Old Macy's at Country Club Plaza: Storage Units and Apartments Plan Hits Neighborhood Backlash

The vacant Macy’s building at Country Club Plaza has been an eyesore since 2016, but a new plan to revive it is drawing serious heat from the neighborhood. A developer wants to convert the old department store into self-storage on the upper floors, retail space at ground level, and build 174 new apartments on the property. At a community meeting on Tuesday night, the Sacramento County Community Planning Advisory Council voted to recommend the county planning commission reject the project entirely.

Residents who packed the meeting had a consistent message: the Watt and El Camino intersection is already dangerously congested, and adding storage units doesn’t benefit the community. They also raised environmental and noise concerns. But the developer, Tourbineau Real Estate Partners, pushed back, pointing out that the building has sat deteriorating for nearly a decade. They argued that self-storage and the apartments are a single, financially viable package, and leaving the building empty is the worst outcome for everyone.

That advisory vote is nonbinding, which means the real decision is still ahead. The Sacramento County Planning Commission is up next, and if the project survives that step, the Board of Supervisors would have the final say on appeal. It’s a classic Sacramento land-use fight: dead retail space, housing needs, and worried neighbors all colliding in one spot. What do you think, should the county push this plan through, or should they send the developer back to the drawing board? Let us know.