Category: Business

But not the one you’re thinking of. A new “Adult Swim” animated series called “Mr. Pickles” will debut later this fall on Cartoon Network. From the press release:

Mr. Pickles is an original animated series set in the small, old-fashioned world of Old Town that is slowly being taken over by the modern world. The series centers on the lives of the Goodman family and their innocent six-year-old son Tommy, whose best friend is the family’s lovable Border Collie, Mr. Pickles. The two roam around Old Town together getting into classic adventures.

Aww, cute, right?

Unbeknownst to Tommy and everyone else, except Tommy’s Grandpa, Mr. Pickles has an evil streak and frequently wanders off to kill, mutilate and hump his deserving victims.

There’s that Adult Swim angle. No word on whether the horrifying human-pickle hybrid mascot from the Sacramento area sandwich chain will be used in the marketing effort, though he would fit right in.

Sweeping changes are happening at the California State Fair. Cal Expo’s two top managers, Norb Bartosik and Brian May, recently announced their retirements. The Sacramento Bee has taken this opportunity to call on Governor Brown to save the State Fair. The grounds need $50 million for repairs and more for renovations, and the State Fair needs revision and reinvention to create a 21st Century experience for visitors to the California Exposition.

One promising step is the appointment of a major music figure to Cal Expo’s Board of Directors. Sacramento, get ready for big time music acts at The Fair.
Continue reading “Big shows coming to State Fair?”

So I’m reading this post on the Zillow blog about the top buyer and seller markets and noticed that Sacramento ranked #4 behind San Jose, San Francisco, and Las Vegas as the top sellers’ markets in the country right now.

Zillow analyzed data on sale-to-list price ratio, number of days listings spent on Zillow and percent of homes on the market with a price cut, and ranked the 50 largest metro areas to determine whether buyers or sellers have more negotiating power in a given market. In this analysis, a sellers’ market is not necessarily one where home values are rising, but is a market where sellers are more likely to sell their home for close to asking price and where listings spend less time on the market. A buyers’ market is one where buyers have more bargaining power, thanks to listings lingering longer on the market and sellers being forced to cut asking prices.

Hmmm, really? So I dug a little deeper and came across this article about Sacramento housing prices and trends.

The median sales price for homes in Sacramento CA for Apr 12 to Jun 12 was $133,000. This represents an increase of 8.6%, or $10,500, compared to the prior quarter and an increase of 1.9% compared to the prior year. Sales prices have depreciated 54.9% over the last 5 years in Sacramento. The average listing price for Sacramento homes for sale on Trulia was $217,102 for the week ending Jul 04, which represents an increase of 0.6%, or $1,272, compared to the prior week and an increase of 2.1%, or $4,536, compared to the week ending Jun 13. Average price per square foot for Sacramento CA was $105, a decrease of 54.9% compared to the same period last year. Popular neighborhoods in Sacramento include East Sacramento, Pocket, Parkway, South Natomas, Natomas Park, and South Land Park.

Ah, there it is. All about how you look at it, right?

So, what do you think of this information?

The Facebook machine has been ablaze with local businesses trying to qualify for one of twelve grants for $250,000. Mission: Small Business is run through the US Chamber of Commerce and is sponsored by Living Social and Chase. Businesses must collect 250 votes on Facebook by June 30th to qualify for the next round.

More than 120 businesses in Sacramento have registered, but very few are close to meeting the required vote count. You can vote for as many businesses as you want, so help out the ones that are almost there.

Frontrunners:
Continue reading “Sac businesses compete for $250,000”

For the last few months, the Sactown Hopper has been exploring different markets in Sacramento to provide safe rides to local hotspots. Yesterday, they posted the schedule for their new Summer bus that concentrates on Downtown and Midtown. This makes two Hopper routes, this and the original bus that travels to Sac State.

It is only $10 for unlimited rides during peak party hours. The Hopper runs up J,K,L and Capitol between 10th (Mmmm, Blackbird) and 28th (Woo, Harlows!). Catch a ride starting next weekend, June 22nd and 23rd.