Hacker Lab Signs Commercial Real Estate Lease Deal in Midtown Sacramento

Get ready for an infusion of entrepreneurship and software development that is now steadily growing in the Capital region.

Early this year, Gina Lujan (Founder & CEO of Hacker Lab), a native of Sacramento, left the Bay Area to return home.  After successfully creating a collaborative workspace environment for software developers in Berkeley, she decided to replicate the business model and expand the vision in Sacramento. Around March 2012, Hacker Lab signed a commercial real estate lease for 850 square feet of second floor office space above Pangaea Café, located at 2743 Franklin Blvd in Sacramento.  The space was used to provide rented desks and/or offices for local software developers who wanted to work in a tech community environment.

* Click here for Good Day Sacramento news story and Sacramento Business Journal article.

This commercial space quickly became too small after the successful staging of Sacramento’s first ever large-scale Hackathon.  On June 2, 2012, local software developers converged on the offices of Sacramento Press and were assembled into teams to create, develop and deliver a smart phone application within a 30-hour window.  Winners were given prizes, but more importantly, new products and even startup companies had the ability to form on the spot, where venture capitalists were waiting to discover the next home run.  

Hacker Lab is now considered the second largest hacker space in California, thanks to additional contributors including Charles Blas (Hacker Lab Co-Founder) and Eric Ullrich (Project Manager for Venture Start, a SARTA program).  After growing from nothing to over 200 members in just four months, it was time for Hacker Lab to identify its next commercial real estate location in Sacramento.

In keeping with the technology theme, MamaAlwaysSays.com, a new local Sacramento area business review site, made the connection between Hacker Lab and the Sacramento commercial real estate brokerage firm that ultimately represented Hacker Lab for its new commercial office/warehouse space in Midtown Sacramento.  Brian Jacks, Regional Vice President of East West Commercial Real Estate facilitated a two-year lease for 10,480 square feet of collaborative tech workspace at 1715 I Street in Sacramento, effective October 1, 2012.  

Hacker Lab (soon to be a non-profit organization) is now free to expand by making incubator space available to local software and hardware developers.  In addition, Gina Lujan says “we hope to teach classes in technology from junior high through college.  We aim to provide community based education and mentorship to entrepreneurs and startups.  Our new facility will house both software and hardware technology in a Hacker type atmosphere.”

East West Commercial Real Estate is pleased to participate in the beginning stages of Sacramento’s growth as a recognized technology hub and hotbed for entrepreneurship.   The next Hackathon is scheduled for November 10, 2012 in Hacker Lab’s new headquarters.

Article contributed by Brian Jacks

Brian Jacks is a Sacramento commercial real estate broker (since 1996) specializing in commercial leasing and investment sale transactions for retail, shopping centers, multifamily, apartments, senior housing, office, industrial, mixed-use, and special purpose properties.  Having spent over 20 years with Wells Fargo, he personally facilitated the underwriting, approval and funding of almost 250 commercial loans totaling over $1 billion in proceeds.

Jacks is a Regional Vice President for EAST WEST Commercial Real Estate, a full service commercial real estate brokerage advisor based in Orange County.  In addition to serving the Sacramento marketplace, he is also responsible for the company’s current expansion into the San Francisco Bay Area.  For more information, contact:

Brian.Jacks@EastWestCommercial.com
Cell (916) 837-3456 | eFax (916) 313-3778
915 L Street, Suite C440, Sacramento, CA 95814

Broker Lic. #01217349

About EAST WEST Commercial Real Estate

EAST WEST Commercial Real Estate is a full service commercial real estate brokerage advisor specializing in investment sales, commercial leasing and finance for retail, office, industrial multifamily, senior housing, self-storage, mixed-use and special purpose properties throughout California and Arizona.  The firm is headquartered in Orange County, CA.  Brokerage offices include Sacramento, San Francisco, Walnut Creek, San Jose, Oakland, Los Angeles, San Diego, Orange County, Riverside, San Bernardino and Phoenix.  Other services include bank REOs, 1031 exchanges, nationwide commercial Business Opinions of Value (BOV’s) and Broker Price Opinions (BPO’s), mortgage brokerage, lender services, and asset management.