SACRAMENTO — Gunning for a role as master developer of Sacramento’s downtown Union Pacific railyard, Southern California-based Millennia Associates expects to submit a preliminary development plan for the entire railyard by the end of March, reports the Sacramento Bee.
Millennia was selected last fall by UP to negotiate for most of the railyard’s Depot District — the southern 70 acres of the 240-acre property. But the developer said from the beginning that it was interested in buying the entire railyard, which quickly became the focus of the talks between Millennia and the railroad.
UP’s broker said Thursday that Millennia has begun playing a major role in discussions with UP and the city about the future of the property, which is considered the key to downtown development in the capital.
“We have been meeting with the city, and there is a good spirit of cooperation,” said Richard W. Poulos, executive vice president of the Jerde Partnership, Millennia’s parent company.
Millennia’s goal, Poulos said, is to become master developer of the entire railyard, working closely with the developer that the city selects for the depot/intermodal project and, potentially, with an arena developer as well.
Meanwhile, UP said Thursday that it has sold the Railway Express Annex building, just east of the historic depot, to a partnership that includes Sacramento architect Lynn Pomeroy and developer Johan Otto. They hope to turn the 77-year-old building into a mixed-use project with office space on the second floor and retail on the ground floor.
Earlier this week, city officials received proposals from eight consulting teams that want to develop a master plan for an intermodal transportation center at the railyard. The intermodal — a train, bus and light-rail center — will incorporate the historic UP depot on I Street and is expected to be a focal point of the railyard project.
The team selected by the city also will coordinate public outreach, design the center and manage its construction. LPA Sacramento Inc., Pomeroy’s architectural firm, was the only local company listed as the primary consultant on the intermodal proposals, although most of the competing teams included local firms.
Millennia, the development arm of the global Jerde Partnership architectural group from Venice Beach, has revealed little about its plan for the railyard.
The design is widely expected, however, to include apartments, lofts, condominiums, stores, restaurants, entertainment venues, offices and possibly a hotel. It also could include an arena for the Sacramento Kings.
And while talks between UP and Millennia have not reached the price-tag stage, both sides are confident that a deal will be reached.
In fact, Poulos said Millennia would submit its conceptual proposal for the railyard whether or not a deal has been made with UP for the land.
Buz Miller, the Grubb & Ellis broker who is marketing the railyard for UP, said initial talks have focused on the history and environmental constraints at the railyard. Once Millennia determines what can be developed on the property, negotiations will turn to price.
Suheil Totah, Millennia’s local spokesman and a partner in the Morrison & Foerster law firm, said determining the value is complicated by many elements, especially the need to coordinate with the city and state on the intermodal center and the looming possibility that the railyard might include an arena for the Kings basketball team.
The ultimate developer also must work with the California State Railroad Museum, which will operate a museum of rail technology in two massive and historic shop buildings that are just north of the planned transportation center.
Millennia’s preliminary development plan for the railyard will include a number of contingencies, broker Miller said, from the basketball arena to accommodations for high-speed rail service.
And Totah stressed that the public will have a strong voice in the final project.
“Until we begin an intensive community outreach process, we won’t know what the ultimate use of the property will be,” Totah said. “We want to see that the community wants developed out there, and that will involve many months of workshops and meetings with community groups.”