Biz journal means business

One of the great perks of having a subscription to the Sacramento Business Journal is the weekly’s annual Book of Lists.

The year-end roundup weighs in at more than 150 pages and tallies the best and biggest in Sacramento biz.

And it’s filled with fascinating facts.

For example: Did you know that American River College enrolls more students than either UC Davis or Sacramento State? Even more impressive is that ARC does it with just 1,073 faculty members (full time and part time)—compared to 2,558 at UC Davis and 1,506 at Sac State.

Raley’s is the most philanthropic company in the region when it comes to direct giving—with more than $3.5 million donated to youth education programs and to organizations like the Mondavi Center and the Sacramento Ballet.

The biggest developer in the region is still AKT Development Corporation—headed by the legendary Angelo K. Tsakopoulos—which owns 52,000 acres, more or less, in the area.

The oldest business in the region is listed at the Mountain Democrat newspaper in Placerville, established in 1851. And it turns out that three of the top five paid public officials in Yolo County are psychiatrists.

Speaking of crazy facts, The McClatchy Co. executives still dominate the top salary brackets. Among the top 10 highest-paid execs at publicly traded companies in the region, five work for The Sacramento Bee’s parent company.

And for what seems like the 47th year running, McClatchy CEO Gary Pruitt is No. 1. He didn’t report a bonus this year—everyone’s got to make sacrifices. But the B.J. says he got $3.75 million in salary and stock. That’s up from a mere $2.7 million last year. This year McClatchy’s breathtaking plunge in revenue has turned into a mere deep slump, and after 4,000 layoffs companywide in the last two years, the Bee only had to let 29 people go this fall. Heckuva job, Gary. (Cosmo Garvin)

Food bank still looking for a home

Christmas came early to the River City Food Bank. The nonprofit received the green light from Sacramento on December 21 to begin moving into a new facility at 1319 27th Street for the next two to six months.

River City has been operating recently out of the basement of Trinity Episcopal Cathedral in Midtown after a fire at its old headquarters next door. The fire is under investigation and could have been arson.

The food bank is still searching for a permanent home.

Even so, River City had a busy December. According to Eileen Thomas, executive director, it has so far received 28,510 pounds of food from 92 people and organizations. The numbers are likely to go up with the holiday season.

“This is a short-but-sweet note to let you know that all of your support is paying off,” Thomas wrote on the River City website last week. (Hugh Biggar)