by Ken Gimblin

SACRAMENTO–It was once a men’s department store but after Macy’s closed shop it remained vacant and the owners one group known as “the certified owners” who are reportedly with U.S.Bank and CalPERS who own the property didn’t have a tenant and it was left empty.

When the Sacramento Kings and the City of Sacramento secured the Kings to stay in Sacramento the shopping at the Westfield Downtown Plaza began. The Kings purchased 96 percent of the Plaza property with the exception of the empty Macy’s building which sits at the edge of the Plaza near the entrance to Old Sacramento.

The valuable property is targeted by the Kings to be used for a gym, work out and conditioning area for the team. On Thursday Sacramento Superior Court Judge Raymond Cadei ruled in favor of the Kings and the City and granted the plaintiffs eminent domain rights to the purchasing price at $4.35 million.

While CalPERS had no objection to eminent domain to take their share of the property the certified owners did, objecting to the purchase price. The certifieds say that the property purchasing price should be raised to $10 million and that CalPERS controls the property and the certified owners own the building.

The Macy’s building is in the footprint of where the Kings arena and property would be. The Kings plan to begin construction in the spring of 2015 and plan to have the arena ready by September 2017 and the NBA pre season begins October 2017.

Cadei made his ruling based on the financial needs of the city and the Kings, saying that CalPERS and the certified owners are not profiting from having a vacant building sit unused when the Kings need the property to start construction for their new arena as soon as possible.

Notice for the tenants at the Downtown Plaza will go out this year asking tenants to move so that the Kings can begin construction and tear down needed retail space. The certified owners and their attorneys plan to haggle with the court and the Kings on the final purchase price for the property right now it’s been declared at $4.35 million for the sale price.

Ken Gimblin is covering the arena developments for the Sacramento Kings and the Golden State Warriors for Sportstalk radio