Sacramento Business Journal
11/23/15

Construction Timeline for Sacramento Kings Hotel Tower Is Slipping
By Ben van der Meer

http://www.bizjournals.com/sacramento/blog/morning-roundup/2015/11/is-slipping.html

The cranes are in place, site work is underway and some tenants have been announced for the 16-story mixed-use tower opposite Golden 1 Center.

Described as a complement to the arena, the tower is a focal point for the retail/entertainment area the Sacramento Kings call Downtown Commons. Plans call for the tower to accommodate 250 hotel rooms, 45,000 square feet of retail space, some office space and about 50 top-floor luxury condominiums.

But less than a year before the team’s arena opens, contractors haven’t yet pulled permits for vertical construction. Given the usual timelines for such a building, that suggests the tower will still be under construction when the arena opens next fall.

That casts serious doubt on team suggestions that the building would be partially open by the first game in October 2016. The team also may not make its goal of having the tower hotel, carrying the Kimpton brand, open in time to host NCAA Division I Men’s Basketball Tournament games in March 2017.

Team officials, without elaboration, would only say the project is still on track to begin vertical construction this fall, as the team indicated in a timeline announced in August.

But Alan Reay of hotel consulting firm Atlas Hospitality Group said a project of that kind would typically have an 18-month timeline.

“The only area where we see it goes any faster is somewhere like Las Vegas where they work around the clock,” he said. “And that’s not even taking into account El Niño.”

Concrete pouring, which happens fairly early in the construction process, is the most likely step to be affected by inclement weather, he said.

According to the city of Sacramento’s permit tracker, the project has received several permits for work, but not a building permit. A city official pointed out it’s typical in high-rise construction projects for the builder to get the necessary permits in stages.

Fans who visit the arena when it opens next October will be visiting an active construction site still, Reay said. That’s not necessarily a disruptive situation, he said, but he considers it highly unlikely any retail in the building will be open.

“That’s a liability situation,” he said. “I can’t imagine the city will allow it.”

Fans looking for pre- or post-game experiences, then, will have to look elsewhere. The arena is planned to have some retail options accessible from outside. And builders have submitted plans for reconfiguring the western half of the Downtown Plaza to open onto the plaza around the arena tower, also part of the “DoCo” area.