction on the site is being funded by Saca and by the California Public Employees' Retirement System, which earlier this year announced it would invest $100 million in the 804-unit project.

Saca said he and CalPERS already have spent about $70 million, including planning expenses and the land purchase cost. Cranes are currently driving 2,400 piles some 93 feet deep.

Once that's done, a 15-foot concrete slab laced with rebar will be laid on top of the piles. This will serve as the foundation for the 600-foot-tall towers.

With $100 million in construction contracts signed, there's no turning back, Saca said.

"It will get built; it's getting built. The question is whether John Saca makes any money at the end of the day. I could go through all this and end up making less money than I would have building a little Walgreens on the corner."

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City approves Saca subsidy
Sacramento Business Journal - 12:24 PM PDT Wednesday

The Sacramento City Council on Tuesday OK'd an $11 million subsidy that will help developer John Saca's downtown twin towers high-rise proceed.

The council voted 8-0, with Councilman Ray Tretheway absent, to provide InterContinental Hotels Group, whose hotel would be housed in part of the project, an $11 million subsidy once the hotel opens its doors. The subsidy does not go to Saca.

The city leaders feared that the 53-story project, at 3rd Street and Capitol Mall, would not proceed without the subsidy, Leslie Fritzsche, downtown development director, said Wednesday. The cost of starting a new hotel far exceeds operational revenue, she added. The city has provided financial assistance over the years to get the Hyatt, Sheraton and Embassy Suites built.

The redevelopment agency will provide the assistance to InterContinental as loan, which will be forgiven over the 15-year life of the loan.

"We are viewing this very much as an investment," Fritzsche said.

Over the 15 years of the loan, the project would generate $110 million in additional tax revenue. The project also spurs private investment of $640 million. The city will recoup its investment one and a half years after the hotel opens through the new tax revenue that will be generated, she said.

The loan would be paid when the luxury hotel opens, which is scheduled for the end of 2008.

The $11 million subsidy leaves the redevelopment agency with approximately $12 million for future projects. Projects are already in line for some of that money, Fritzsche said.

Saca told the council that rising construction costs caused him to seek the subsidy on the hotel's behalf.

Huge condo project sees sales slow down
Preselling of units in the Towers turns sluggish, along with housing market.
By Jon Ortiz - Bee Staff Writer

Pile driving at the 53-story Towers project downtown is nearing completion. The developer hopes a housing upturn will reignite sales.
Sacramento Bee/Michael A. Jones

California's slowing housing market has dampened sales at Sacramento's largest high-rise condominium and hotel project, although its developer expects sales will improve next year.

John Saca's 53-story project at Capitol Mall and Third Street, the Towers, has presold a little less than 50 percent of the 799 units to date, and sales in August and September have been particularly slow.

"Our sales are slower than I'd like," Saca said, "but I think that things will get better when the housing market improves."

Meanwhile, Craig Nassi, the Denver-based developer building competing condominiums nearby, has presold 73 percent of his 268 units.

Sherryl Fleeman, the sales representative for Nassi's Aura project at Capitol Mall and Sixth Street, said that "sales have been consistent with no noticeable slowing" since the project's splashy April kickoff.

Pile driving started at the Towers site over the summer and is nearing completion. Nassi said via e-mail that Aura construction will start before the new year.

Both Aura and the Towers have become bellwethers for Sacramento's downtown revitalization efforts. If built as envisioned, Towers would be the biggest residential high-rise on the West Coast. Aura boasts a design by Daniel Libeskind, one of the most famous architects in the world.

Both projects, city leaders say, would provide a much needed jolt for Sacramento's central business district.

The Sacramento City Council underscored that belief Tuesday when it approved an $11 million subsidy to offset construction costs on the Intercontinental Hotel that is part of the Towers.

Saca, whose father, Tony Saca, started the well-known Filco home appliance and electronics chain in Sacramento, needs to presell half of the units -- priced from about $368,000 to $852,000 -- to unlock $375 million that German-based Deutsche Bank is lending to the project.

Saca is tantalizingly close. Since May, buyers have put down 10 percent nonrefundable deposits on 364 condos, or about 45 percent of the units, according to Hanley Wood Market Intelligence, a Costa Mesa firm that tracks residential construction trends with figures gathered from developers and their sales representatives.

Saca's sales staff sold 279 units from May through July. August and September net sales slowed to 71 and 14 units respectively, Hanley Wood's figures show.

Higher interest rates and a softening home market may be holding back some buyers, Saca said.

"Some people may have planned to use home equity to pay the deposit," Saca said. "A lot of people don't have that kind of cash laying around. But we expect the market to turn back in our favor soon."

The sales slowdown may also reflect a change in buyer psychology stoked by negative news about the weakening housing market, said Bob Bronswick, president and chief executive officer of Coldwell Banker Residential Mortgage's Sacramento-Tahoe region.

"A lot of people are sitting on the sidelines, waiting to see what will happen next," he said.

And home buying almost always edges downward in late summer and fall, said Michael Lyon, head of Sacramento-based Lyon Real Estate.

"People have forgotten that fact because of how hot the market was last few years -- we really didn't have any down time," Lyon said. "So I'm not concerned about John. He's got a quality product. He'll be just fine."

At Aura, buyers since April have put deposits on 196 of the 268 units planned for the condo tower, selling for $456,000 to $794,000 each. Of those, 164 units sold in April and May, according to Hanley Wood figures, and then eight units per month month from June through September.

Officials with Nassi's company, BCN Development, would not confirm the monthly sales trend numbers. But Aura buyers don't seem to be concerned with interest rates, Fleeman said.

"Some people bring it up in passing," Fleeman said, "but our customers understand that these things are cyclical. It's not holding them back at all."

Saca said this week he may soon announce that a new general contractor will take over for New York City-based Turner Construction Co., which has overseen the Towers' pile driving work. He characterized the possible change as a mutual decision.

]One year ago... Then & Now


October 28, 2005


October 28, 2006 (today)



October 28, 2005


October 28, 2006 (today)



October 28, 2005


October 28, 2006 (today)

]

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Towers project facing hurdles
Downtown high-rise residence far over budget; unit sales lag.
By Jon Ortiz - Bee Staff Writer
Published 12:00 am PST Thursday, November 30, 2006
Story appeared in BUSINESS section, Page D1

Print | E-Mail | Comments (6)

It's little more than a giant hole in the ground, but already the 53-story Towers hotel and condominium project is $70 million over its original $500 million budget.

Meanwhile, sales of the Towers' condos are slow, and developer John Saca has switched general contractors.

What all of that means for one of the tallest residential construction projects on the West Coast remains to be seen. Saca is in talks with his backers for more money, and his isn't the first commercial development to overshoot its budget. Contractor changes aren't as common, but Saca says that the swap brings in a more experienced high-rise mixed-use construction firm.

However, one thing is clear: Saca admits the Towers, at Third Street and Capitol Mall, is being pinched between a weak housing market and rising prices for materials such as steel and concrete.

Despite those challenges, Saca, a scrappy local developer who has already brought his project farther along than naysayers thought he would, remains optimistic.

"We're close to a deal with our backers for more money," he said Wednesday. "We're pumping along."

Saca went public two years ago with his vision for a massive twin-tower structure anchored by a luxury hotel, high-end retail and 804 condos rising 600 feet and drastically changing the Sacramento skyline. He figured it would cost about $500 million for the land and construction.

Many thought the building was too ambitious to be Sacramento's first high-rise condo project and questioned whether there were enough customers to fill all those units, priced from $368,000 to $852,000.

Saca, whose father founded the Filco home appliance chain, had a reputation as a savvy land investor and shopping center developer, but had no history with high-rise construction. Still, he gained credibility in April when the giant California Public Employees' Retirement System agreed to invest $100 million in his project.

Two months later, he signed a $375 million loan agreement with Deutsche Bank, contingent on Saca preselling 400 condos. Saca committed his own money to make up the balance.

Construction started, but as massive pile drivers over the summer banged away at the Towers' downtown Sacramento site, Saca realized the initial cost estimates fell short.

He appealed to Sacramento city officials and received an $11 million subsidy in October for the 18-story Intercontinental Hotel that will anchor one of the building's two towers. Now, he's in talks with his other financial backers for more.

"Costs are higher than when we struck our deals," Saca said. "We've had to go back, and we're close to loan closings with CalPERS and Deutsche Bank."

A CalPERS spokesman on Thursday said that the system's real estate representatives "have been in discussions with Saca about more money," but, like Saca, declined to say how much.

Calls to Deutsche Bank's New York offices were not returned.

Sacramento developer Paul Petrovich said that Saca probably will give up more or all of his ownership stake in the project for more construction cash.

"The pot at the end of the rainbow for John at this point isn't money, it's credibility with politicians, other cities and other lenders," Petrovich said.

With the Towers on his resumé, Saca could get into even bigger projects down the road, Petrovich said.

Besides funding challenges, Saca also said the condo market has gone soft with the rest of the housing market, and the Tower's sales are "slowing down." He also has a condo competitor, Craig Nassi, whose Denver-based BCN Development has plans to build the Aura tower two blocks east on Capitol Mall and Sixth Street.

Through September, buyers had made deposits on 364 units at the Towers, according to the most recent figures from Hanley Wood Market Intelligence, a Costa Mesa firm that tracks residential construction.

The slump didn't deter Bovis Lend Lease Inc. from taking over the general contracting duties from Turner Construction Co., which had overseen the project's pile driving phase. Both firms are based in New York City.

Privately-held Bovis is one of the world's largest project management and construction companies.

Bovis' Western Regional Vice President Todd Pennington said that he couldn't yet estimate when the Towers will open.

"We're developing schedules and hiring the trade contractors," Pennington said. "We'll just keep moving from where others left off and keep the progress going."







]


Towers project on hold
Construction stops as developer Saca seeks more cash to pay bills.
By Mary Lynne Vellinga and Jon Ortiz -

Last Updated 12:34 am PST Friday, January 12, 2007
Story appeared in MAIN NEWS section, Page A1

Construction on the 53-story Towers project at Third Street and Capitol Mall in downtown Sacramento has come to a halt after a pile driving company, a former contractor and the buildings' architect filed liens against developer John Saca. City officials, concerned about having a hole at the gateway to Capitol Mall, say they support Saca and his quest to get more money from CalPERS to continue construction. Sacramento Bee/Michael A. Jones


Construction has stopped on downtown Sacramento's most ambitious development project ever -- two 53-story condominium and hotel towers planned for the foot of Capitol Mall.

In a sign of developer John Saca's ongoing financial struggle to build his skyscrapers, several contractors filed liens against him in the past week for unpaid bills totaling $7.3 million for such items as architectural work and pile driving.

Hit with millions of dollars in cost overruns, Saca is seeking additional financing. Without it, he likely won't be able to close on his $375 million construction loan from Deutsche Bank.

Eric Rasmusson, a spokesman for Saca, called the work stoppage "a short temporary regroup" while the developer tries to reconstruct a workable budget and secure his construction financing.

"John has been working every single day on this project for over three years and would not continue to do so if he didn't think there was sufficient reason to do so," Rasmusson said. "We're all confident that this project remains on everybody's hot list."

Saca is seeking a greater infusion of cash from the California Public Employees' Retirement System, which had already agreed to invest $100 million in the project. The pension fund hasn't said yes yet.

"Mr. Saca has advised us that he's closing down the project to reorganize its financial structure and obtain additional financing," said Ted Eliopoulos, who joined the giant state pension fund this week as its new head of real estate investment.

"He is looking to CalPERS and to other sources as well," Eliopoulos said. "We'd like to be as helpful as possible to understand the financial issues that he has raised and to ensure that our investment is protected."

As to whether the pension fund would put in more money, Eliopoulos said, "We'll evaluate it and complete our due diligence."

Eliopoulos said the Towers project has been a significant focus for him in his first few days on the job.

He said he's been "working with Mr. Saca very closely on a daily basis" and also has spoken with Sacramento City Manager Ray Kerridge.

After Saca complained that construction costs on the $500 million project had skyrocketed by more than $100 million, the Sacramento City Council in October approved an $11 million subsidy for the hotel portion of towers.

City officials, concerned that a marquee project may falter, are "doing everything we can to support John in his discussions with CalPERS," said John Dangberg, the city's assistant city manager for economic development.

"We believe they've made a commitment to the project, and we want them to follow through with their commitment and their investment on that site," Dangberg said. "This is a very important project to the city of Sacramento, particularly since a building has been torn down and there are piles in the ground. We want it to proceed, and we think it will proceed. We're not interested in having a hole at the gateway to the Capitol Mall."

For months, crews at the Towers construction site have been driving piles deep into the relatively unstable ground of the site at Capitol Mall and Third Street to support the 600-foot towers, which would be the tallest residential structures on the West Coast.

Many of the piles hit solid ground at different depths, leaving a hodgepodge of different length piles sticking out the ground. Saca previously told The Bee these piles will have to be sawed off -- an unexpected expense.

On Jan. 5, the pile driving company, Oakley-based Foundation Constructors Inc., filed a $5.5 million construction lien on the Saca project with the Sacramento County Recorder's Office.

A manager with the company, who asked not to be named because of ongoing negotiations, said the company filed the lien to "protect its position" in case Saca does not restart construction. He said the $5.5 million was owed for work already performed.

Also filing liens last week was the former contractor on the project, Turner Construction -- whom Saca recently said he was replacing with another firm -- and the buildings' architect, Mul-vaney G2 of Bellevue, Wash. Officials at neither of those companies could be reached for comment.

Saca's announcement in October 2004 that he would build the ambitious high-rise residential project was greeted with skepticism and disbelief in the Sacramento real estate community. But the developer -- with no previous high-rise experience -- surprised skeptics by landing Cal-PERS as an investor and obtaining a commitment from Deutsche Bank for construction financing.

While his sales have slowed in recent months with the slump in the residential market, Saca is very close to meeting the Deutsche Bank requirement that he presell 400 units. According to Hanley Wood Market Intelligence, a Costa Mesa-based housing analyst, he had collected non-refundable deposits on 383 units as of November.

Many of these buyers are enthusiastic champions of the Towers as a way to help boost the fortunes of downtown Sacramento.

Steve Ayers has already bought one unit in the Towers, and said he intends to buy another. "As a buyer, I have no worry at all about the project getting built," said the steel company owner. "John Saca is a very resourceful individual."



Construction Halted On Towers Project
Developer Blames Skyrocketing Costs
http://www.kcra.com/news/10736376/detail.html

SACRAMENTO, Calif. -- Work on Sacramento's The Towers On Capitol Mall project had come to halt after the developer ran into money problems.

The sound of pile drivers has stopped, much of the construction equipment is gone, and for now, at least, the project is hole in the ground.

Eric Rassmusson, a spokesman for developer John Saca, blamed skyrocketing construction costs for the shutdown.

Whether it's concrete or steel or glass in the curtain wall that we're going to require, everything has nearly doubled," Rasmusson said. "We are absolutely referring to this as a temporary shutdown."

Groundbreaking for what are supposed to be the tallest condo buildings on the West Coast took place last summer. At the time, Saca said he had already collected nonrefundable deposits on hundreds of units.

Lolly Aita, who bought her three-bedroom condo in The Towers nearly two years ago, said she remains hopeful they will eventually be built.

"I know John Saca and I know that he has some good connections," Aita said.

Since the groundbreaking, Saca has asked for has asked for and received from the city of Sacramento an $11 million taxpayer subsidy for the hotel portion of the project.

Now he's asking for the Calpers investment fund, which has already committed $100 million to project to help more.

"We obviously feel very strongly about the project and we're hopeful that Mr. Saca can find additional sources of capital," Calpers spokeswoman Pat Macht said.

Calpers said it is helping Saca look for another investor, but so far has not committed any more of its own money. That means for now, at least, no one knows when the bulldozers and cranes might be moving again.

Rassumusson said right now Saca is only looking at private investors for the project and does not plan to ask for any more subsidies from the city.


Headline: "Deadline Looms on Towers Project"

The Details:

-- A month-long stoppage should not have a severe impact on Saca's schedule. A prolonged stoppage, however, could be BAD. Nobody is certain how long it will take to meet the topping off stipulations in the lease contracts once the projects starts up again.

-- If he has not received the proper financing by May 1, Saca can void the lease contracts. However, Saca and his representatives won't discuss the possibility of the project failing.

-- The $480 million pledged for the project is impressive, but most of it is not available yet:

- The City's $11 million dollar subsidy for the hotel is "last in", meaning it will not be available until the project nears completion.
- Deutche Bank's loan is STILL contingent on Saca pre-selling half of the units (I thought this requirement had been relaxed a bit. Maybe he needed more than half???). According to Hanley Wood Market Intelligence, 383 units are pre-sold (17 short ). Since sales began, there have been 27 cancellations.
- CalPERS does not write $100 million checks. Funds must be drawn down over time. According to Brad Pacheco of CalPERS, there are "certain criteria Saca had to meet." (I'm not sure what he means by "had". Does that mean Saca has met all the criteria necessary to continue making scheduled draw downs? Or, does that mean he only met the criteria for the roughly $9 million (according to reggiesquared) he received so far?) A major backer of the project, Michael McCook, has since left his job as Senior Investment Office for CalPERS. According to media reports, Saca said he is seeking a larger investment from CalPERS, but his spokesman, Eric Rasmusson, counters that claim, saying there is no request for more funds (from CalPERS, I assume).

-- According to Eric Rasmusson, "This isn't really a case where the project ran out of money. It's a matter of stopping and making sure you are on a pathway to success."

-- According to David Hutchinson of Beuhler & Beuhler Structural Engineers, work done at the site does not prohibit something different from being built there. "In the big picture, it would be well-prepared to receive anything else that could come along."

-- Most importantly, Moe Mohanna bought a unit (Which, if the Towers are built, he will use to house bums, drug dealers and a seedy liquor store. To those who do not like the negative effect his unit has on the Towers, Mohanna will offer it for $800 billion. Outraged, the City will take the unit by ED for $775 billion. Shortly after the court decision, but before the transfer of ownership, there will be a fire in the unit (# 666, by the way). Mohanna will file a grievance against the City saying that the fire increases the value of his unit. Ultimately, he will end up with $885 billion, which he will use to buy up all the property downtown and then do nothing with it. With the extremely valuable 1100 square foot property in the City's hands, Mayor Fargo (yes, she will still be the mayor) will propose 96 (originally, the amount was 69, but religious groups sued the City for $885 billion dollars saying the number was "dirty" and "offensive") different community get togethers (all catered by Wolfgang Puck) to determine the best use for the unit. After 10 years of charettes, the City will decide to sell the unit to a residential buyer for $885 thousand. Oh yeah, and shortly after that, the Fresno Kings wins it 5th straight NBA Championship).



]Default notice given on Saca Towers loan
Sacramento Business Journal - 7:34 PM PST Wednesday, February 14, 2007
by Michael Shaw Staff writer

A notice of default was filed Wednesday by a local investor who holds a $22 million loan on the Towers at Capitol Mall condominiums, just as the two principal partners in the stalled project are seemingly at odds about how to resolve millions of dollars of cost overruns.

The 53-story Towers project, a landmark building for Sacramento if constructed, is owned jointly by developer John Saca through his Saca Towers LLC and the California Public Employees' Retirement System, which committed $100 million.

Work stopped a month ago with little more than concrete pilings in the ground.

Through a series of written statements released Wednesday, John Saca expressed frustration with his "partners," or "partner" in varying instances, though he never names CalPERS directly, saying they have rejected proposals he has brought in to get bills paid and keep the default notice from being filed.

"This predicament is out of my control," Saca wrote. "I have proposed several alternatives to my partner on how we pay these bills, however, none have been accepted."

Saca did say of CalPERS: "I am not sure they are the right partner for this project."

While the default notice was not immediately available for viewing, Saca's representatives confirmed that it was filed by Joseph Mohamed Enterprises Inc. of Sacramento. The loan was originally made through First Bank and Trust for the $21 million needed to buy the land, according to Saca's representatives. Joseph Mohamed could not be immediately contacted Wednesday night.

Including that loan, a total of $35 million is already owed on the Towers project. Several liens have been filed by companies that have done ground work at the site.

Payments on the loan were due in December, but the Towers corporation does not have the funds to pay on that loan, Saca said. A six-month extension was offered, but the jointly-owned corporation did not accept the extension.

"I felt we should have accepted the extension," Saca wrote.

This was on the News 10 website.

The major equity partner in the landmark Towers on Capitol Mall wants to replace local developer John Saca to finish the hotel and condominium project.

The California Public Employees Retirement System has been talking to a "world class" developer about taking over the stalled project.

The partnership consisting of Saca and the CalPERS broke ground last fall on the twin 53-story towers. But work stopped suddenly last month with contractors filing liens for $13 million in unpaid bills.

Rising construction costs have put the project at least $70 million over budget.

Saca notified by email hundreds of prospective condo buyers who placed deposits that he's defaulted on the $22 million loan for the block of land at 4th Street and Capitol Mall.

A default is the first step in the 111-day foreclosure process.

"Rest assured that I am working diligently and doing everything possible to move this forward and fulfill the dream of bringing this project to the Sacramento Community." Saca said in the message.

CalPERS confirms it has only invested $25 million of the $100 million it committed to the project.

Spokeswoman Pat Macht told News10 CalPERS stopped contributing to the partnership after Saca failed to meet his contractual obligations.
I wonder what they mean by this?

Saca is not yet able to access a $370 million construction loan from Deutsche Bank, or an $11 million grant offered by the city of Sacramento when the buildings are close to completion.

Macht suggests one possible solution is to remove Saca as the developer.

"We made him a great offer where we bring in a world class developer with extra money and he would still be a part of it and he turned us down," Macht said.

Macht said CalPERS is open to other alternatives, including the possibility of Saca finding new investors and buying out CalPERS.

]

[URL=http://imageshack.us][/URL ]

[URL=http://imageshack.us][/URL ]

Dear Future Homeowner,
I would like to thank-you for your continued patience over the past few months and for your commitment to The Towers on Capitol Mall. Your support via e-mails, phone calls and letters has been overwhelming and validates all of the hard work and effort that has gone into The Towers. You, the Buyers, are ultimately what will make this project a reality. Please know that we have been working diligently to resolve the issues stalling the project and we remain dedicated to building the vision we all share. The Towers continues to receive tremendous support from City leadership because they realize there is no single project as important or as pivotal to the growth of Downtown Sacramento as ours.

We are in discussions with several potential equity partners and hope to make an exciting announcement soon regarding the revival and immediate continuation of our project. In order to give us the flexibility and time we need to finalize the necessary financing for the project and resuming construction, we respectfully request that all buyers cooperate with us and agree to the attached addendum. The enclosed Addendum asks that you agree to restate the effective date of your agreement to May 1, 2007 and extends the date for removal of the construction financing contingency (found in Section 6 of your purchase agreement) to August 31, 2007. Upon signing the attached Addendum your contract remains in force and fully binding. Failure to execute this Addendum within the time set forth below, could result in cancellation of your contract and return of your deposit. Therefore, your timely cooperatio n is necessary and greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance for continuing to share my vision and being willing to stand by The Towers through all of the ups and downs that any project of this size and significance would face.

Please click here to print out and sign the Towers Extension Addendum and return it to the Sales Office at 455 Capitol Mall, Ste#135 Sacramento, CA 95814 on or before April 17, 2007. We have also sent this information via regular mail with a pre-paid addressed envelope. Feel free to contact The Towers Sales Team at (916) 443.2200 if you have any questions or concerns regarding this matter. The Sales Office is open Tuesday through Saturday from 9AM to 5PM.

Again, I sincerely appreciate your cooperation, support and dedication to The Towers and being a part of this historical, world-class building.

Sincerely,

John Saca
President, Towers on Capital Mall, LLC.





Hi innov8,
We always appreciate your support of the project. Things have been going very well! We have received over 250 responses so far and still have quite a large number of buyers to get in touch with. Also, we know that there will be buyers who get it in at the last minute or a day or two afterwards. We are all very optimistic that the project will move forward and have an enormous amount of faith in John Saca. We should have some VERY positive news in the near future, so stay tuned!

Thank-you & feel free to contact me anytime.

Julie Connolly
Community Sales Manager
The Towers on Capitol Mall


Saca buys out CalPERS stake in Towers project
http://sacramento.bizjournals.com/sa...ml?jst=b_ln_hl
Monday April 16, 2007

Developer John Saca has bought out California Public Employees' Retirement System's interest in the Towers on Capitol Mall skyscraper project, allowing him to retain ownership and search for other partners, Saca said Monday.

Terms were not disclosed.

The move may allow the project to move forward if additional financing can be found to cover increased construction costs and to replace CalPERS' $100 million contribution. Although CalPERS did not disclose its financial involvement to date, sources familiar with the project had previously said it had contributed $25 million before work stopped in January.

The two sides butted heads on how to proceed under overruns estimated at least $70 million. Saca said they had reached an "amicable settlement."

The split comes a year after the pension giant announced its intention to invest in the condo towers, with officials calling it "a good investment." Saca called the partnership "a perfect match" at the time.

The relationship soured, though, after it became apparent that the original budget of $500 million wouldn't be enough to build The Towers. Personnel changes at CalPERS may also have played a role -- a strong backer of the project, Mike McCook, left the role of senior real estate investment adviser.

The foundation has yet to be poured and The Towers already owes about $35 million in loans to contractors for work already done. Unpaid contractors have filed liens and lawsuits against the project.

Real estate investor Joe Mohamed purchased the $22 million loan from First Bank that the Towers partnership used to purchase the land on Capitol Mall.

Saca said Monday he is working with Mohamed to pay off the loan or extend it.

Saca said he hoped to be able to pay remaining debts within a few weeks.

"We are working hard to bring in another partner and hope to have a new deal announced within a week or so," Saca said in a news release.

Saca said more than 250 condo buyers have signed agreements that extend deadlines for completion of the project.

"CalPERS has been fair and reasonable coming to this settlement," Saca said. "Neither party foresaw the significant changes in circumstances that have affected this project."

"Over the last several months, I have been inspired and humbled by the hundreds of supportive phone calls and e-mails from citizens all over the Sacramento area," Saca wrote. "They believe in this project; our buyers believe in this project."

The Towers consists of two 53-story towers with 800 condo units and a 230-room InterContinental Hotel.


Dear Future Homeowners,

As we have previously informed you, exciting things are happening at The Towers and here are a few announcements that will be released to the media shortly. We wanted you to be the first to hear the news. The response to our addendum request has been very strong and we look forward to hearing from the rest of you in the very near future.

Towers on Capitol Mall Agreement Reached


April 16, 2007

Sacramento Developer John Saca and CalPERS have reached an amicable settlement regarding their ownership interests in the 2.1 Million Square Foot Towers on Capitol Mall Project. The parties have executed an agreement whereby Saca will be purchasing the interest of CalPERS, Saca has made a sizable deposit toward the purchase, the deal will close on or before May 25 th. The parties will not disclose the details of the settlement.

Statement by John Saca:
"I am very excited about this agreement, CalPERS has been fair and reasonable coming to this settlement. Neither party foresaw the significant changes in circumstances that have affected this project. This agreement makes it possible for the project to move forward and we hope to make an announcement in the near future regarding our acquisition of a new development team. I would like to personally thank all those at CalPERS who have made this agreement possible."
Says Saca, "I want to fulfill the commitments I made to the buyers, contractors and the entire Sacramento community. The Towers is the most significant private project in the region."

Saca is very confident that he has the support necessary to proceed.

"Over the last several months, I have been inspired and humbled by the hundreds of supportive phone calls and emails from citizens all over the Sacramento area. They believe in this project; our buyers believe in this project. The Towers is critical to the future of the city of Sacramento . It's a world class project for a world class city."

Saca's project consists of two 54 floor, 615 foot tall towers anchoring Capitol Mall, just east of the Tower Bridge. There are approximately 800 condominium units divided between the two towers, which will also be home to the Intercontinental Hotel.

As of this writing, approximately half of the condominium units have been pre-sold. "I'm pleased that so many buyers have continued to put their faith in this project. They're not going to regret it", says Saca.

In addition to becoming the tallest residential buildings on the West Coast, Saca envisions the Towers as a retail dynamo with the one-two punch of the five star hotel and premier shopping.

"The Towers will be the place to live in Downtown Sacramento. Moreover, completion of this project will open the doors to future Downtown high-rise developments. The Towers is the tip of the iceberg", says Saca.




















________________________________________________________________________
________________________________________________________________________

The Towers on Capitol Mall
3rd and Capitol Mall
www.sactowers.com
Developer: Saca Development
Architect: Mulvanny G2
54-Stories 615 ft, 834 Condo Units, 65K Two Levels Retail
200 Room Intercontinental Hotel
10K The Spa at La Borgata
40K California Family Fitness Gym













link to old thread: Sacramento--Construction of Twin 53-Story Towers
http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/show...=58694&page=99


Here's a brief history and back ground of the project...

Capital may get 52-story skyscrapers
The two hotel-condo towers would dwarf existing buildings.
By Mary Lynne Vellinga -- Bee Staff Writer 10/30/2004



A Sacramento developer is seeking to dramatically elevate the downtown skyline with two new 52-story condominium and hotel towers at the western edge of Capitol Mall. John Saca, who normally builds shopping centers, filed an application Friday with the city of Sacramento to erect a condominium and hotel project called The Towers at 301 Capitol Mall, former home of the Sacramento Union newspaper.

His buildings would be 22 stories taller than downtown Sacramento's loftiest existing structure, the 30-story Wells Fargo Center at 400 Capitol Mall.

Saca's proposal, along with several other high-rise plans in the works, prompted some local leaders to say it's time for Sacramento to have a communitywide discussion on the changing cityscape, focusing on how tall downtown should become. City ordinances contain no height restrictions for the Capitol Mall site.

"Clearly there is a scale and comfortable size to Sacramento's downtown that people will want to have considered," said Mayor Heather Fargo. "But I also think a lot of people are really excited that we may be building condominiums with real views."

John Dangberg, executive director of the Capitol Area Development Authority, said high housing prices have made it economically feasible for downtown's housing market to go vertical. He is planning a February workshop on the topic.

"It's really time for us in the city of Sacramento to step back and think deeply about this new era we're marching into," Dangberg said. "We're going to be creating a skyline that's going to impact the city for 100 years or more, and we're also creating an impact at the street level that also will be felt for 100 years."

If approved by the city, The Towers would be built in two phases. The timetable for construction of the second tower depends on how well the condominiums in the first one sell, said Eric Rasmusson, a spokesman for Saca.

The first tower would contain 276 hotel rooms and 300 condominiums, while the second tower would be composed entirely of 400 condominiums.

Saca's proposed project, which would cost $300 million to build, is the largest of three combined condominium and hotel projects planned for downtown Sacramento. Such projects have become fashionable in large cities, including San Francisco, but have yet to appear here.

By making his buildings the tallest, Saca hopes to have cachet over potential rivals.

"We want to make this an icon in the city, and an address that people want to live in," Rasmusson said.

Designs for the building are not finalized, so Saca declined to release renderings.

He is in a hurry to get his application through the city and start preselling condominiums so he can nail down financing and begin construction in summer 2005, before the housing market cools down.

Lenders normally require a substantial number of buyers to sign up in advance before lending money for such projects. Saca plans to start marketing condominiums in January.

"That's when you're going to find out if the project is real," Rasmusson said.

Saca plans to sell his units for $400 to $500 per square foot, a price that until recently would have seemed out of reach, but which developers increasingly view as realistic as prices for suburban housing soar.

Saca probably won't be the first to hit the market, however. Another developer is already in line to pioneer the hotel/condominium concept in Sacramento - though on a much smaller scale.

Downtown developer Tony Giannoni said he expects to break ground within eight weeks on a 15-story building at 15th and L streets with 30 luxury condominiums on the top three floors. A 239-room Marriott Residence Inn will occupy the bottom 12 floors.

Yet another proposal is being prepared by downtown property owner Moe Mohanna and his partner, John Lambeth.

The pair plan to build a 32-story building on a piece of J Street property Mohanna owns across from the Sacramento Convention Center.

It would include a 200-room hotel (Lambeth said they are talking to Hilton) and between 80 and 100 condominiums on top.

Mohanna and Lambeth have yet to submit an application to the city, but Lambeth said they will do so in the next two weeks.

Developers said pairing condominiums and hotels downtown makes financial sense.

Downtown hotels are expensive to build and until now have required hefty public subsidies. But condominiums - if they fetch high-enough prices - can produce enough profit to subsidize the hotel construction.

And putting condos on top of hotels provides views of the Sacramento Valley and surrounding mountains now enjoyed only by tenants in downtown high-rise office buildings.

"It offers a lifestyle choice for people who want those views of the Sierra but don't want to be on a mountainside," Dangberg said.

Being connected to a hotel also gives residents access to amenities such as room service, laundry, maid service, fitness centers and spas.

Saca's project includes 85,000 square feet of retail space, which he plans to fill with restaurants, along with a 40,000-square-foot gym and a large spa.

"This is five-star living," Rasmusson said. "You can spend $850,000 for a house in El Dorado Hills, or you can come back to the urban core and purchase a high-end living experience."

Saca has not signed up with a particular hotel company yet, but is talking to several upper-end chains, Rasmusson said.

Those who have studied the Sacramento housing market agree that downtown and midtown are ripe for more condominiums, at higher prices, than have been offered before, and that downtown's hotel market is relatively strong.

Yet some doubt that downtown can support all the hotel rooms and condominium units now being discussed.

"Let's just say I'm pleased we're only building 30," Giannoni said. "I question the depth of the market."

Noted sources for article : John Saca, www.skyscraperpage.com,





Lofty plan for state capital skyline
Sacramento developer wants to build 52-story hotel and condominium project

Dan Levy

Sunday, December 26, 2004

Move over, Arnold. You may soon be only the second-biggest thing in Sacramento.

A twin-tower, 52-story hotel and condominium project -- by far the tallest building ever proposed for the city -- could rise on the site of the old Sacramento Union newspaper building, under recent plans submitted by local developer John Saca.

It's still just a gleam in Saca's eye, but the 1.8 million-square-foot complex would sit on the parcel bounded by Third Street, Fourth Street, L Street and Capitol Mall, next to Westfield's downtown shopping center. The $400 million project, dubbed Capitol Towers, would be built in two phases.

Phase one includes a 577-foot tower with 300 condos and an upscale 276- room hotel sitting atop a podium with retail space, a 40,000-square-foot gym, a spa and an outdoor pool.

Phase two would be a second tower with 400 condos.

"We have a completed and accepted application," said Eric Rasmusson, a spokesman for Saca. "Next, we begin the environmental review process, which could last six to nine months."

Compared with the current Sacramento skyline, where the tallest building tops out at just under 400 feet, Capitol Towers would be a giant. (San Francisco's tallest building, the Bank of America tower, is 853 feet tall.) <---TAP? No wonder the SF Comical is still a second rate newspaper, they can't even get buildings in their own city straight.

"It's very exciting for the city," said city planner Jeanne Corcoran. "We're trying to bring residents back to the downtown area. While we have adequate office employees, downtown (after work hours) has been fairly desolate."

Mayor Heather Fargo has signaled her support for the project, but she has also called for a broader discussion on height limits downtown. Currently, there are no height restrictions for the site.

The old Union newspaper, which counted Mark Twain as a contributor more than a century ago, inhabited the low-rise office and production building until it shut down in 1994.

Since then, the building has housed state office workers, among other tenants. Saca plans to buy the structure from Sacramento developer Danny Benvenuti Jr., then raze it, but the $21 million sale has not yet closed.

Saca comes from a Sacramento family and made a name building large suburban retail centers in Placer County with anchor tenants such as Office Max. Capitol Towers would be his first high-rise.

"We'd like to pull building permits by next summer," Rasmusson said. "The towers would have unobstructed views to west, pretty much forever. There's nothing between it and the Sacramento River."

Webcor has signed up to be general contractor, and Seattle's Mulvanny G2 is the architect. A sports club and hotel operators are in discussions with Saca.

http://sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cg...EG1QAGI6C1.DTL



Marketing for condo tower starts in April

John Saca, the developer planning a 52-story condominium and hotel project at 301 Capitol Mall in downtown Sacramento, will start marketing the 765 pricey condos in April as he prepares for a possible start to construction this year.

Planners aren't sure they can process the project fast enough to meet Saca's schedule, but city approval ultimately seems likely. The question is whether Saca can line up the financing, hotel and homebuyers needed to enable the $300 million project.

The Towers on Capitol Mall could be a toughie -- it would be the first housing project on the city's main financial corridor, and it's really big. Hotels and homebuyers could shy away from the project, making lenders elusive.

Some observers said they would be surprised if Saca can start this year, unless he comes up with a hotel to anchor the first tower or lots of pre-sold condo buyers. But Saca, a successful shopping center developer and scion of the family that owns Filco Inc., seems determined.

"Financing won't be an issue," said Greg Krape, a vice president with MulvannyG2 Architecture, the firm designing the project. "Lots of lenders are looking for smart development like this."

The project's cheering section includes Robert Fountain, an economist at California State University Sacramento. "This is the kind of project the city should look at for its longer-term future," he said, "if we think of downtown as the regional center for a population of 4 or 5 million."

Penthouse to podium
Saca applied for two towers at 301 Capitol Mall, once home to The Sacramento Union newspaper. The old building would be razed. The first tower would hold 340 condos and a "four-star, 276-room hotel," said Marcia Neese-Ooley, of Augustine & Associates, the PR firm handling marketing.

She said Saca is in talks but hasn't nailed down a hotel.

The second tower would hold 425 condos. Neese-Ooley said there would be 60,000 square feet of retail in all on the ground floors.

The target is the well-heeled homebuyer, wooed with ritzy amenities including a roof-top sun deck with a barbecue, kitchen and outdoor fireplace. Other features include wine storage, a concierge, room service, valet service, a 10,000-square-foot spa, a 7,000-square-foot ballroom, a conference room, and a 40,000-square-foot fitness center plus "resort-style pool."

The condos would sell from the low-$300,000s to the $800,000s, Neese-Ooley said. Sizes would generally range from 650 to 1,600 square feet, although penthouses can be custom-built up to 16,000 square feet -- the whole top floor.

Between the towers would be a 10-story "podium" building with a lobby for the towers, as well as retail, a ballroom/meeting room, the fitness center and the big spa.

Condo reservations
To market the condos, Saca started a list of potential buyers last week and now has 50 parties on the roster. Some will be pre-qualified for loans, and in April can find out more about the project and reserve a unit.

Lenders will probably insist on a certain number of buyers under contract before putting up cash, said John Schleimer, owner of Market Perspectives, which studies the new-home market.

Some developers and other observers, who asked not to be named, said Saca could have a tough time lining up either a hotel or buyers. Others say his chances are good.

"They are expensive condos," Fountain said. "But that location is at the center of downtown. It would be hard to beat."

"There is an opportunity for a mixed-use high-rise condominium building with a hotel component that offers services to the homeowners," Schleimer said. "They have to be fully amenitized to be successful."

But, he added, no one knows how big the demand is. If Saca is the first to offer a significant number of high-rise condos, his project could be the market test.

Optimally, the several proposed condo projects would overlap, he added.

Two other big condo towers are proposed downtown. St. Anton Partners and the Cordano Family plan a 23-story project at 11th and J streets with 200 condos, although the builders have said they could build it as an office tower or mix uses.

Developers Mohammed Mohanna and John Lambeth have proposed a 32-story tower with a hotel and 100 condos.

The trend
While Saca is testing local waters, the high-rise condo is almost old hat in some West Coast urban centers. In Vancouver, British Columbia, Seattle, San Francisco and others, development ate up land, leaving the short supply of buildable acreage and terrible traffic congestion that made high-rise city condos inviting, said architect Krape.

MulvannyG2, based in Bellevue, Wash., has designed 25 condo high-rises and is designing two more in Seattle and two in China, Krape said.

Like successful similar projects, he said, the Sacramento towers would be destinations with a mix of housing, hotel, fitness, retail and events space.

"So, if you want, you can just hang out there," he said. "You could live in a condo and be part of a convention or New Year's event at the hotel."

Donald Trump really kicked off the whole trend with his high-rise condo and hotel projects near Central Park in New York City, said Mike Lyon, chief executive officer with Lyon Real Estate. Hotel chains like Hyatt and Marriott are getting into such projects, partly because they can rent out the condos when the owners go on vacation, offering the renters maid service and the like from the hotel, he said.

Saca plans to start construction in the fourth quarter, demolishing the existing building on the site about a month before that, Krape said.

The towers will likely go to the Planning Commission by early fall, though it is possible some pre-construction work can be done before that, said Stacia Cosgrove, the city planner handling the project

http://sacramento.bizjournals.com/sa...28/story7.html





High hopes for condo towers
A developer planning a 53-story project downtown needs to find buyers for half the units to gain financing for the first phase.
By Mary Lynne Vellinga -- Bee Staff Writer
Published 2:15 am PST Tuesday, March 22, 2005

John Saca is selling pieces of Sacramento's blue sky - complete with high-end restaurants, maid service and massages.
On billboards, in newspaper ads and in bus shelters, Saca's proposed pair of 53-story condominium and hotel towers is dramatically superimposed on Sacramento's modest skyline.

With slogans such as "Where Donald Would Live," "The Place to Live in Sacramento," and "An Address with Altitude," Saca and his advertising team are trying to turn The Towers - still just a lofty concept - into a reality in the minds of potential buyers.

"We're not going to have a steak here for about three years, so we're really going to concentrate on the sizzle," said Tony Ammirato, account manager with the Ryness Co., a real estate brokerage handling sales in The Towers.
The full-press marketing campaign is aimed at recruiting buyers willing to put down deposits for at least half of the 340 condominiums Saca plans for his first tower at the west end of Capitol Mall, on the site of the former Sacramento Union building. Without such a commitment, he said, banks won't provide construction financing.

"Our biggest hurdle will be whether we can sell enough units at a high enough price to make this thing financially feasible," he said.

Construction of the second tower would come later, if the market appears strong enough to absorb it. In all, Saca proposes to build abut 760 condominiums and 250 hotel rooms.

Amenities will include an upscale grocery, restaurants, maid service, a spa, pool and town car service.

Saca is venturing onto unproven ground. Unlike cities such as San Francisco and San Diego, Sacramento has never really tested the market for high-rise condo living.

The downtown Sacramento skyline consists of office towers that top out at 30 stories. Saca's 53-story buildings would be equivalent in height to a 42-story office building, he said, because residential floors aren't as tall.

"It's not going to be like having the Empire State Building next to a five-story building," he said.

Units would average about 1,100 square feet, not counting the two-story penthouses, which could be customized to a variety of sizes.

Prices would start in the mid-$350s and could go to more than $1 million.

Saca says he is pleased with the number of people who have registered on the project's Web site (www.sactowers.com), but he would not release the full list or say how many people are on it, partly because of concerns about competition.

The sales team plans to hold a May event at which prequalified buyers can put down $5,000 refundable deposits and choose a floor plan. Later in the summer, buyers will be asked to commit, and their deposits will become nonrefundable.

One of those on Saca's interest list is Derrick Fong, chief executive officer of the Mikuni Japanese restaurant chain.

Fong, 47, lives in a 4,000-square-foot home in Granite Bay, but he said his children will be out of the house in a few years and he's looking for an easier, more urban lifestyle.

"Maintaining a house is just a big chore," he said.

"We're such a flat city," he said. "Height, to me, would be nice. And to get a view of the Sierra Nevada would be good."

Fong said he knows "20 or 30 associates" who are interested. "Based on what I've seen and heard, I think (Saca) should do very well."

Saca is currently completing the environmental review for his proposed project, and hopes to bring it before the city Planning Commission by summer. He would like to begin construction by fall.

Jeanne Corcoran, a senior planner with the city, said staff members are "very supportive of the project because it does introduce a new lifestyle."

A recent regional planning effort overseen by the Sacramento Area Council of Governments concluded that Sacramento ought to develop more densely packed housing to avoid consuming vast amounts of farmland over the next half century. The Towers would be a dramatic step in that direction.

Those attending public forums on the project haven't complained that the towers are too tall, Corcoran said.

But Mayor Heather Fargo continues to express reservations.

She said Monday that the community needs to decide how tall it wants downtown to be, and whether the western end of Capitol Mall is right for such lofty structures.

"I'm trying to reserve judgment until I can really understand it all and see how it's going to look and feel," she said.

Saca said his buildings will be more slender than Sacramento's office towers and set back to preserve views of the Capitol and downtown.

"The responses I've been getting from the community have been really phenomenal," he said. "I think it's going to be great for Sacramento."

http://www.sacbee.com/content/news/s...13459728c.html




The Towers on Capitol Mall Pre-Sales Reservation Event
It's here! The highly anticipated Towers on Capitol Mall Pre-Sales Reservation Event has finally arrived and invitations to RSVP have already been sent. The event date has been set for July 16 th and 17 th 2005, and all future Residents from our priority list that would like to attend must RSVP by the July 9 th 2005 deadline.

Only future Residents who have been pre-qualified through one of our preferred lenders prior to May 31 st 2005, will be receiving an invitation to RSVP for our event. If you have been pre-qualified prior to May 31 st 2005, but have not received an invitation by July 6 th 2005, please contact our Sales Team immediately.

Due to the overwhelming response that we have had for The Towers on Capitol Mall, we unfortunately cannot invite everyone that has expressed interest in the community at this time. In addition, due to space limitations we may not be able to schedule space for everyone, even if you successfully RSVP by the July 9 th deadline . We would like to apologize in advance for any disappointment this may cause.

This will be our first event with more to come in the near future. Please be assured that anyone that has been added to our priority interest list will still have their position preserved by the date and time stamp on their original loan application. Invitations to participate in future sales events will be based heavily on this information.

This is an extremely exciting time in the history of Sacramento and we are very pleased to be such a big part of the future of our city! Once again, we would like to thank for your support during this historical time and for your interest in The Towers on Capitol Mall. THE place to live in Sacramento .





Towers on Capitol Mall sells first 250 condos

Developer John Saca has insisted all along that interest was high for his proposal to build two 53-story towers with 765 condominiums and 276 hotel rooms in downtown Sacramento. This weekend, he proved it.

The first release of more than 250 condominium homes at The Towers on Capitol Mall sold out to the tune of more than $150 million during a weekend sales event. That's 250 condos in one weekend, selling for an average price approaching $600,000. The figure is well above the Sacramento County average of $286,767 in the second quarter, according to The Gregory Group.

Positioned between the state Capitol and the Tower Bridge on the site of the former Sacramento Union newspaper building, the Towers would be bordered by 3rd, 4th, Capitol Mall, and L streets. The first tower would include more than 300 condominium homes. A luxury hotel, by an as-of-yet unnamed brand, would occupy the first 20 floors. The second tower would have more than 400 residences. Homes at The Towers on Capitol Mall would have up to about 1,600 square feet. Penthouses can be custom designed with flexible square footages.

"This is the largest sales launch we have ever experienced," said Robert Pontarelli, senior vice president for the Ryness Co., the sales and marketing firm for The Towers, in a press release. "The amenities and location of The Towers has made this the greatest value of any high-rise building in the entire region. This sales event has broken records not only in Sacramento but in the entire state of California."

Among the selling points for homeowners are: 24-hour room and concierge service, housekeeping, town car service, valet service, valet dry cleaning and a fully staffed lobby. Residents will also have access to a 7,000-square-foot hotel ballroom, conference rooms for functions, a $15 million 40,000-square-foot fitness center with a basketball court, a 10,000-square-foot spa and salon, 80,000 square feet of retail, a business center, privately walled and "lushly landscaped" grounds, a wine cellar with temperature-controlled private lockers, secured garage parking and a rooftop pool with barbecues, an outdoor fireplace and a full kitchen.

The release this weekend was the first of several planned, Ryness said, with an announcement on the next release to be expected "in the next few months." Only those who register on the Web site, www.sactowers.com, and are pre-qualified by one of The Towers' lenders will be allowed to purchase.

Earlier this month, Saca said construction of his $300 million project is set to start at the end of this year.

In a separate interview two weeks ago, Saca told the Business Journal that he has plans to build two high-rise towers of up to 500 condominiums, plus ground-floor retail, on the 700 and 800 blocks of K Street in downtown Sacramento.

Saca said he won't build the towers unless the city commits to creating a master plan for the two blocks, including the L Street side, that includes moving out the Greyhound bus station and the downtown hotels where low-income people live.

© 2005 American City Business Journals Inc.


From todays SacBee Opinion/Letters to the Editor page

The view of Sacramento
Re "Things look up for the Towers," Aug. 4: It's unfortunate that Dan Visnich and members of the Capitol Historic Preservation Society have such a narrow view of historical preservation. As a lifelong resident of Sacramento, I have watched endless sprawl negatively impact our community. Most notably we have seen valuable agricultural land give way to congested roads, subdivisions and strip malls. Over the years, the once visible Sierra mountain range has slowly disappeared behind blankets of smog and haze.
The residential high-rise proposals represent an opportunity to change the way Sacramento looks at growth. Visnich and his group are more concerned with ensuring no buildings are constructed taller than the Capitol than in embracing smart growth principles, such as high density residential development downtown.

The Capitol Historic preservation Society should take notice that those of us who support smart growth principles and preservation of our environment are ready to meet their challenge head on. It's time that Sacramento got serious about curbing sprawl.


(Urban_Encounter), Sacramento
Vice Chair, Sacramento Area Citizens
For Responsible Growth




Sacramento Towers Project Secures Final Approval
8/31/05

The Sacramento Planning Commission has given its final approval to the start of construction on what will become the city's tallest buildings.

Commission members voted unanimously Thursday to allow construction to begin on the 53-story Sacramento Towers on Capitol Mall hotel and condominium skyscrapers to be located at Third Street and Capitol Mall in downtown Sacramento.

The 615-feet twin towers conceived by developer John Saca will include more than 700 condominiums, retail space as well as a 276-room four-star hotel. $10,000 refundable desposits have ready been paid by 250 prospective condo buyers in the new development. The luxury condominiums sell for between $300,000 to $1 million per unit.

"I'm excited not just for myself, but for the city of Sacramento and what this is going to do for downtown," Saca said. "I hope it's the start of more projects like this. Bring people downtown, bring more restaurants, more retail and make Sacramento a 24 hour city."

Critics have taken issue with the size of the buildings, arguing the massive structure will block out views of the nearby State Capitol.

With city approval secured, demolition crews are expected to begin clearing the lot next month. Construction on the two towers would begin simultaneously by year's end, allowing the first condominium owners to move in by late 2007.



IN DEPTH:
From the August 26, 2005 print edition

Condo towers to be built without structural steel

Not only is developer John Saca planning to build Sacramento's tallest buildings -- two 53-story luxury condo towers slated for Capitol Mall -- but the design will be an engineering first, of sorts, for the region.

The proposal is a sleek design, with no structural steel and each floor separated by 8 inches of concrete. Just about everything in the structure would be concrete, from the columns and beams to the walls.

If built, it would be the first Sacramento-area high-rise to use a "performance-based" concrete design, which has its advantages but presents the city building department with some challenges, too.

"Concrete structures are traditional for residential around the country," says Saca, a successful shopping center developer.

Using concrete, structural engineers say, is typical in residential high-rises because of better acoustics and a shorter floor-to-floor height. The builder, Webcor Builders of San Francisco, says building with concrete is faster and less expensive than steel.

The project needs to get past a series of approvals, but Saca's design-and-build team are well at work. Magnusson Klemencic Associates of Seattle is taking the lead on structural engineering, Saca says. Local engineers for Miyamoto International Inc. are taking care of administration duties, and possibly permitting.

Webcor is one of the largest high-rise builders in the state, says vice president David Claveau, and also routinely builds concrete frames for other builders.

Saca, whose family owns electronics and appliance chain Filco Inc., expects his second round of condo sales in late September or early October. During the July round, he says, The Towers drew more than 4,000 pre-qualified potential buyers from an interest list of 17,000. Saca invited 250 to put a deposit down and sold 280 units, making nearly $2 million in one weekend.

From concept to concrete: Claveau estimates The Towers will take less than three years to build.

The project, designed by MulvannyG2 Architecture, was still in the city's planning department at press time. Saca was expecting his proposal to go before the planning commission Aug. 25 for approval. The city's chief building official, Ron Beehler, says nothing has been submitted to his building department yet, though he has met with a structural engineer to talk about safety features.

Because of its performance-based design, the building code requires another firm to review the structural plans in a peer review. Those affiliated with the project say no firm has been chosen yet, but at least one local company's name consistently pops up in conversations about The Towers: Buehler and Buehler Structural Engineers Inc. The firm was the structural engineer on the 26-story US Bank Plaza.

After the peer review, the city hasn't decided whether it will review the plans in-house or hire a consultant, Beehler says.

"It will depend on our work load," he says. "By the time the city sees it, there has already been a major structural engineering firm that designed the plans and another major firm signing off on the design. It's going to be a safe building."

But the size of this project is daunting, he says."We can work on this great big project for a month and a half and forget about the other 800 projects that might come our way at that time," he says. "This is still way early in the discussion because we are still talking to engineers about concept."

The nitty gritty: The design is more rigorous than minimums set by the building codes, engineers say. On a basic level, the builder will use cast-in-place concrete. The concrete parts have embedded steel cables. After the cement dries, the cables are pulled like a rubber band and tightened.

This post-tensioning method is already being used in Sacramento. Builders of the Plaza Lofts project on J and 9th streets are using pre-cast concrete and post tensioning for the seven-story condominium building. The Sheraton Grand hotel also used pre-cast concrete and post tensioning, but was not performance-based.

On Saca's towers, no structural steel will be used, builder Claveau says, but some accessories to the building might be made of steel. For example, there is still talk of steel helicopter pads.

While concrete is a less expensive alternative to steel, those involved with the project say the material is just as safe. A project like this typically uses a high-strength concrete of 8,000 pounds per square inch, says engineer Larry Karlson, a principal with Magnusson Klemencic. By comparison, a small tilt-up would typically use material with half that rating, he says.

An office building with a steel frame usually has a floor-to-floor height of 13 feet, but The Towers will have a shorter height of 10 feet. The main reason is because the only thing separating each floor is an 8-inch concrete slab, as opposed to a steel structure with layers of concrete and steel separating each floor.

Karlson says he couldn't think of any challenges to using the concrete frame instead of steel.

Greg Krape of MulvannyG2 Architecture agrees with structural engineers who say this design is common in high-rise residential buildings. What isn't common, Krape says, is Sacramento's high water table, so parking would start on the third floor, with retail and hotel space on the bottom floors.

Earthquake and wind safety: Performance-based engineering is more common in upgrades and renovations than new construction. In new buildings, this engineering typically makes sense in buildings taller than 240 feet, Krape says. At this height, the building code requires a "dual lateral system," a structural system built to meet tougher seismic and wind requirements.

To test for earthquake safety, the project is using a computer simulation known in the industry as a nonlinear time-history analysis. "(This) analysis tries to predict, based on studies and data, how the ground at the project site, under the worst-case scenario, might move in an earthquake," Beehler says. Up and down, and sideways, or up and to the side at the same time."

Engineering firm RWDI Group of Canada is performing a wind tunnel test, where it builds a model of The Towers and subjects it to minor winds and winds up to 75 mph.

Japan has more than 2,000 structures using performance-based engineering, says local engineer Kit Miyamoto, president and chief executive of Miyamoto International. The United States only has a fraction of that. Miyamoto used performance-based engineering on the Ziggurat in West Sacramento to achieve its hollow pyramid shape.

Building codes were written for typical buildings, Miyamoto says, and a 50-story building is not typical.

"Performance-based is a better approach, that's the bottom line," he says.

© 2005 American City Business Journals Inc.


This email was sent out by "The Towers" today Saturday August 27th 2005



The Towers on Capitol Mall in Sacramento Makes History!

On Thursday August 25th 2005, The Sacramento city Planning Commission made local history by giving The Towers on Capitol Mall final approval to move forward with construction. This approval represents not only the local support for The Towers on Capitol Mall, but it is also a sign of the support for the growth in our entire downtown region. In the very near future Sacramento will be well on it's way to taking its place in California as one of the great cities in the State with a thriving downtown lifestyle. The Towers on Capitol Mall is sure to be the catalyst for many other projects both large and small in our downtown region, and we are very pleased to be such a big part of this local history. We are looking forward to starting demolition of the existing building within the next few weeks, and starting construction of The Towers on Capitol Mall by the end of the year.

In addition we are very pleased to announce that our first pre-construction sales event was a tremendous success! The 250 available residences that were released in Tower One were all reserved, breaking all records in the Sacramento region, totaling over 160,000,000 dollars of real estate! This successful event was due to the extreme interest of our buyers.

Those of you who did not get the chance to reserve a residence at our first event may still have an opportunity in the near future. We still have two-thirds of the project to release and we anticipate the next pre-construction sales event to occur within the next 60 days. Please note that pricing will only be available at our next event.

We are happy to announce that we will be opening our sales office shortly. We encourage you to come visit us to address any questions or concerns that you might have, view the features and upgrades for your new home, and see the model of our Towers Project.

In the meantime, please feel free to contact us @ 916-443-2200 or by email at info@sactowers.com . Thank you for your continued interest and support in The Towers.....The Place To Live In Sacramento!














Rise and Shine it's Demo Time

















































Hopes rise as building tumbles
Demolition of the Union site is a step toward construction of the tallest residential complex on the West Coast.

http://www.sacbee.com/content/news/s...14626704c.html

Crews began demolishing the former Sacramento Union building Friday to make way for two 53-story high-rise condominium and hotel towers planned for the Capitol Mall site.
The clearing of the block of land at Third Street and Capitol provides the first physical sign that developer John Saca will be able to defy skeptics and pull off the most ambitious high-rise project in Sacramento history.

At about 10 a.m., before a crowd of several dozen people, crews started tearing apart the old concrete Union building with heavy wrecking machines that easily pierced the building's side and clawed chunks off its eaves.

The perpetually cash-strapped Union closed in 1994 after nearly 143 years of publication.

"It's sad," said Bob Carlson, a former mailroom foreman for the Union who worked in the building for 20 years. He asked the workers from Two Rivers Demolition if he could have a Union sign that still hung on one side of the long-empty structure.

"It used to be real shiny," Carlson said.

If built, Saca's towers would soar over any existing buildings in town, and would be the tallest residential structures on the West Coast. The complex would contain 810 condominiums, along with a luxury hotel.

Saca is still hunting for construction financing and an equity partner to join him. But in the meantime, he has committed at least $8 million of his own funds to clear the site and to finalize construction documents, said project spokesman Eric Rasmusson.

"We're being careful not to call it a groundbreaking ... but obviously it's a huge milestone," Rasmusson said of the demolition work that began Friday. "It's further evidence of John Saca's commitment to this project."

Saca already has taken 280 refundable deposits of $10,000 each on the first tower, which will include 360 condominiums and about 250 hotel rooms, Rasmusson said. He plans to hold a sales event on Nov. 12 to identify buyers for 300 units in the second tower, which will have a total 450 units.

Rasmusson said lenders require developers to hold some units off the market at the beginning of construction in case costs rise later, and prices have to be raised to cover those costs.

Once construction is ready to begin, and Saca has identified a construction lender, prospective buyers will be asked to increase their deposits and allow them to become nonrefundable.

When Saca announced his high-rise project in October 2004, it touched off a flurry of similar proposals by local and out-of-town developers. At least 2,500 condominium units are now being planned for downtown and midtown.

Some real estate experts have voiced skepticism that a significant percentage of these projects will come to fruition, especially in a softening housing market. They are watching Saca with interest to see if the shopping center developer, with no experience building high-rise projects, can successfully introduce luxury skyscraper living in Sacramento.

"Where are all these people going to come from to live in downtown Sacramento?" asked William Ayres, a land specialist with brokerage company CB Richard Ellis.

Downtown revitalization is a nationwide trend, and real estate experts say Sacramento's downtown will likely see much more housing in the future. "How much, how fast, is always the question in our business," said Charles DeLoney, senior vice president of multihousing properties for CB Richard Ellis.

He praised Saca and others pursuing high-rise projects as the "pioneers in our industry who take these calculated risks and make a city better because of it. They're wonderful projects, regardless of how successful they may be for the developers. They're putting a fabric in the downtown that's very positive."

While Friday's demolition may have marked the future of Sacramento's skyline, it also removed a significant piece of the city's past. Office workers attracted by the noise and the shaking ground came out to the sidewalks to watch.

Occupying an entire city block near the foot of Capitol Mall, the Union building was erected in 1968, two years after Copley Newspapers of San Diego bought the venerable paper.

Copley sold the Union in 1974, and it struggled under a succession of subsequent owners. In 1989, then owner Richard M. Scaife sold the paper and its assets to developer Daniel Benvenuti Jr. and his partner, David Kassis.

Saca bought the property from Benvenuti.














Pre-Sales Reservation Event

It's here again! One of the most highly anticipated projects in Sacramento history, The Towers on Capitol Mall, is having our second Pre-Sales Reservation Event. Invitations to RSVP have already been sent, and the event date has been set for November 12 th and 13 th 2005. All future Residents from our priority list that would like to attend must RSVP by the October 30 th 2005 deadline, which has been extended from the original October 25 th 2005 deadline.

Only future Residents who have been pre-qualified through one of our preferred lenders and have registered for information on our web site will be receiving an invitation to RSVP for our event. If you have been pre-qualified by one of our preferred lenders and have provided us with complete contact information on our web site, you should be receiving an invitation no later then October 25 th 2005. If you have not received an invitation by October 26 th 2005, please contact our Sales Team immediately @ (916)443-2200 or info@sactowers.com

Due to the overwhelming response that we have had for The Towers on Capitol Mall, and space limitations, we may not be able to schedule space for everyone who successfully RSVP's by the October 30 th deadline. We would like to apologize in advance for any disappointment this may cause. In addition, we are only sending invitations to future Residents that were added to our priority list between the dates of March 18 th , 2005 and August 31 st , 2005. Again, we apologize for any disappointment that may have been created.

Please be assured that anyone that has been added to our priority interest list will still have their position preserved by the date and time stamp on their original loan application. Invitations to participate in future sales events will be based heavily on this information.

The people of Sacramento have spoken, and we listened. Tower II has been partially re-designed to reflect some of the requests our future Residents have been asking us for, including larger floor plans. Tower II floor plans will be available for viewing on our web site in the very near future, and hard copy sets will be mailed to each future Resident that will be attending the event.

This is an extremely exciting time in the history of Sacramento and we are very pleased to be such a big part of the future of our city! Once again, we would like to thank for your support during this historical time and for your interest in The Towers on Capitol Mall. THE place to live in Sacramento .

Sincerely,

The Towers Sales Team




Business News - Local News
EXCLUSIVE REPORTS
From the November 25, 2005 print edition
200 more pony up for downtown tower
Mike McCarthy and Kelly Johnson
Staff Writers

Buyers have put deposits on the first 200 units offered in developer John Saca's second proposed condo tower on Capitol Mall.

The payments boost the odds that both of the 53-story high-rises will be built at the same time.

Saca took reservations on the first 250 units in The Towers on Capitol Mall in July. Plans call for the two towers at 3rd Street and Capitol Mall to have about 800 condos total, currently priced at an average of about $600,000.

Collecting 450 reservations and $4.5 million in refundable deposits builds the venture's credibility. But the project will pass a big test once the builder can start collecting nonrefundable deposits, said John Schleimer, analyst for Market Perspectives, a local company that studies the new-home market.

The state Department of Real Estate should clear Saca to accept nonrefundable deposits and sign sales contracts starting in December, said Tony Ammirato, an account manager with The Ryness Co., the brokerage for the project. Saca will probably wait until February to do both.

The results so far are impressive, Schleimer said, because the towers represent a new kind of housing venture for the region and the depth of demand had been unknown.
Millionaires on top

Saca's success has been helped by his decision to include a mix of uses in the towers, including an upscale hotel that would share services with the condos, a health club, and ground-floor stores and restaurants.

Ammirato said prices for the units start in the mid-$300,000s and exceed $1 million for the penthouses.

At an average of $600,000, the total sales price for all the housing works out to $480 million.

Saca is holding back about 300 units because prices are expected to rise during the 21?2 to 3 years that the towers are being built, said Marcia Neese-Ooley of Augustine & Associates, the firm handling the projects' advertising and public relations.

Construction has begun. During the past month, Saca's crews demolished the old building on the site that once housed The Sacramento Union, formerly the city's second daily newspaper.

Ammirato estimated that pile-driving can start in January. Work on the foundations might start late next summer.
Rival says his tower is advancing too

Saca has competition in Aura, a 39-floor condo tower that Denver developer Craig Nassi intends to build on Capitol Mall. Its site is next to the office high-rise David Taylor is building at 621 Capitol Mall.

Nassi said he has collected deposits for all his units and will start construction Jan. 1, with Turner Construction Co. as the contractor and financing from an undisclosed source.

His tower would have 265 condos and 14,000 square feet of retail.

"I do not think there is enough demand for more than one to succeed at the same time," Schleimer said.

But the full size of the market for high-rise Sacramento condos remains unknown. Maybe Saca's venture will satisfy the demand, or maybe more interested buyers are in the wings.

Various other condos have been proposed at several ventures in central Sacramento, prompted by the apparently rising demand for downtown homes. Other U.S. cities are seeing similar trends.
Who's buying

Most of Saca's buyers are from the Sacramento region, partly because Saca focused his initial marketing here to give local residents a first shot at the new lifestyle, Ammirato said.

All of the buyers were prequalified with lenders in a process that began with filling out applications on the project's Web site, www.sacatowers.com.

The buyers' incomes range from around $70,000 to "off the charts," Ammirato said. Many are business owners and professionals. Others are empty-nesters ready to leave suburbia for an urban life.

The buyers include Larry Gury and Russ Kuhn, co-owners of the California Family Fitness chain. They both put down deposits on separate condos in the first round of sales. Gury said each has young adult relatives who might live at The Towers.

















LATEST NEWS
Sacramento Business Journal - 12:42 PM PST Friday

Downtown condo venture lands swank British hotel
The Towers on Capitol Mall has lined up its luxury hotel -- a 230-room InterContinental.

The deluxe British chain will open the hotel on the lowest 18 floors of the first of the two 53-floor towers that developer John Saca plans to build at 301 Capitol Mall in downtown Sacramento.

The hotel would be the second InterContinental in California -- the other is on Nob Hill in San Francisco -- and the 14th in the United States. There are 130 overall, in 60 countries.

Saca and InterContinental have finalized a contract to bring the hotel to Sacramento, Saca said Friday in a press release. The deal shows, he said, that Sacramento is ready for the chain's "impeccable services and amenities."

The InterContinental is the most luxurious brand in a reservation network that includes Crown Plaza, Holiday Inn, Staybridge Suites and Candlewood Suites. People who live in The Towers will have access to the hotel's services, including concierge, maid service and valet.

As of late November, Saca's company had accepted refundable $10,000 deposits on 450 of the approximately 800 condominiums planned for The Towers. This month, the owner of a plush El Dorado Hills spa has been making plans to buy space in the high-rise for what would become the area's largest luxury spa.

Saca also plans to add a fitness center, stores and restaurants to his project, and has intended all along to add a hotel. But he didn't say which one until today.

Crew recently demolished the former building of the Sacramento Union newspaper to prepare for The Towers' construction. Saca expects to start building the condos in January.

InterContinental Hotels Group PLC bases its U.S. operation in Atlanta.

© 2005 American City Business Journals Inc.



Test driving of piles begins today Wednesday February 1st.

[brandon12]

awesome recap. If anyone didn't know about this project until now, they have a nice chance to catch up.
In nine days, there should be a lot more to report...

[innov8]

[friedpez]

Seems like just yesterday I read the article in the newspaper. Cool recap! Things have moved so quickly so far...

[brandon12]

Originally Posted by friedpez

Seems like just yesterday I read the article in the newspaper. Cool recap! Things have moved so quickly so far...

I know what you mean. Despite what all the doubter say, to go from the first article in the bee to where they are right now is quite impressive I think.

[urban_encounter]

Originally Posted by brandon12

I know what you mean. Despite what all the doubter say, to go from the first article in the bee to where they are right now is quite impressive I think.

Hopefully we'll see non refundable deposts being committed soon and then construction shortly thereafter...

[brandon12]

Originally Posted by urban_encounter

Hopefully we'll see non refundable deposts being committed soon and then construction shortly thereafter...

look for nonrefundables to be taken over a period of time between March 23 and April 29.

Oh, and GO KINGS

[urban_encounter]

Originally Posted by brandon12

look for nonrefundables to be taken over a period of time between March 23 and April 29.

Oh, and GO KINGS

Wow! That soon??

[brandon12]

Originally Posted by urban_encounter

Wow! That soon??

based on what they've told us.
This project's about ready to start kicking ass. Later, it will take names.

[Los_Lobo]

Originally Posted by brandon12

awesome recap.

I agree, you did a great job, innov8! It's like taking a stroll down memory lane.

In nine days, there should be a lot more to report...

Rumor has it there'll be a gym announcement and maybe more..... Stay tuned.

[Sacto]

Excellent recap, Innov8!

[innov8]

Yeah, this was fun to put together... thank you everyone

[<Dave>]

Very nice

[ltsmotorsport]

Longest. First. Post. EVAR!!!

But a damn good one. Thanks for puting everything together, Mike.

[friedpez]

I was browsing the diagram for buildings under construction throughout the world...there's a tower under construction in NYC called "Friars Tower" which, according to its diagram, looks really ironically close to Tower One on Capitol Mall. You guys should check it out.

[innov8]

_______

Maybe if you squint

[enigma99a]

Originally Posted by brandon12

look for nonrefundables to be taken over a period of time between March 23 and April 29.

Brandon, are they going to set up an appointment for you between those dates?

[Los_Lobo]

Originally Posted by enigma99a

Brandon, are they going to set up an appointment for you between those dates?

They actually said they'd set up contract appointments between March 29th and April 29th. The open house is this Thursday night (March 23rd) where we're supposed to be getting our docs on the CC&R's, HOA budget, final floorplans, and a sample sales contract for us to look over (they're also supposed to be announcing the health club). They said they'd start making appts for the nonrefundables starting March 29th through April 29th. After April 29th, anyone who has not converted their refundable deposit into a 10% non-refundable deposit will have their initial deposit returned, and their condo will go back into the sales pool. Pretty exciting stuff, huh?

[innov8]

The open house is this Thursday? I hope they have that model
cleaned up and presentable because when I went by there last Friday
and looked inside, the model was still in the set up stage and total disarray.

[Los_Lobo]

Originally Posted by innov8

The open house is this Thursday? I hope they have that model
cleaned up and presentable because when I went by there last Friday
and looked inside, the model was still in the set up stage and total disarray.

The model of the building or the model kitchen?