When I was a kid growing up in Sacramento, many Saturdays and Sundays were spent in the 500+ acres of William Land Park. The park activities catering to children back then were limited to the zoo, Funderland, and a little riding circle of ponies located where Fairytale Town now is.
In 1959, Fairytale Town opened on 2.5 acres directly across from the zoo. The area is a dream come true for children, with its play structures. Also included are a friendly menagerie of animals that assist in bringing nursery rhymes to life.
Last week, I had my grand-daughter, Macie with me for a couple days. We decided to spend some quality time at Fairytale Town, which is delightful to young and old.
Among Macie's favorite activities were running the Crooked Mile (which she did at least twice), and the Pirate's Ship. We also spent time at McGregor's Barn, King Arthur's Castle, and in Cinderella's Pumpkin Coach.
For more information about this delightful place, you can click onto the Fairytale Town Org website. Macie and I found the admission quite reasonable - a mere $4.00 for each of us.
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During this event, is an added feature - a Bullipede http://www.bullipedes.org in which outrageously dressed teams of runners are tied together and jog from the Folsom Lions City park to historic Sutter Street. Old Town Folsom will come alive, with cowboys, horse-drawn wagons and the original Wells Fargo Wagon.
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I woke quite early this morning (4:30 am). Saturday mornings usually have me adhering fairly closely to a little ritual of crawling out of bed, feeding the cat and dog, and then driving over to the back parking lot at Sunrise Mall to attend the local Farmer's Market that congregates there.
But, the early hour of waking this morning found me full of energy, antsy to get out of the house, but way too early for the Farmer's Market to be cranked up and rolling. I thought about it for a minute, and thought I'd make a little drive through Starbucks, and then on a few more miles to Old Sacramento, a few blocks from our state capitol.
It was just after 6:00 am when I arrived, and there wasn't a car on the street or parked - save mine.
Old Sacramento is a bustling tourist attraction during the day, and especially on summer weekends. But, I really was enjoying the sunrise, and how light was playing on the buildings and flirting with the water near the old Delta King, and Tower Bridge.
For those of you who live out of town and are not familiar with Old Sacramento, the area has several blocks of shops, a historic schoolhouse, riverboat, wonderful restaurants and museums - including the wonderful California State Railroad Museum.
For those in Northern or Central California, Old Sacramento makes a great "one tank gas" destination.
As one leaves Sacramento with a vision of heading over to the Northern California Coast and Fort Bragg, Magellan often routes you I-5 North, ultimately taking the highway 20 cut off headed west to the coast.
There is a little secret that some folks miss out on, if they aren't local and don't know about it. In the town of Williams (at I-5 and highway 20), there is a delightful Italian stopping off place called Granzella's. Granzellas has a nice Inn and a restaurant. But it's so much more than that.
Granzella's was founded in 1976. And when you step inside, you immediately are taken by the warm ambiance that emanates from within. The walls are covered with historic pictures of the surrounding community. And act as a museum for the little rural farming and ranching town.
In October 2007 Granzella's sustained a substantial fire, and the locals were concerned they had lost a pivotal historical anchor to their community. However, the owners rebuilt, and with many of the local historic artifacts saved from the fire, and back up on the walls, Granzella's is better than ever.
If you should ever be in that neck of the woods, I highly encourage you to treat yourself to a respite from the bustle of the city, and step back to a more relaxed atmosphere for awhile.
In addition to the Inn and the restaurant, Granzella's has a wonderful deli complete with olive bar, and gelato counter.
And the refrigerated "liquid refreshment" shelves are loaded with every kind of beverage you can imagine. Do you like domestic or imported beer and ale? There are varieties I had never seen before.
I was traveling through last Thursday morning, on my way to Fort Bragg and Mendocino. It was quiet, but by the looks and the size of the bar area (complete with a full sized stuffed Polar Bear), I can imagine that place rocks on Friday and Saturday nights:-)
You can Click Here for more information and pictures on Granzella's
Granzella's Restaurant
451 6th Street
Williams, CA 95987
Granzella's Inn
391 6th Street
Williams, CA 95987
When my son, Randy, was born and began talking at about 11 months of age, it wasn't mere single words that first came out of his mouth, it was whole sentences; or actually it was whole questions. He would point at certain things and say, "What is that - huh?" Or he'd ask, "Where's the garbage?"
On Thursday and Friday I took a little drive up to Fort Bragg and the Northern California Coast. When I came across this contraption I had my own, "What is it - huh?" moment.
How many of you know what it is, or what it does by looking at the picture? It is located it in the Jackson Demonstration Grove - along Highway 20, seven miles southeast of Fort Bragg. The little area is part of the California State Park System.
You can Click Here for a definition of a Steam Donkey. This area has some hiking trails, and is an interesting stopping off place in the Willets/Mendocino/Fort Bragg vicinity.
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Realtor since 1981 - Whether your real estate needs are entry or executive level, I have the experience to give you the professionalism, you deserve. Sacramento, El Dorado and Placer Counties
I am a life long resident of the Greater Sacramento area, and have been a Realtor since 1981. Whether your real estate needs are entry level or executive level, I have the experience to give you the professionalism, you deserve. If you are currently thinking of buying or selling a home, please give me a call. I will be happy to assist you with any real estate needs you have. Great West GMAC Real Estate is also an excellent relocation resource. Should your move be local or global, I have the resources to give you the best assistance possible.
Califronia DRE License #00827565
Residential Property Specialist in the Counties of Sacramento, El Dorado and Placer
Short Sales - Advantages and Pitfalls
Looking back a few years, when the over-exuberance of the housing boom was being partially fed by the first ingredients of the sub-prime debacle, it was difficult to foresee in this present day, we would be ramping ourselves up to speed on "short-sales."
As many GreatWest GMAC Real Estate Professionals understand, "short-sales" can be anything but short in the process of negotiation with Banks, Mortgage Insurers, Sellers, Buyers, and ALL entities prevalent and present in a hoped for sale.
"If" a mortgage lender has agreed to allow "short-sale" on a property, and the home does become available to the market, it CAN BE an advantage for all. T. Sami Siddiqui, Broker-Owner of Great West GMAC, states, "Owners usually need to sell quickly, and though there will be no profit to the Seller, there is hope of salvaging some of their credit rating from such a transaction."
The Buyer is hoping to get a steal. The Bank is hoping to avoid being forced to foreclose, because the foreclosure process can be very expensive for the bank to endure. Some estimates have put the figure at approximately $40,000 per foreclosed property. However, the bank must get fair price.
However, among the entities with interest in the property, from one perspective or another, it often isn't as easy to get a short sale pushed through the lender (and others) as most folks would think - or hope!
To provide an example - A GreatWest GMAC Real Estate Professional recently spoke with a client, who came from another part of the state, and had failed in the process of trying to acquire a "short-sale" property there. The client had became understandably overwhelmed and frustrated from trying to get his offer accepted to facilitate the purchase, and had failed in the attempt. The process, culminating in ultimate failure, had taken 12 weeks.
The Seller was glad to have the Buyer's offer, because the Seller needed to move across country - but owed more on the home than it was now worth. However, the Seller continued to be current on mortgage payments.
The Buyer made a full price offer for the "short-sale" property.
The Seller immediately signed acceptance of the offer, without countering. The Seller's acceptance was subject to Bank approval; and that is when the clock began ticking for the next 12 weeks, with numerous roadblocks along the way.
The bank "sat" on the "seller accepted offer" for what seemed to be an unusually long time before agreeing to the sale itself.
During this time, the property continued to remain on the market, and other offers did come in. The Buyer, who by now had become emotionally attached to the house, more than once found himself in re-negotiation and experiencing increases of price for the property, while a small bidding war ensued.
Once the Bank accepted, the acceptance was still subject to an appraisal. The property was appraised $4,000 above the price of the accepted offer.
There can be this little dance that ensues with all the entities involved in the "short-sale" property.
If the Seller is current on payments, the Bank isn't too motivated to act quickly to take a hit on the value of the existing mortgage balance. This becomes more critical if there is Mortgage Insurance (PMI or MIP), which insures the Bank against default of the mortgage by the Seller.
However, if the Seller becomes delinquent in payments, the Bank may be more interested in negotiating actively in the short-sale process, because they likely hope to dodge the bullet of foreclosure.
However, if there is PMI or MIP on the property, this may lengthen negotiating the "short-sale" among the interested parties, and the PMI or MIP Company, will often become a participant in negotiations.
Once ALL parties are engaged in negotiation, each party is hoping to come to an equitable solution, where they aren't required to eat more of the decline in value of the property, than need be, in order to facilitate a successful transaction on the property.
There are advantages and distinct pitfalls in negotiating short-sales. GreatWest GMAC Real Estate Professionals are trained and experienced in this process. If you have further questions not addressed in this article, please allow us to assist you with your interest in this topic.
If you are a Homeowner, considering marketing your home through the "short-sale" process, please contact us. Also there are income tax consequences with "short sales" and Sellers are encouraged to consult their accountant about the ramifications of the "short-sale" process.
Written for GreatWest GMAC
by: Myrl Jeffcoat
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