Glen Fest Returns to Willow Glen on September 26

Glen Fest takes over a stretch of Lincoln Avenue in Downtown Willow Glen on Saturday, September 26, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. The free community festival centers on the Bank of America lot at 1245 Lincoln Avenue and spills into the surrounding independent shops and restaurants.

Live bands play throughout the day while more than a dozen food trucks and vendors offer everything from BBQ and lobster rolls to Mexican street food, Asian-inspired dishes, and local honey. Beer and wine are available for adults. A dedicated kids court features bouncy houses, face painting, a photo booth, and visits from local sports teams, all without any extra ticket.

The event remains fully walkable and dog-friendly for those who keep pets on leashes. Shops along the avenue stay open during their regular hours, giving visitors a chance to browse boutiques, the children’s bookstore, and other neighborhood spots between sets and meals.

Now in its third year, Glen Fest has grown into the largest single-day gathering on the Downtown Willow Glen calendar. Families and neighbors who arrive earlier in the day often find lighter crowds and easier access to the kids activities.

Check the Downtown Willow Glen Business Association channels closer to the date for the final band and vendor lineup.

Source: Downtown Willow Glen

Boutique Grocery Heads to Ground Floor of San Pedro Square Housing Towers

An independent boutique grocery store is preparing to lease 12,000 square feet of ground-floor space at the two residential towers located at 188 West St. James Street in the San Pedro Square neighborhood of Downtown San Jose. The space faces San Pedro Square Market and sits within a complex that includes a 22-story eastern tower with 337 units and a 20-story western tower with 303 units.

The market will offer fresh food, sandwiches, a salad bar, a hot bar, burritos, and additional prepared items once the street-level shell is ready. Opening is projected for sometime in 2027. Leasing efforts are being handled by Nick Goddard of Colliers.

Downtown San Jose has long operated with limited grocery options. Whole Foods on The Alameda has served the western edge since 2014, and Sakura Market opened more recently on South Market Street. A new neighborhood-focused market at this central location will give residents of the towers and surrounding blocks easier access to everyday essentials and ready-to-eat meals.

The western tower continues to market condominiums for sale while the eastern tower remains under consideration for potential workforce housing by the San Jose Unified School District. Adding a practical retail anchor at street level should help activate the base of these buildings and support the daily needs of people living and working nearby.

Source: SiliconValley.com

Icon Echo Advances with 645 Homes Near City Hall in Downtown San Jose

Urban Catalyst’s Icon Echo project is moving forward with plans for two eight-story residential buildings that will deliver 645 new apartments in Downtown San Jose. The development covers a 2.1-acre site along North Fourth Street between East Santa Clara Street and East Saint John Street, across from San Jose City Hall and a short walk from Saint James Park.

The unit mix includes 233 studios, 272 one-bedrooms, and 140 two-bedrooms, with 33 of the homes deed-restricted as affordable. Each building rises to 89 feet and features podium-top courtyards, ground-level parking with stackers totaling 527 spaces, and a small retail space on the Icon building. Architect BDE Architecture has designed the exteriors with brick veneer, stucco, and cast stone panels.

A Planning Director’s hearing on the site development permit and vesting tentative map took place on August 12, with city staff recommending approval. The project represents a shift from earlier mixed-use concepts that included office space, reflecting the current emphasis on adding housing in the urban core.

Once built, the complex will place hundreds of new residents within easy reach of transit, civic buildings, and the daily activity of Downtown San Jose. The mid-rise scale fits the surrounding blocks while contributing meaningful density to an area that continues to evolve.

Source: SF YIMBY

New Housing Community Planned for Former Oracle Campus

Valley Oak Partners continues advancing its proposal to transform 38 acres of the former Oracle campus in Santa Clara into a mixed residential community of 584 homes. The San Jose-based developer shared updated details on timeline and design during a recent community meeting, outlining plans for 48 single-family homes, 416 townhomes and 120 apartments.

The project site currently contains nearly 500,000 square feet of vacant office buildings that would be removed. Seven acres of open space would feature parks, a recreation and yoga deck, bocce court, playground and lawns. The two-story single-family homes are expected to measure between 2,400 and 2,700 square feet, while the affordable apartment building would reach six stories. Architect KTGY and landscape planner RHAA are guiding the design work. The development borders a historic park and buildings that will remain untouched.

Environmental review is underway and typically requires about a year. Valley Oak anticipates securing project approvals by mid-2027, after which it intends to purchase the land from Oracle as a joint venture with a homebuilder. Past partnerships have included firms such as Lennar, Pulte and KB Home. Demolition and infrastructure work could follow later in 2027, with home construction potentially starting in the first half of 2028.

The proposal operates under the builder’s remedy, which limits a city’s ability to reject qualifying housing projects that include a required share of lower-income units. A formal application was filed in 2024 after a preliminary filing the previous year. If the schedule holds, the redevelopment would convert underused office land into a range of housing options with substantial outdoor amenities in a location close to major employment centers and transportation routes serving San Jose and the broader South Bay.

Source: SVBJ

Affordable Townhomes Arrive in East San Jose to Expand Homeownership Options

A new collection of 18 townhomes is taking shape at 125 Kirk Avenue in East San Jose, directly across from Linda Vista Elementary School. Developer AlphaX RE Capital, led by Stephanie Yi, is delivering the project known as The Kirk with a focus on creating ownership opportunities for working families.

Two three-bedroom units will be offered at roughly $300,000 below market rates, while the remaining homes—mostly four-bedroom, two-and-a-half-bath floor plans ranging from 1,481 to 1,909 square feet—are priced between $1.18 million and $1.3 million. Select buyers can also access a $50,000 credit and interest rates starting as low as 3.99 percent.

The project opened to the public on August 14, with some units expected to become available as early as October and full construction completion targeted for February 2027. Local leaders have welcomed the development as a practical step toward keeping more families rooted in the neighborhood and building long-term equity.

East San Jose has long needed additional pathways to ownership that match the incomes of teachers, nurses, small-business owners, and other working residents. This modest-scale effort shows how targeted new construction can open doors without waiting for larger citywide solutions.

For details on availability and qualification, contact the developer directly through their sales channels.

Source: San Jose Spotlight

Hotel De Anza Undergoes Major Remodel in Downtown San Jose

The historic Hotel De Anza at 233 West Santa Clara Street has entered a wide-ranging remodel that will refresh both its exterior and interior spaces. Owners Dhaval Panchal and Sean Curtis, who acquired the 100-room property in 2024, are restoring the 10-story Art Deco tower with a full exterior repaint that returns the building to its 1990s color scheme.

Scaffolding already stands along the facade as crews prepare the structure for top-to-bottom updates. Inside, work focuses on the lobby, Palm Terrace, and the historic Hedley Club. Just left of the main entrance, a new restaurant is taking shape and is expected to become a notable dining destination once complete.

Many of the upgrades are scheduled for completion before the end of 2026. The neon sign atop the hotel was already relit last year, marking an early visible step in the restoration. Built in 1931 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the tower ranks among San Jose’s few remaining Zig Zag Moderne buildings and has previously been rescued from demolition and renovated.

The ownership team aims to position the refreshed Hotel De Anza as a welcoming community gathering place that strengthens the daily rhythm of Downtown San Jose.

Source: The Mercury News

New Townhomes Proposed for McKendrie Street Near The Alameda

A 12-unit townhouse project is advancing at 1030-1038 McKendrie Street in Central San Jose. The plan would replace an existing surface parking lot on a 0.45-acre site with two multi-family residential buildings that include private garages and limited guest parking.

Studio Current is handling the design and application. The site sits on a block bounded by McKendrie Street, Myrtle Street, The Alameda, and West Hedding Street, placing it within walking distance of the College Park Caltrain station and inside the broader Alameda historic district.

Environmental review has been completed, with a mitigated negative declaration issued to address potential construction impacts. Work could begin as early as next March and is expected to take roughly five months once underway.

The modest-scale project adds housing in a central neighborhood already served by transit and nearby commercial activity. It represents another example of converting underused surface lots into residential use closer to existing infrastructure.

Source: SF YIMBY

Veeam Software Expands Local Footprint at Santana Row

Veeam Software plans to occupy roughly 21,000 square feet of second-floor space at Santana Row by the end of the year, converting former retail square footage once occupied by H&M into offices. The Seattle-based company, focused on data security and recovery, will take the upper level above the first-floor spots now held by Vuori and Evereve.

The move follows Veeam’s December 2025 acquisition of Securiti.ai, which had already maintained a presence in the Santana Row area for several years, most recently at the nearby Santana West office building. Prior to the deal, Veeam lacked a formal Silicon Valley office even as some employees worked remotely from the region. The new space more than doubles the nearly 11,000 square feet Securiti.ai held, giving the combined teams room to grow.

Santana Row’s mix of shopping, dining and walkable amenities has continued to draw technology and professional firms seeking an appealing workplace environment. While San Jose’s overall office vacancy rate hovered near 18 percent, the office components at the Federal Realty development reached full occupancy earlier this year. The convenient highway access and established commuting patterns for existing staff made the location a practical choice for the expansion.

Veeam’s local office will primarily support technology and product development teams. Company leaders have signaled plans to add more engineering and product talent in the coming years as AI-driven demand continues.

Source: SVBJ

San Jose Lands in the Top 10 Happiest Cities in America

San Jose ranked 10th among the 182 largest U.S. cities in WalletHub’s 2026 Happiest Cities in America report, earning an overall score of 67.79. The ranking evaluated 29 indicators across emotional and physical well-being, income and employment, and community and environment.

The city performed especially well in emotional and physical well-being, placing 7th in that category. It also recorded one of the nation’s lowest separation and divorce rates. Income and employment ranked 45th while community and environment came in at 42nd.

Fremont took the top national spot for the seventh consecutive year, followed by Bismarck, North Dakota, and Scottsdale, Arizona. Other California cities in the top tier included Irvine at 8th. San Francisco placed 17th.

These results highlight measurable strengths in health, life satisfaction, and social stability that contribute to daily quality of life for residents. The data provides one more data point in the ongoing conversation about what makes a city a good place to call home.

Source: WalletHub

Coterie Winery Prepares a Move Closer to the Heart of Downtown San Jose

Coterie Winery has produced small-batch wines in San Jose since 2007, turning an old warehouse near Downtown into a handcrafted operation focused on grapes from select parcels in places like the Russian River Valley, Carneros and the Santa Lucia Highlands. Every bottle follows a berry-to-bottle approach with careful vineyard work and non-interventional methods at the winery.

The team recently signed a letter of intent for a new home in San Pedro Square. After nearly two decades in the city and more than a decade in its current neighborhood, the winery expects to stay within a few blocks of the area it already knows well. The shift should bring longer regular hours, easier parking and closer ties to the food and entertainment options that fill the surrounding streets.

Membership remains open at no cost and delivers substantial savings, with discounts reaching 30 percent on wines and events plus first access to limited releases. Those who join receive periodic allocations and the chance to stay connected through occasional updates on new offerings.

The upcoming relocation places this longtime local winery inside one of Downtown San Jose’s liveliest pockets, where visitors can pair a tasting experience with nearby markets, dining and public spaces. Keep an eye out for the final address announcement as the transition continues.

Source: Coterie Winery and usedmedia