Category: Business

Corti Brothers to seek new location

The Bee reports today that the property that has housed Corti Brothers since 1970 will be leased to another tenant. CB has occupied the location since 1988 without a lease, so I suppose it is no surprise that the landlords opted to strike a deal that more than doubles the rent on the 20,000 square foot location from $12,000 to $24,000 a month. The new business will be Good Eats, a gourmet market and bistro. According to Mike Dunn at the Bee, CB will close the current location by October 15.

With their top quality selection of…. jeeze, just about anything you could want to eat or drink, I am a huge fan of CB. Since 1947, they have been on the short list of Sacramento’s best, and I hope that this continues long into the 21st Century. Let’s support Corti Brothers for as long as we can to help make that transition to a new store as quick as possible.

Emigh is turning 100!

Everyone’s favorite hardware store is celebrating its 100th anniversary this weekend.

Being in California, things that are “old” to us are usually strip malls that were built in the ’70s so it’s meaningful when a local business reaches the venerable century mark (especially one in Sacramento proper, as most of our region’s oldest businesses are in the Mother Lode towns like Placerville and Auburn.)

Sac-eats will be pleased to know that The Banjo Ramblers will be part of Saturday’s entertainment, in addition to the jazz bands of local high schools.

I personally will be there for the cotton candy and to get my face painted.

Franchise Tax Board warns of two online scams

Since everyone seems to be itching for their bribe…. er.. economic stimulus check, I figured I would offer this bit of consumer protection.

The California Franchise Tax Board is warning taxpayers of two scams involving the tax board and identity theft. The first scam involves an e-mail “phishing” for taxpayer data. The e-mail masquerades as offering to check the status of your state income tax refund. Scams of this nature attempt to lure people into revealing personal and financial information, such as Social Security, bank account or credit card numbers, which may be used to steal that taxpayer’s identify. The second scam involves a phony letter informing the taxpayer his or her tax return may be audited. The letter refers the taxpayer to a fake FTB address in Georgia. Both the e-mail and the letter contain misspellings and grammatical errors.

Taxpayers who receive such a notice should contact FTB at 800.852.5711.

People Helping People

Who else gets mistaken for employees in retail establishments or is frequently asked by fellow patrons for assistance?

I know not to wear red garments when going to Target, and anyone who wore a blue chambray shirt and khakis in the ’90s* could have been mistaken for a Blockbuster employee.

Tonight at Longs, I helped a young girl pick out just the right microwave popcorn and a woman select a glittery hair clip for a friend’s 11-year-old daughter’s birthday. I was approached by each of these people — maybe they admired my taste in diet soda (all Coca Cola products are five 12-packs for $12, plus CRV; no coupon required) and laundry detergent, so they trusted my judgment to make consumer decisions for them. I truly felt like a Maven in Malcolm Gladwell’s eyes.

Does this happen to anyone else on a regular basis?

*Note the proper position of the apostrophe. The apostrophe indicates where I left off something that was already there, namely “19.” The incorrect way would have been to write it as “90’s.” For more information please refer to Grammar Girl’s guide to dates. As you were.

Update on two “dead zone” locales

As noted in a previous post, there are certain locations throughout the region that seem to be jinxed.  Even if the rest of the tenants in a shopping center thrive for years, there seems to be the one oddball space that is constantly changing.

Here is an update on two previously noted dead zone locations:

Fair Oaks Boulevard, just east of Watt, next to the Shell station
Previously a Baskin-Robbins, Double Rainbow, and a bevy of cell phone stores, this is now a Goodwill Xpress donation drop-off location.  With the “Xpress” spelling, I’m waiting for the word on if they accept all kinds of donations or only cast-off Xtreme sports gear.

Free-standing building in the parking lot of the really run-down looking center on Fulton just north of Hurley
It’s being demolished.   Consider it “dead” and not just part of the “dead zone.”

Personal upkeep for less

Most of us have things on which we’re OK spending a small fortune (running shoes & anti-aging skincare/sunscreen for me), but there are other items where we just don’t want to fork over any more money than possible.

Even though the Metro look for guys seems to be passe, guys, please feel free to chime in without feeling emasculated.

Here are a few places I’ve found where you can get quality services performed without breaking the bank: Continue reading “Personal upkeep for less”

Now That’s Progress

For months, residents of the Arden/Arcade area have wondered what was to become ofsmear
the Lyon’s restaurant on the corner of El Camino and Watt.  Having stood for over fifty years, the Lyon’s was a unique architectural reminder of a glittering and inventive time gone by.  When a crew of demolition workers started to bring the building down in March, rumors flew as to what the new spot would morph into.  Mrs. Eats and I really hoped for a Peet’s Coffe and Naia Gelato combo, but both agreed that we’d settle for a Dos Coyotes or even a Fuzio (that’s fusion pasta for those in the know).  Well, the bulldozers are gone and the fence has come down and the new location has been unveiled to reveal- TA DAH- extended parking for the Wal Mart.  That’s right, the building was demolished so that Wal Mart could have 20 more parking spaces in a parking lot that already sports over 500 spots.  Well done Wal Mart.  Thanks for keeping the neighborhood relevant.

Survey Says…

You Peet’s regulars have surely noticed the sweet lady asking folks to fill out a survey while waiting in line at the Lyon Village location. She is offering a free cup of joe just for filling out the two page survey which mostly deals with demographics and coffee drinking patterns.

So, first and foremost, we love us a free anything here at the Sac Rag so head on down to Peet’s and hop in line.

Now, back to my point. Today I struck up a conversation with the gal. We discussed the Lyon Village location as well as the others in the area. Of course, this lead to our thoughts about a redesign. I freaked her out I am sure with my overly thought out plans for renovation as well as my opinion on the confusion that occurs from time to time when the coffee bean counter doubles as a coffee line which then forces the patrons to create a feeder line on the fly. This doesn’t always work out so well when everyone is not on board with the idea. She humored me and provided feedback. She also mentioned that some folks had suggested a line be created for just drip coffee orders and one for specialty drinks. If you are reading this survey lady, I apologize for my enthusiasm and references to sketches and blueprints I have available upon request.

My assumption is this has to do with the pending remodel first discussed on this here web log last month. You insiders care to chime in?

New swanky location on Jay Street

The LoftTaking the bus up Jay street last night I saw “The Loft,” a new meeting/event spot at 727 1/2 J St. That half makes all the difference. A smart move would be to open up “Lofties” next door at 727 1/4 J st., and sell your wares to confused event attendees. I’m glad to see “the loft,” the alternative music venue, make a comeback, even if it is as a completely financially unrelated venue not intended for alternative music.

And since any mention of “the loft” must be accompanied by an unnecessary insult, I should add that one time when I was at “the loft” some cockroaches set up a civilization in the mouth the drummer of visiting band “Monad Nomad.” The roaches were discussing universal health care by the time anyone noticed due to the poor lighting.

(I should officially no longer wonder why people hate me so much.)

Avid, “Records” on Broadway?

I don’t know about you folks (why don’t I start every post that way?) but I’m pretty excited about Avid Reader and “Records” moving in to the former home of the dearly departed Tower stores on Broadway. (Can I get a RIGHT AWN!! to Bob Shallit zinging the departed Tower chain’s lackluster employees? Gutsy.)

To me, the only thing cooler than a corner anchored by “Records” and Avid Reader would be a “Meet the cast of Battlestar Galactica” kiosk inside an authentic Philly cheesesteak joint, but I digress. Here’s hoping that a couple of independent secondhand stores can succeed where a worldwide retail music chain could not. But seriously, good luck.