Brewery founder has a new gig

Cheers to Friday, LinkedIn community. Let's start today's newsletter at City Hall.

New Helvetia Brewing Co. founder David Gull announced on Facebook that he'll be the chief of staff for incoming Sacramento City Councilmember Phil Pluckebaum .

"My focus will be to help achieve his goals of getting housing approved and built, and economic development," wrote Gull, who takes the role next week.

Gull founded New Helvetia Brewing at 1730 Broadway in Sacramento. The brewery is transitioning its ownership structure to a community- and employee-owned cooperative.

Read my article to learn more.

In other local government news, Kevin McCarty has won the race to be the next mayor of Sacramento, according to Nov. 5 election results certified Tuesday.

Those results show McCarty with 50.51% of the vote and Flojaune “Flo” Cofer with 49.49% of the vote. McCarty declared victory in the mayoral race last week. Read more

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Brewery's Ice Blocks space listed for lease

Let's get back to beer.

A taproom that has operated at Midtown's Ice Blocks since the development's inception could be closing, with its lease expiring and the space being put on the market for lease.

Device Brewing Company LLC , which opened its initial brewery location on 14th Avenue in Sacramento in 2013, expanded its operation to include a taproom at the Ice Blocks development in 2018.

The approximately 2,885-square-foot Ice Blocks space, which includes a large outdoor patio, was recently put on the market for lease by Turton Commercial Real Estate .

Learn more in this article by reporter Jacob Abbott .

Ethan Conrad makes big bet on Downtown Sacramento

Real estate investor Ethan Conrad , known for owning properties in the suburbs, has made a move into Downtown Sacramento by buying buildings that include high-rise Renaissance Tower.

"The main thing is, Downtown Sacramento real estate pricing, until recently, was overpriced in my eyes," said Conrad, during an extended interview in November at his firm's office in North Natomas.

Conrad said his view of Downtown Sacramento changed after the Covid-19 pandemic, the civil unrest of 2020 and as Downtown's population of unhoused people became more visible after offices emptied out.

"There are lots of cheap suburban office buildings too," he said. "But Downtown has got the demand." Read more

Downtown Sacramento nightclub is being sold

After 16 years under the ownership of local industry veteran Bob Simpson, Social Nightclub in Downtown Sacramento is being sold.

The nightclub, which operates at 1000 K St,. Suite 250, is in the process of being sold to Jam Ventures Corp., pending the transfer of Social's liquor license and entertainment permit approvals, Simpson said. The nightclub opened in 2008 and occupies a second-floor space that includes an outdoor patio area overlooking the K Street corridor. Read more

Midtown Sacramento coworking space to close

A coworking space in Midtown Sacramento is slated to permanently close this month — unless a new owner for the business emerges.

The Trade Coffee & Coworking is scheduled to have its final day on Dec. 18, said Amanda K. , who owns the business with her husband, Matt. The business has operated at 2220 K St. for nearly 10 years.

"It is a viable business. It is successful. It just unfortunately needs new owners," she said, adding the current owners have young children and can no longer give their full attention to the business. Read more

Attorney Chuck Trainor opens his own office again

Having completed a merger of his former law firm with the Sacramento office of Buchalter, attorney Chuck Trainor has gone back to his roots and opened a new office.

With only a handful of clients, Trainor has opened Trainor Law in office space in the Campus Commons area of Sacramento.

"I'm just keeping it at a manageable level," said Trainor, who said he felt he had to make the move after learning he was co-trustee on the estate of real estate developer Peter Bollinger, who died in August. Read more

Group plans to bring pickleball franchise to area

Arizona-based Pickleball Kingdom has signed a multi-unit deal that is expected to result in several new indoor facilities eventually opening in the Sacramento market.

The franchise revolves around the fastest-growing sport in America, that combines elements of tennis, badminton and pingpong.

The company announced this week that it recently signed a multi-unit deal with local franchisees Parminder Saini and Komal Saini, who plan to open California's first facilities in target areas such as Roseville, Rocklin, Folsom, Elk Grove and Sacramento. Read more

Thanks for reading our Weekly Edition, which was compiled by Managing Editor Sonya Sorich. Send feedback and news tips to ssorich@bizjournals.com.