Downtown Sacramento business owners hope Sacramento Kings games bring an economic boost
SACRAMENTO — Downtown businesses are banking on Sacramento Kings games for a post-pandemic economic comeback.
The Kings opened their new season Wednesday at the Golden 1 Center, bringing business owners new hope.
Ron Hills was one of the thousands of season ticket holders making the trek to downtown Sacramento.
"As we were coming in, though, you could see there's not as much going on."
Hills noticed a difference this year in downtown Sacramento compared to years past.
"It might be because of the economy," Hills said.
A combination of the pandemic, protests, and crime has left lots of vacant shops.
On K street, between 7th street and 12th street, I counted 26 empty or boarded-up storefronts. That's not including businesses in operation that were closed ahead of this Kings opening night.
Tyler Zinsli is from Portland and traveled to Sacramento with his friends for the home opener.
"Empty," Zinsli said. "You know, I told the guys let's come down to this little area because we had a great time last time, and it was a lot more lively last time."
Brandon Sanchez is the owner of pregame Vintage, a clothing store across the street from the Golden 1 Center that just opened up during the Kings' offseason. He is banking on the basketball season to help his bottom line.
"Ah, man, I'm excited," Sanchez said. "We've been waiting for the season to start for like four months now, so I'm ready."
The Sacramento Downtown Partnership reports that 27 new businesses have opened in the downtown core since last year.
Twenty have shut down in that same time.
