Downtown JC Penny's Building renovation

Built in 1946 for JC Penny's, the 4-story building at 1 W. Santa Clara in the heart of Downtown is getting an impressive makeover. The building already has a timber deck and center atrium, both of which will be prominently featured post-remodel. It looks perfect for hip startup companies or a midsize tech firm. One feature we can all benefit from is the Blue Bottle Coffee shop on the ground floor. Check out the renders below.

Source: San Jose Development Forum, Lift Partners

Two more residential high-rises planned for Downtown

It looks like we are just getting started when it comes to new high-density projects in Silicon Valley. Two developers are now proposing twin 18-story residential buildings called Davidson Plaza Towers on a two acre plot at 255 W. Julian Street, currently the site of the six-story Charles Davidson Building and a parking lot.

The project would have 653 market rate units, 10,000 SQFT of ground floor retail/commercial space, and underground parking for 654 cars. It has not been decided if these would be apartments or condos yet, but the mix would be 125 studios, 282 one-bedrooms units, 211 two-bedroom units, and 35 three-bedroom units. Amenities include a gym, pet play area, and multipurpose room. To continue a very welcome trend for proposed San Jose high-rises, they want to put one of the two swimming pools on the roof.

This would all be across the street from Silvery Towers, two blocks away from the San Pedro Square Market, and one block away from the Highway 87 freeway entrance.

Source: SVBJ

Scott Knies on big changes coming to Downtown

The Merc has a great interview with Scott Knies, the Executive Director of the San Jose Downtown Association. He discusses big changes, including the potential Google mega-campus which he is already dubbing the GoJo district (Google Jose). Residential, restaurants, and height restrictions also come up in the conversation. Check it out at the link below.

Source: The Merc

Downtown Development since 2005

Downtown San José’s bright future has been a primary focus for many of us urbanists. However, as we grease our gears for full steam ahead into the future, many of us may have forgotten just how far the downtown has come in the past decade. The City’s Planning Division keeps track of development proposals in downtown San José dating back to 2005 when the Downtown Strategy 2000 was adopted by City Council. Part of this tracking includes creating an annual map showing where residential and commercial development proposals have occurred. As shown in the map in the link below, there have been numerous mixed-use residential development proposals within downtown San José, mostly centered near or north of E/W Santa Clara Street. Specifically, 2,643 units are currently built or under construction with another 4,228 approved units on the way. This equates to over 6,800 NEW units within the downtown, meaning many more residents walking, biking, and increasing the vibrancy of the core of our city. This explosion of residential development can be a large factor in explaining the increase in cafes, restaurants, and bars that the downtown has seen recently. Let’s all hope that office proposals can now make up for lost time!

-Kimberly Vacca

Downtown Development Map

(click to enlarge map)

One Million Sq. Ft. of New Office Downtown?

With news of Google potentially locating next to Diridon Station, suddenly everyone wants a piece of downtown San José! And boy are we ready! A Preliminary Review application came in last month to gain staff’s input on the potential to demolish existing buildings and construct three new 6-story office buildings totaling ONE MILLION square feet at 440 W. Julian Street.

The site is located within the Downtown boundary north of the SAP Center and is adjacent to the Guadalupe River, only separated by Autumn Parkway. The City of San José has designated these properties as Transit Employment Center in the General Plan, meaning that intensive job growth is supported here through high-density office and commercial development. The proposed one million square foot office development meets the intention of the Transit Employment Center land use designation.

The office concept in this proposal boasts having accessible green space on every floor and large terraces that will bring natural light deep into the floorplate (see pictures below). While the renderings are very preliminary, we can already gain a sense of the tapered design showcasing these private green spaces. This type of high-density employment next to Diridon Station would allow employees to take a multitude of transit modes to work: Caltrain, VTA bus rapid transit and light rail, ACE, and eventually BART. Not to mention the connectivity to the Guadalupe River Trail system that many bicyclists use to commute. 

If the developer wishes to proceed with their proposal, the next steps will include filing the following applications, at a minimum, with the City:

1. Rezoning application to change the site’s current HI Heavy Industrial zoning district to a zoning district that supports intensive office uses
2. Site development permit to allow the one million square foot office development

These permits would contain much more detail in regards to the design, circulation of vehicles, parking, landscaping, etc. and would most likely require a community meeting to gain input from the public. The preliminary application currently on file only serves as an informational application to the applicant so that they can get a preliminary analysis from staff. This helps applicants save time and money before submitting an actual development proposal. If the applicant decides to move forward, this project will give everyone an idea of what the City of San José will ask for regarding new development around Diridon and could very well set a precedent for Google moving forward.

-Kimberly Vacca

North 4th Street Student Tower Proposal

There seems to be no shortage of exciting news related to Downtown San Jose these days! The newest development project proposal is a 26-story student housing tower at the intersection of N. 4th Street and St. John. This location is 3 blocks away from SJSU and only 1 block away from St. James Park.

At 285 feet, it would be the exact same height as the San Jose City Hall, the second tallest building in San Jose (The 88 is taller by one foot). If the height alone wasn't enough to make it stand out, the proposed design with guarantee it. If approved, the N. 4th Street tower would have the most colorful and eclectic design of any Downtown tower to date. It features almost Tetris-like cutouts both horizontally and vertically, multi-colored glass, and even trees on the roof.

The ground floor has a respectable 8,409 SQFT of retail, a 2,713 SQFT leasing office, bike parking, and retail & guest parking. Above that is four levels of parking for students followed by 21 levels of student housing with 400 units (enough for about 900 students). If that weren't enough, there is a rooftop patio and amenity area--again with trees!

There are some negatives with the design. First, the tower will be adjacent to many single family homes along 5th Street, and those homeowners are likely not thrilled to have a student housing tower as a next-door neighbor. Also, there are a ton of parking spaces for a tower designed for students--especially since BART, Light rail, Bus Rapid Transit, and protected bike lanes are all within a 5 minute walk. In combination with the advent of autonomous cars, this will be very expensive wasted space five years from now and does not promote good urban design. At minimum they should plan on building the parking floors in such a way where they can be repurposed in the future.

Overall, I have to say this is pretty exciting and would markedly improve our skyline as well as add foot-traffic to an undeserved part of Downtown.

Huge thanks to fellow blogger Kimberly Vacca for providing high-res images from the proposal! Also a shout out to Robertee from the San Jose Development Forum for being the first to post about the permit. Click on the images below to enlarge.

Adobe is expanding their Downtown San Jose Headquarters!

This fantastic news has been around for a couple weeks, but I just got back from vacation and feel obligated to repeat it. Adobe has been on fire during the past couple years and is looking to dramatically grow their headcount. The company is planning to build a fourth office tower at 333 West San Fernando Street to compliment their current three-tower headquarters in Downtown San Jose.

The new tower must be massive as it will have capacity for 3,000 employees. That is more than Adobe's current three towers combined (2,500 employees). The 333 West San Fernando parcel is already entitled for up to 725,000 SQFT of space and there is even a render of what such a building might look like (although Adobe will likely go with something more creative).

Downtown is really having a banner year when it comes to attracting more tech jobs. First the Google announcement and now Adobe is more than doubling their Downtown office capacity!

Source: SJ Economy, SVBJ

BREAKING - Update to Downtown Ross Site High-Rise Proposal

Downtown SJ sure is seeing a lot of action these days! A site development permit has been filed by Alterra Worldwide for the downtown Ross site at 27 S. 1^st Street. The site development permit proposes a 22-story mixed-use residential building with 342 dwelling units and 17,628 square feet of retail on the 0.57-acre site. The development includes a clubhouse, two indoor fitness rooms, an outdoor fitness area, pool and outdoor terrace, and a 3,000 square-foot dog run. Units range in size from studios to two bedrooms, all including an outdoor balcony.

The submittal is an improvement from the preliminary application filed in 2016, although the architecture is very similar in style. The shape is still very boxy, and needs to better differentiate between the middle and top of the building. The top of the building could definitely use some work to contribute to a more distinctive and interesting skyline. Although, I do appreciate the tall ceilings on the first through third floors.

On June 27^th, City Council will vote on an ordinance to allow balconies in the public easement, which means we may see less and less development proposals with box-like shapes as architects will be able to utilize the space above sidewalks for balconies. The current prohibition of balconies in the public easement means that developers and architects have limited space for private open space, leading to buildings like One South Market that are completely flat on all sides. Depending on the applicant’s timeline, they may wish to resubmit new drawings to utilize this new functionality.

For more information, go to www.sjpermits.org and look up File No. H17-027. You may also contact the planner, Elia Sorice, at elia.sorice@sanjoseca.gov.

**Also, sorry for the poor quality photos; they were directly scanned in from the plans.

-Kimberly Vacca

View looking towards N 1st Street from Fountain Alley

View from N 1st Street

Aviato - New Downtown High-Rise!

NEW DOWNTOWN HIGH-RISE ALERT! On May 17th, a Special Use Permit was filed with the Planning Division to allow the construction of an 18-story multi-family residential tower in downtown San José with 304 residential units and 10,146 square feet of retail on a 0.77 gross acre site (199 Bassett Street). The project includes four levels of underground parking (1 space per unit), 84 bike spaces, a fitness room, and an outdoor terrace with a pool and hot tub. Unit sizes include studios, one bedrooms, and two bedrooms.

The site is sandwiched between Highway 87 and Coleman Avenue, and is located in the northernmost part of downtown. The proposed tower will be somewhat isolated until the vacant land between San Pedro Market and the site is developed; although, this land should not be vacant for long. In the interim, the applicant will need to work on addressing connectivity issues with the rest of downtown so that the residents are not intimidated by or uninterested in walking and biking in the area.

If approved, the proposed tower will be a great addition to the downtown area, as more downtown residents will increase the viability for downtown amenities, retail, and restaurants. Many potential commercial tenants state that the current downtown residential density is too low for them to justify moving into a vacant commercial space, so every new project helps alleviate this concern.

While the top of the tower could have a little more “pizzazz” to diversify the downtown skyline, I’m happy to see that the tower will not be contributing to the “Tan Jose” theme that so many other downtown buildings have embodied. The white stone and glass frame with a pop of orange color is noticeably different from the other residential towers nearby. The applicant also did a great job placing the parking ramp on the east side of the building, leaving the front of the building open solely for pedestrians and active uses.

Because this application is a Special Use Permit, it will go to the Director of Planning, Building, and Code Enforcement for approval and will not need to go to the Planning Commission, unless appealed, or City Council. To stay up-to-date on the development review process, look up File No. SP17-023 on www.sjpermits.org or contact the Project Manager at Shaunn.mendrin@sanjoseca.gov to be added to the community contact list.

-Kimberly Vacca

Looking northwest

Looking northeast

Looking southwest

San Jose is getting a 24-story Tribute Hotel!

Finally, some significant vertical development news for Downtown. It looks like San Jose's first cantilevered tower will be moving forward. The proprietors behind San Jose's Downtown Four Points (which is probably the nicest Four Points in the US) want to build a 24-story hotel tower in a narrow lot to the right of the hotel. The lot is so narrow that the tower would have to cantilever over the Four Points as you can see in the photos below. It creates a very interesting architectural juxtaposition of a building from the 1910s merged with a modern high-rise.

Now for the even-better news. The 279-room tower will be branded as The Tribute Hotel San Jose as opposed to being an expansion of the Four Points-branded hotel. The Tribute is a new Marriott brand (which now owns Starwood Hotels) and it is far more upscale and prestigious.

The tower will have amenities that don't even exist in San Francisco or Los Angeles. I'm talking about a rooftop pool on the 24-floor. That is officially one of the coolest hotel amenities possible and I will be booking a room at some point just to take advantage of it. The Grand Hyatt in Toyko (hotel from the movie "Lost in Translation") is the only other property I have been to with something like that and it was awesome. The Tribute Hotel will also have their gym and meeting rooms on the penthouse floor featuring amazing views of Silicon Valley. This is going to be a very unique destination and a huge win for San Jose enthusiasts.

Source: The Merc

A look inside the AC Hotel in Downtown San Jose

The AC Hotel at Santa Clara Street and Highway 87 is the first major new hotel Downtown since the Marriott. The European-styled hotel has 210 guest rooms and six suites, all with king beds (including rooms with two beds). It even has a small swimming pool, something I did not expect given the location.

This looks like a terrific addition to Downtown San Jose. On the exterior it may not look like much, but they did a great job on the interior and it will help activate a key block--especially with a tapas restaurant and cocktail lounge on the ground floor.

Vicky Thompson from the SVBJ has a dozen photos for you to check out at the source link below. For another perspective, Nathon Donato-Weinstein also has a blog post about our newest hotel.

Source: SVBJ

Two great options in play for the Camera 12 Cinemas site

Change is always an opportunity to improve, even when the change initially seems bleak. When Camera 12 closed last September, it was a shock to the Downtown community--especially given how much livelier Downtown has become over the past several years. Now, there are two options on the table that actually would be a significant improvement to the area.

Option #1 - Luxury Movie Theater

This is exactly what Downtown needs, a destination theater that does not exist elsewhere in San Jose to draw more visitors to the area as well as provide a great local amenity for residents. It sounds like something similar to an Alamo Drafthouse is being floated as a possible suitor for the space. The theater would have luxury seating, food, and alcohol. This was the first thought that came to mind when we first heard Camera 12 was closing.

Option #2 - SJSU Student Housing Tower

San Jose State is interested in building a 20-story student housing project on the site. The building would be a mixed-use as it gets with 14 floors of housing, 4 floors of offices, a Sky Terrace, retail/restaurant space on the ground floor, and underground parking. This would bring a large number of students into the Downtown San Jose core and further intertwine the University with the community.

There is also a 3rd option, and that is to do both Option #1 and Option #2. Based on the first rendering, the tower can accommodate a luxury theater on the ground floor, which can even be used for SJSU events and classes during off-peak hours. If it comes together, it will not only fill the hole left by Camera 12's departure, but be a new amenity for all San Joseans to enjoy.

Source: The Merc, hat tip to Josh Russell for sending this in