Showing posts with label downtown san jose development. Show all posts
Showing posts with label downtown san jose development. Show all posts

Monday, February 12, 2024

Updates on Westbanks' Terraine

There are several new updates for a residential project called Terraine as well as a very unique parking structure. The 17-story tower will have 345 units and a verdant nine-story parking garage with 621 parking spaces in Phase 1.  In Phase 2, presumably we'll be in a world that needs cars less and the parking garage will be converted to 232,000 SQFT of offices above a ground-floor podium that has 11,777 SQFT of retail. 

The garage is a brilliant idea to satisfy the parking needs of today while also looking towards a future a decade or two away where most people will use robotaxis to get around.

The residential tower has its amenity deck on the 2nd floor with a pool, gym, and landscaped amphitheater. There are tons of new renders below. If built, this will be the nicest looking parking structure in San Jose.

Source: Scenic_SJC at Skyscraper City











Saturday, January 27, 2024

Latest photo of The Fay

Quick post today, it has been a crazy week. Below is a recent photo of The Fay luxury apartment project, which looks pretty nice right next to The Sparq in Downtown San Jose's SoFA District. The Fay has reached its max height and is clearly visible off of 280.

Source: aphelion2100 from the San Jose Development Forum




Saturday, December 16, 2023

The Fay (formerly Garden Gate) residential high-rise tops out next month in #DTSJ

The only high-rise tower actively under construction right now in Downtown San Jose is The Fay by Morro. Come January it will be at it's full height with 23 floors that will eventually house 336-units of apartments. 

Excavation started in 2022, the crane appeared about a year ago and it will be open to tenants January 2025. It's extremely visible off of 280 and already has an impact to the Downtown San Jose skyline.

As for the building itself, the one and two-bedroom apartments will be European-style, so a bit smaller but with elevated amenities and finishes. The building will have a 24/7 concierge, co-working spaces, and community lounges. Best of all, it will have the amenity I have been clamoring for... a rooftop pool and amenity deck complete with cabanas, the gym, a sky garden, and BBQ grills. San Jose weather and Downtown San Jose's central location with views of the valley make it an ideal place for a heated rooftop pool and this will be the first high-rise building in San Jose to have this feature. In fact, it will be one of only three in the whole Bay Area I'm aware of when it's ready in 2025, the other two being built right now in Santa Clara.

The ground floor contains 5,000 SQFT of retail at 600 S. First St. and the building itself will mark the start of the SoFA neighborhood. This will be a great addition Downtown!

Source: Downtown Dimension



Monday, November 6, 2023

Urban Catalyst moving forward with two high-rise residential towers near San Jose City Hall, updates plans and renders

One of Downtown San Jose's most ambitious developers and proponents has acquired the final puzzle piece needed to built its two towers named Echo and Icon. They purchased a parking lot on North Fourth Street across from Miro that completes the space necessary for their project. 

Echo is a 27-story residential tower with 415 homes. Icon was supposed to be a 22-story office building, but given the state of the market they are planning to convert it to a 26-story residential tower with 650 units instead.

Below are the updated renders envisioning Icon as a residential tower as opposed to office. Icon is the tower on the left bordering Santa Clara Street. It would replace a space previously used as a gas station along Downtown San Jose's main street.

There is no estimated timeline, but I hope Echo and Icon come sooner rather than later. Injecting over 1,000 homes into the central part of Downtown San Jose with easy access to transit (including a future BART station) would help accelerate its transition to a thriving 24x7 urban center. 

Source: SVBJSF YIMBY






Previous Renders:




Tuesday, December 28, 2021

SJDA 2021 Year in Review

2021's "Year in Review" was just as interesting as the last one. Scott Knies again does an amazing job of highlighting the significant events of the year--both positive and negative.

A few surprises for me were that the Google project in Downtown West is moving forward uncontested (no lawsuits for once), San Jose now has the highest vaccination rate by far among the 10 largest cities in the US, and the MIRO project already has 90 residential leases and a new bar/restaurant concept coming in 2022. 

You can watch the whole presentation, including the unveil of the modern new SJDA logo and MIRO winning the 2021 Golden Nail Award over here.





Monday, May 10, 2021

Google Mega Campus Updates

Google has received unanimous approval from the planning commission to build its massive campus around Diridon. The final step is City Council approval on May 25th, which is all but assured at this point. 

The overall scope of the is staggering--it's the largest proposal in history for Downtown and perhaps all of Silicon Valley. The first phase alone includes 4.17 million SQFT of office space, 3,130 homes, and several new community plazas. That phase is just HALF of the project. Even more impressive, developers will get the opportunity to build up to 6.4 million SQFT of office space, 7,000 housing units, and 536,000 SQFT of retail around Google's project. Collectively, the area will be called "Downtown West."

Building heights will range from 170 feet o 295 feet. Construction on city streets and infrastructure is slated for 2022 and will take until at least until 2031 to complete the entire project. When complete, this will be Google's largest campus in the world.

As a side note, Google has also promised $200M in community benefits if the Downtown West plan comes to fruition. This includes homeless services, job opportunities for local residents, five acres of new parks and trails available to all, and affordable housing.

Thursday, February 25, 2021

Urban Catalyst announces Fund II

Urban Catalyst, one of Downtown San Jose's premier developers, has officially started fundraising for their second round of projects. 

Fund I included multiple projects spanning office space (such as the former Camera 12 Theater), student housing, senior housing, and a hotel. Fund I was so successful it was actually oversubscribed in terms of investment. Their goal was to raise $105 million and they closed funding with $131 million on December 30th of last year.

Fund II involves two large projects, Icon and Echo. One is a residential high-rise with 300 apartments while the other consists of modern office space with large floor plates adding up to 420,000 SQFT. Both will be steps from City Hall and one of our future BART stations. They seem to be around 20 stories and likely reach the maximum height legally allowed.

If you would like to invest in Fund II, you might have to reach deep in your pockets since the minimum investment is $250,000. At least Fund II doesn't close until the end of 2024, giving you some extra time to look under the couch cushions. Construction on the projects is expected to begin in 2022, even before funding officially closes.

For more information and some renders, check out the short video below. If you have your checkbook handy, you can click here.





Friday, December 11, 2020

Future Downtown Skyline

The Downtown San Jose skyline is going to look quite a bit different in just a few years. The impag below captures less than half of Downtown, but the four new towers in the lower left (200 Park Avenue and J.P. DiNapoli) dwarf the Adobe campus towers. In fact any one of them has similar square footage the all three Adobe towers combined. Eventually the world will go back to normal and it will be amazing to see Downtown continue to transform.

Source: Sharkcity from the San Jose Development Forum





Tuesday, November 24, 2020

29-story "BoTown" tower proposed

The space formerly occupied by the BoTown restaurant on 2nd Street in Downtown San Jose could become a luxurious residential hi-rise building. The proposal floating around suggests a 29-story tower with 520 residential units. 85% of the units would be one bedroom or one bed+den (535 to 737SQFT), 15% would be two bedroom units (944-1,106 SQFT).

As for amenities, it doesn't get much better than a rooftop infinity pool--something that I think should be in consideration for just about every new residential hi-rise project. Next to the pool on the penthouse floor would be a gym and party room. Other amenities include a library/lounge, and billiards room. There will also be retail space on the ground floor and a leasing office on the second floor.

There is still no ETA for construction.

Source: SVBJ



Monday, November 16, 2020

Bank of Italy renovation will look amazing

One of San Jose's first hi-rises is about to get a stunning makeover. The iconic Bank of Italy building was the tallest hi-rise between San Francisco and Los Angeles from 1926 until 1970.

The biggest change will be exterior stairs and balconies running the whole height of the building. While this may not sound like a big deal, the options for these stairs look pretty impressive and will forever change how this building looks in the skyline (see first image below).

There will also be two podium terraces, a garden, and a new roof terrace. The ground floor will eventually house a new restaurant, café, and event venue. Again, the renders here look impressive. The entrance of the restaurant and music venue would face Fountain Alley and contribute to making the area more vibrant and lively. Fountain Alley itself is also getting a renovation (and an actual fountain) in the former Lido nightclub space.

Source: SVBJ, Bank of Italy Design Overview






Monday, October 19, 2020

Latest Miro Towers photos

Gillynova from the San Jose Development Forum has posted a few photos of Miro, which will feature San Jose's two tallest towers when construction is complete across from City Hall sometime next year. The project appears to be coming along nicely despite all of the COVID restrictions.





Tuesday, October 13, 2020

Google unveils more of its plans for Downtown San Jose

Last week, Google released additional renders and details about their plan for Downtown San Jose. The project is one of the largest and most ambitious in the Bay Area's history. It would involve 7.3 million SQFT of office space, 4,000 new homes, half a million SQFT of retail and art space, 15 acres of parks and open space, and zero net CO2 emissions.

One of the most exciting components is that 65% of the campus will be accessible to the public. Instead of being a fortress that only Googlers can access, many of the amenities will be open for everyone to enjoy, including those 15 acres of new parks and open space.

The scale is unlike anything we have ever seen. Google is planning to build 30 new buildings! Eventually it could support up to 25,000 employees. You can get an idea below of what this might look like below. If you have the time, it's worth watching the full 40 minute video that Google put together to showcase the latest version of the project (also below).

Source: Engadget



Wednesday, September 9, 2020

17 East Santa Clara Street

We have our first render of a residential tower at 17 East Santa Clara Street. This is the infamous site of an adult book store that burnt down between 1st and 2nd Street.

When a developer first announced they would like to build a high-rise here, there was quite a lot of speculation on what could actually be built on such a small and narrow space less than 9,000 SQFT. However, I have to say this initial design looks fantastic and is a welcome change from the super wide towers that are in the works. The narrow side creates an optical illusion where it looks 40 stories tall instead of 28.

The tower is going to have 96 residential units, with 17 of those restricted for moderate-income residents. It's not clear whether the units will be for sale or rent. Unfortunately it does not appear to feature any retail on the ground floor, but with such a small lot that is to be expected.

I hope we see other towers with this type of narrow aesthetic going forward to add more variety Downtown.

Source: Lawrence Lui on Twitter



Tuesday, September 8, 2020

Mixed-use "Fountain Alley" project moves forward and includes a surprise

Urban Catalyst, which is quickly becoming my favorite Downtown developer, is moving forward with a special project in the historic Fountain Alley district. They are turning what used to be Lido Nightclub into a six story building with retail on the ground floor, five stories of office space, and a rooftop bar. Since Scott's seafood relocated, there are no options I'm aware of where you can grab food or a drink more than a floor off the ground besides the Capital Club.

The office lobby will start in the historic Knox-Goodrich building next door, which is 130 years old and will be fully incorporated into this development. This is an excellent way to preserve our history while still developing Downtown San Jose. It reminds me of how our historic post office was utilized for a cafe and exhibit space in the San Jose Museum of Art.

Another exciting surprise feature that Urban Catalyst is included in the project is a unique fountain. It would seem appropriate for a place called Fountain Alley to have an actual fountain. The goal is a place-making landmark and they have done a ton of research on cool fountains they could bring to the area. The current plan features a fountain modeled after the spectacular Apple store fountain in Milan (last image below).

While it is not the largest development project in Downtown San Jose, it's packed with character. Everything from historic preservation to unique amenities that don't exist in the area are being packing into this five story building that is just a couple hundred feet from the future BART station. This will reshape the historic district forever.

The ground breaking is currently slated for Q2 2021 and completion is expected by mid-2023.

Source: SVBJ


Monday, September 7, 2020

Developing Downtown San Jose

Several executives at local development companies got together to discuss future project Downtown. The tone throughout the presentation was optimistic despite the COVID pandemic. The walk-through of each major project starts around 2:30, but if you have the time it is worth watching the whole video. The companies represented in the call are investing billions of dollars into San Jose and many of the projects discussed are under construction right now.

Source: Urban Catalyst Blog

Developing Downtown San Jose from Hoge Fenton on Vimeo.
While the coronavirus pandemic continues to stifle the economy, Urban Community Fund, Urban Catalyst Fund (an Opportunity Zone Fund), Bayview Development Group, and Jay Paul Company are developing key construction projects in downtown San Jose. Our panelists include:

• Erik Hayden, Founder, Managing Partner (Urban Catalyst Fund)
• Ted McMahon, Chief Investment Officer, (Bay View Development Group)
• Matthew Lituchy, Chief Investment Officer (Jay Paul Company)

Moderated by Sean Cottle, Real Estate Attorney at Hoge Fenton, our panelists discuss:

• Current status of development in Downtown San Jose
• Current rent and vacancy situation
• Long-term impact of the pandemic on Downtown San Jose development





Monday, August 31, 2020

Downtown San Jose mini-boom

San Jose Inside has an uplifting article about how Team San Jose rallied together 14 hotel owners to provide discounted rooms for fire victims and evacuees. These visitors are in return giving back to the local community. Despite the questionable air quality, restaurants along San Pedro and San Fernando Streets have been booming--giving a ray of hope to San Jose restaurateurs. Read the article over here.

As an added bonus, here is another San Jose Inside article about developers staying bullish on Downtown San Jose. Even with COVID19, many large-scale residential and office projects are still moving forward. Perhaps 2021 will be our year.


Thursday, August 13, 2020

San Jose 2030 Halfway Point Video

David Manzo from San Jose 2030 has been chronicling Downtown San Jose development since 2010 and plans on releasing a 20-year-long video time lapse in 2030. We're now halfway through the project and he release a promo video below. Check out more videos and comments at the San Jose 2030 Facebook page over here!



Wednesday, April 22, 2020

Two massive 20-story towers proposed Downtown

KT Urban has submitted plans for Woz Way Offices, another epic office project in Downtown San Jose. It consists of a whopping 1.8 million SQFT split between two towers at 280 Woz Way. One of them is a giant wall similar to Adobe's 4th tower and looks like multiple high-rises combined together.

The project architect and designer stated that the only place in Silicon Valley where a tech company can physically scale their business and have access to transit is San Jose. Hopefully the momentum can survive the current crisis as it appears that developers are finally coming around to seeing Downtown's potential.

The project would also feature an impressive 30,000 SQFT of outdoor terraces across four floors, and 6,000 SQFT of retail (a bit light for a project this size). Parking will consist of four-levels both above and below ground, enough to handle 1,215 cars.

If all goes well, the project could break ground as early as 2021.

Source: SVBJ