Alchemist Community Development Corporation (Alchemist CDC) celebrated the granting of $450,000 to complete the property purchase and secure site control for the future home of Alchemist Public Market (APM) on Thursday, January 20, 2022, during a visit to the project site in Sacramento’s River District with elected officials and key stakeholders.
Speakers at the event included Sacramento City Councilmembers Jeff Harris (D3) and Katie Valenzuela (D4), Assemblymember Kevin McCarty, Senator Dr. Richard Pan, Ruth Ibarra (NorCal Resist Co-founder and Board Member), and Sam Greenlee (Executive Director, Alchemist CDC). Dr. Pan and Assemblymember McCarty presented Alchemist CDC with a check for $450,000, representing the funding they secured from California SB170 community reinvestment dollars to complete the purchase of 341 N 10th St.
“The Alchemist Public Market project will be a great hub for entrepreneurs to gain the support needed to cultivate a successful business,” said Assemblymember Kevin McCarty. “I’m glad Dr. Pan and I were able to secure funding for this important project and can’t wait to see the market in action once the building is complete.”
Alchemist Public Market is to be constructed on the vacant lot at 341 N 10th St, nextdoor to a new city park, one block away from the Mirasol Village project, and a few minutes’ walk from the new Richards Boulevard state office complex. Dreyfuss + Blackford Architecture is providing pro bono architectural work for the project and has developed a design that is simultaneously iconic and conducive to providing a needed community gathering place.
“I’m thrilled to see this critical project moving forward,” said Councilmember Katie Valenzuela. “This investment from the state of California will create an institution in the River District that will serve budding entrepreneurs for years to come. Alchemist CDC has a fantastic program serving underserved communities that often lack access to the opportunity to start their own business, I’m so thrilled that their amazing work has won the recognition and support of our state leaders.”
Building on Alchemist CDC’s areas of expertise, the project will be an engine of inclusive economic development, small business creation, workforce development, food access, and community-building. Alchemist Public Market will feature an all-electric commissary kitchen to incubate dozens of new food business; outdoor food court with eight incubator restaurants; social enterprise café providing job training and placement; retail store featuring Sacramento-made products from small businesses; co-working office; and weekly farmers’ market. Sacramento non-profit, NorCal Resist, will run the cafe and beer-and-wine service on site, providing paid job training and placement for Sacramento-area residents with high barriers to employment. NorCal Resist has a substantial local track record of supporting and empowering some of the region’s most vulnerable residents.
“These funds from the State of the California are absolutely crucial for the development of Alchemist Public Market in Sacramento’s River District,” remarked Alchemist CDC Executive Director, Sam Greenlee. “This public investment will be a catalyst to create hundreds of new small businesses and to train thousands of workers in the coming years. For under-resourced entrepreneurs and residents with barriers to employment, this will mean a real opportunity for financial security.”
Alchemist CDC is a Sacramento-based 501(c)3 non-profit organization that connects communities to land, food, and opportunity toward a vision in which every neighborhood is vibrant, equitable, healthy, and diverse. We are best known for enhancing the quality of life in under-resourced communities by improving access to nutritious foods, implementing community-supported public green spaces, and fostering economic self-sufficiency through business entrepreneurship.