Sacramento County Business, Economy & Jobs Digest

The Wilton Rancheria and partner Boyd Gaming Corporation are celebrating the one-year anniversary of Elk Grove’s Sky River Casino. The casino opened Aug. 15, 2022, on the site of the former “Ghost Mall”—Elk Grove’s longtime partially built outlet mall.

The Greater Sacramento Economic Council submitted an application for the Economic Development Administration Tech Hub program that aims to establish a Zero Emission Vehicle innovation asset on the campus of Sacramento State.

Gov. Gavin Newsom promised $95 million would help undocumented workers rebuild after winter storms and floods. Months later, $18 million is being doled out and there are translation issues with the state’s website.

Americans risk hazardous weather conditions and natural disasters in fast-growing areas, finds NerdWallet analysis.

In April, the California Air Resources Board set a timeline for transitioning trucks to zero emissions. More recently, the agency launched CalFleet Advisor, a program to connect drivers to financial assistance.

Hundreds of driverless cars have been roaming San Francisco streets over the past couple of years. Now the California Public Utilities Commission has voted to let self-driving car companies expand their programs and start charging passengers like taxis.

The city of Elk Grove is scheduled to receive its first recurring casino mitigation payment next month from the Wilton Rancheria. The upcoming payment will be “just over $1 million” for mostly city police and code enforcement, roadway maintenance, and city taxes.

A new restaurant and salon are reportedly planning to open in the remainder of a Starbucks-anchored building that has been vacant since construction was completed in 2021.

Benjy Egel, food and drink reporter for the Sacramento Bee, has compiled a guide to some of the favorite recipes of the region. The cookbook he’s curated comes out on Nov. 17.

A transportation startup is planning to open a huge charging depot off Interstate 5 near the Sacramento International Airport in 2025 that will be geared toward commercial trucks driving through the I-5 corridor.

The long-anticipated See’s Candies store at Sunrise Boulevard and Uplands Way is now serving customers amid the closure of the company’s Sunrise Mall location.

Donuts & Coffey is holding a soft opening in the San Juan Village Shopping Center at 3291 Truxel Rd. The shop replaces Fancy Donuts and Ice Cream.

It took seven years of experimentation for Oobli peach, lemon and mango yuzu tea to hit shelves around Davis and Los Angeles seven weeks ago. It’s a milestone for sweet tea fans who don’t want all that sugar, says co-founder Jason Ryder.

Many local governments see voter majorities approve bond measures without reaching the two-thirds required. A new effort to reform that system would drastically improve the ability of local governments to fund housing and infrastructure projects.

At the newest bar in Davis, you can unwind with island-inspired cocktails alongside skeletons dressed in long-black wigs and pirate hats. Shipwrecked Tiki Bar opened its doors at 217 G St. for the first time on Aug. 4.

How bad is California hunger? A lot depends on your access to food aid, which expanded during the COVID-19 pandemic but is being reduced.

The Biden administration’s app rule makes it harder for migrants to assert a right to asylum, advocates say. Lawsuits are sparking debate about immigration control, safety.

In an effort to address inflation and fund wildfire prevention and clean energy needs, the Sacramento Municipal Utility District will hold a public hearing regarding a series of proposed rate increases that would raise rates a total of more than 10 percent by 2025.

After decades of business in the same location, one of Sunrise Mall’s long-standing tenants has closed up shop.

According to new data provided by the California Department of Finance, the Central Valley’s population is projected to grow by about 5 million people by 2060. Affordability is one of the main drivers that’s expected to continue shifting people inland.

Lil’ Bits Microgreens, a new Citrus Heights small business local food startup farm is delivering four varieties of fresh, nutrient-dense microgreens to their customers’ doorsteps.

Local governments account for about 10 percent of total spending on lobbying state lawmakers and agencies. Often, they’re seeking state money. Sometimes, they’re trying to get a say on specific bills.

Since early last year, many state government departments have been requiring workers to come back to the office. But employees in 22 departments are spending more than 90% of their days working remotely, according to Department of General Services data.

Frustration runs deep among medical cannabis patients and advocates who say the commercial market created by Proposition 64 in 2016 isn’t meeting their needs.

Some hospitals in Southern California have a nurse vacancy rate of 30 percent, stressing overworked staff and causing some to leave the industry earlier than they planned.

A Citrus Heights-based meal preparation company is working with a local nonprofit to provide culinary training to students and youths with disabilities.

Mega Vape and Smoke is slated to open within a 915-square-foot space at the Elk Grove Corners shopping center. It will be within a 7,000-square-foot building that includes three other store spaces—a location made possible by the Elk Grove Planning Commission’s approval of a conditional-use permit.

The iconic California burger joint known for its crossed palm trees and cups printed with Bible verses banned its employees in five states from wearing masks at work.

Despite efforts by Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass to shelter more than 14,000 people this year, the city's homeless population keeps growing. That does not necessarily mean her signature program is failing. The larger question: How does California measure success?

As bargaining on a new contract continues, over 100 unionized health care workers picketed outside the Kaiser Permanente hospital in the Arden-Arcade area. The action helped kick off a statewide picketing campaign this week.

California is poised to become the first state in the country to protect workers who make kitchen and bathroom countertops out of a popular kind of artificial stone known as “quartz.”

Thousands of Californians died from opioid overdoses in 2021. In response, many communities are making it easier to obtain life-saving overdose reversal drugs while some families are calling for tougher criminal penalties for fentanyl dealers.