Here are my notes from the latest edition of Downtown Dimension:
- New initiatives for attracting and retaining businesses downtown was approved on Mar 16th. This includes suspending business license taxes and free parking.
- The San Jose Rotary Club is attempting to raise $1.5m to create a unique playground for all children--inclusive to those with disabilities--in the Guadalupe River Park. This will include "touch-sensitive features and flora full of aromas." They are hoping to open the park in the club's 100th year of operations between March 2013 and 2014. (I wish them the best of luck, sounds like a great idea and a way to bring more activity to our future central park).
- The 3rd Downtown San Jose open house attracted 150 potential buyers and 4 new sales.
- Broadway San Jose is gearing up for their second season and is expanding from 5 shows to 7:
- Burn the Floor - Sep 21-26
- Rain, a tribute to the Beatles - Oct 26-31
- The Color Purple - Nov 23-28
- Grease - Jan 18-23 (2011)
- Fiddler on the Roof - Mar 15-20 (2011)
- Stomp - Apr 12-17 (2011)
- Mamma Mia - Jun 7-12 (2011)
- Letcher Garage (later Oasis Nightclub) has been demolished to make way for 2 future high-rise buildings.
- Groundwerx ambassadors are helping to make downtown a safer place by checking garages for people loitering. Also if you don't want to walk alone to your car at night, you can call Groundwerx at 287-1520 and they will presumably walk with you.
- Irish Innovation Center opens at the corner of North Almaden and Santa Clara St.! (I also have an exclusive scoop on the restaurant going on the ground floor of that building, more on that later this week).
- The Art Glass Center of San Jose (a key First Friday participant BTW) has expanded into its neighboring space, allowing for: an expanded fine art gallery, torch-working area, video learning area, and a new space for an artist-in-residence program.
- Overland Storage is moving from Milpitas to a 21,000sqft space on 125 S. Market.
- Deloitte signed a new 10 year lease, keeping 900 employees downtown.
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It is nice to see incentives raised for businesses to remain in San Jose. Unfortunately, the city has a reputation for being more on the expensive side, so anything to retain employment and local businesses that would otherwise move due to the expensive nature of operating in the city is a really good thing.
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