Major apartment building planned for one of downtown Sacramento’s most blighted corners

The northeast corner of 10th and J streets in downtown Sacramento is a constant reminder that the central city still has a long way to go before its revitalization is complete.

However, after years of griping by city officials and downtown business interests about the lack of progress on the corner, there may finally be a solution.

Los Angeles-based developer T.A. Group has proposed constructing an eight-story building on the corner that will have six stories of apartments and a ground floor space for a restaurant. With 256 apartments, the proposal is ambitious. Still, the developer noted, the plan is more realistic than previous proposals that included a plan to construct a 40-story condo and hotel tower on the corner.

“We think the location is prime and we think there is good upside to the market,” said David Riccitiello, a project manager for the T.A. Group. Riccitiello said the project was “designed so it can get financed,” and its market rate apartments will “attract office workers and other individuals interested in living in the downtown area close to where they work.”

T.A. plans to demolish the cluster of empty buildings at 10th and J once it receives approval from the city. Most of the buildings have been vacant for more than a decade. The new building will have studio, one-bedroom and two-bedroom apartments. It will also have a swimming pool and a lounge for residents on the top floor.

Riccitiello said his firm intends to begin construction in the next 12 to 16 months.

City planners have long sought to add more residents to J Street, the major commercial entryway into downtown and midtown that runs near City Hall, the state Capitol and other landmarks. Cathedral Square, a six-story apartment building across J Street from the T.A. site, is nearly finished.

The T.A. Group is also working on a plan for an eight-story building at the corner of 11th and I streets with 204 apartments. That building will include some units for middle-income earners, as well as a mural facing I Street painted by Sacramento artist Jaya King.

Riccitiello said the firm hopes to begin construction on the I Street site next spring.

This story was originally published August 28, 2023 at 5:00 AM.