Ali Mackani has made a career out of developing potential. As a computer science engineer at Intel, people came to him with ideas and asked how to make them work. Mackani usually found a way. In 2002, the Folsom resident and partners brought Sacramento a bit of high-tech fame by creating the first large-scale outdoor wireless fidelity or "wi-fi" network. He created a buzz on Capitol Mall, where he opened his first restaurant, 55 Degrees. He then opened a bar, Lounge on 20, that anchors one of the trendiest corners in Midtown, 20th and K streets. Now a team led by this ambitious 40-year-old entrepreneur is a top contender to develop a new arena in Sacramento. That possibility has left s

Mayor Kevin Johnson's arena task force resumed its work to get a new facility built in Sacramento Thursday – minus two members who've now thrown their expertise behind a runner-up proposal. At the same time, the task force is opening the process to more developers after its top choice – a complicated three-way land swap submitted by developers Gerry Kamilos and David Taylor – didn't pan out. The task force is accepting new proposals as well as updated versions from the first round of proposals submitted last December. The public is expected to get its first look at the contenders in early January, the group said Thursday in a press release. In a surprise move, two task force members dec

Denver's mayor was in town Tuesday to talk about downtown arenas and the need for strong mayors — two subjects close to Sacramento Mayor Kevin Johnson's heart. Building an arena downtown could help reinvigorate Sacramento's core, if the success of Colorado's capital city is an indication, Denver Mayor John Hickenlooper said during the Downtown Sacramento Partnership's annual State of Downtown Breakfast. Last week, would-be Sacramento arena developers outlined seven proposals for a new "sports and entertainment center" in response to Johnson's request for such proposals. All but two were proposed to be built downtown. The same day, a Sacramento Superior Court judge issued a tentative ruli

The ongoing drama over a new Sacramento arena was kicked up a notch Thursday when a consortium of investors and local developers, together with the NBA, proposed a complex real estate deal involving the Railyards, Cal Expo and Arco Arena. Whether or not that deal eclipses all the other proposals on the table remains to be seen. But regardless of which arena proposal ultimately becomes reality, it will be a game-changer for Sacramento. Just how much depends on which of seven proposals the city and the Sacramento Kings' owners agree on. The Maloof/NBA proposal involves real estate deals that would lead to Cal Expo being sold to private developers for a mixed-use neighborhood, Arco Arena an