The Abridged version:
- Alchemist Public Market, a multifaceted project from Sacramento nonprofit Alchemist Community Development Corp., is under construction after a viability scare earlier this year.
- Alchemist had previously said the $15.5 million project would have to be abandoned if it did not receive an immediate $3 million loan.
- While Alchemist did not receive that full amount, it received enough to get the market, food court and commissary kitchen back on track.
Alchemist Public Market is again under construction, more than two months after project-runners said the $15.5 million complex’s future was in jeopardy.
Construction workers have begun erecting structural supports around 341 N. 10th St. in the River District development, a change from mid-August, as first reported by the Sacramento Business Journal.
The multifaceted project from Sacramento nonprofit Alchemist Community Development Corp. will be finished by the end of March 2027 with a grand opening that June, Alchemist director of advancement Shannin Stein said.
When finished, Alchemist Public Market will include a local market, a commissary kitchen, a weekly farmers market (Alchemist Community Development runs six in Sacramento County), a playground and an outdoor food court from burgeoning cooks affiliated with an incubator program.
“It’s about community. It is about finding your place. It is placemaking through food. It is placemaking through economic opportunity,” Stein said.
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Construction on the project began May 4 but ground to a screeching halt two weeks later.
Alchemist had expected a $3 million bridge loan from the city of Sacramento to cover costs between state and federal grants. When that loan did not materialize, Stein and Alchemist CEO Sam Greenlee said the project would effectively die if it was not covered by June 2.
A second-generation local business gave Alchemist a $300,000 loan below market rate, Stein said. The River District and River District Community Foundation also offered six-figure loans, and individual donors stepped up with similar gifts. While it was not the full $3 million, it was enough to get Alchemist Public Market back on track, Stein said.
Alchemist Community Development will soon move toward soliciting high-dollar donations tied to naming rights. That process is easier now that prospective donors can see real construction progress, Stein said.
“Now that we’re going vertical, it really is shifting our ability to have a much more tangible conversation with people who can really make a long-term difference in the sustainability of this project,” Stein said.
