Monday, June 15, 2015

Market Gateway Tower in SoFA!!!

Look at what just returned from the grave! Back before the recession of 2008, there was a tower proposed for the triangular area where Market St. and First St. come together in Downtown San Jose's SoFA District. Currently there is a parking lot, a dry-cleaner, and a few single-story retail buildings on the site. I thought this project was gone from good, but Robertee from the SJ Development forum found a new permit application as well as some killer renderings for a potential tower on 470 S Market Street!

The project would be 255 feet tall, 23 floors, and contain 275 residential units. There would be BOTH market-rate and affordable housing and each would be completely separated. In fact, there is no point where the different unit types even touch one another. They even have different lobbies and elevators.

The Market Gateway Tower would have a swimming pool 70 feet above ground, which would be Downtown San Jose's highest swimming pool (perhaps even the highest in the Bay Area). On the bottom of the building would be a large retail pad for an art gallery, theater, or traditional retail. There would also be a smaller retail pad ideal for a restaurant. One cool item to point out is that the building appears to maintain the facade of several existing structures currently on the block. Above the retail would be five levels of parking.

I really, really hope this happens. SoFA has gotten some serious momentum this year and it will only get more after The Pierce is completed. Market Gateway Tower would be a game-changer for the area!

Source: San Jose Development Forum








15 comments:

  1. Ah, wonderful this project is back! I'm curious thought as to why the developer decided to position the market rate units facing away from downtown?? There is no view for the market rate units unless I'm reading the drawing backwards? Personally, I won't spend half a million dollars and up to look down Monterey St. at a bunch of light industrial and demolished warehouse land.

    SOFA is a great neighborhood. I used to live and work in SOFA and I'm so happy to see the updates and new activity in the neighborhood these last few years.

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  2. Fantastic! This and the Pierce could really bring SoFA up to the level of activity seen at San Pedro Square but with its own vibe. It would be a grand slam if the affordable housing units also align with the arts theme of SoFA. There were some developers that did a project like that in Sacramento called WAL Artist Lofts that seems to have been successful. www.rstreetwal.com. Maybe something like that would work here?

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  3. It might be good to be true for Downtown San Jose for this to happen. If this were Seattle, then definitely it would happen, not San Jose. Anyway, I wish this would happen and get built in Dt. San Jose. Lenders will decide if this is going to happen or not.

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  4. You have the wrong renderings/plan. It's been updated significantly over the version you posted.

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    1. Do you have a link to the new renders? Will update the post whenever I find the new ones.

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    2. Do you have a link, these look to be from the David Baker Architects site, which is the only one that comes up when you Google based on the permit info.

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    3. Looks like the new renderings are in, I can't tell if it preserves the facades on 1st St as well, but it does look like a more ambitious design, the old one looked like a slightly stepped up 360.

      http://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2015/06/19/meet-san-joses-newest-tower-proposal-in-so.html?ana=e_sjo_rdup&s=newsletter&ed=2015-06-19&u=tSiE7sukKdu41SsPiKTfAISZeh&t=1434724081#i2

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  5. The Fairmont Hotel in DTSJ has a pool on the rooftop which would be higher than the proposed
    pool for this building

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    1. The fairmont pool is about 40 feel above ground, this one would be 70 feet.

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    2. I think the pool at The 88 might be higher.

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    3. The 88 is about 45 feet above ground... doesn't matter though because the design for the Market Gateway Tower has been updated and I don't see where (or if) there is a pool.

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  6. Looks great, hope this is what it'll truly look like

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  7. Does this mean I'm going to have to find a new dry cleaner? I love that place. They are the sweetest people.

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  8. This comment has been removed by a blog administrator.

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