September 2009 Downtown Dimension Highlights

It's that time again, the latest issue of Downtown Dimension has arrived and here are the cliff notes:

• 360 Residences is now open! The sales office has been moved from the Fairmont Annex to the 5th floor of the 360 Residences building, freeing up a key retail space in the process. Owners will start moving in towards the end of the year.
• High-rise condo sales updates:
• Axis: ~25% occupied (~80 units), sounds like they are selling about 4 homes a month.
• The 88: selling an average of 4 condos per week
• City Heights: over 50% occupied (over 62 units sold)
• There will be a San Jose Open House from Sep. 26-27 where all 4 condo high-rises will be open and offer refreshments from downtown restaurants and pedicab rides between each tower.
• 3 Downtown buildings are receiving Facade improvements:
• Anaconda Building
• 150 year old building at the entrance of San Pedro Square.
• Ground floor anchored by Starbucks and La Victoria, which is finishing its expansion.
• U Food Grill, featuring healthy dishes, will be moving into the remaining ground floor space.
• Hackett building
• Currently houses Pizza Chicago which will get new outdoor seating after the remodel.
• Looking for a new tenant adjacent to Pizza Chicago.
• Bo Town Restaurant
• Getting a new roof, tiles, doors, lighting, and landscaping.
• Decision to lower building heights by 2 floors on new development to accommodate airport complaints, has been postponed (hopefully indefinitely). Developers and urban advocates continue to push for taller buildings while SJC is fighting for the opposite.
• First Street Improvements continue! Beautification projects between Santa Clara <> San Fernando and San Carlos <> Reed (SoFA) have been completed over the past couple of months. Later this year, Groundworks will "Beautify" the section of First Street that connects these 2 corridors... making one contiguous, walkable district between Santa Clara St. and SoFA.
• Eleven new on-street parking spaces have been added in various Downtown San Jose locations.
• The Center for the Performing Arts is getting a new 5,000 sqft lounge with a bar and seating for 350 people.
• ZeroOne received almost $1 million for their next event (Sep. 15-19, 2010), check out 01sj.org for more information.

Amazing Discounts at San Jose Restaurants!

I would be lying if I said I didn't love food. My wife and I probably eat out 3-5 times per week, if not more. I've been to over 90 restaurants in Downtown San Jose, every single restaurant in Santana Row (at least twice), and have easily been to over 1,000 different restaurants in the Bay Area.

I have a little secret to share about saving a substantial amount of money dining out. There is a website called Restaurant.com that allows you to purchase gift certificates at a discounted rate. For example, you can purchase a $25 gift certificate for $10. The catch is usually something along the lines of having to spend a total of $35 to use the certificate. So basically you're getting a net $15 discount off of your meal, and the restaurant gains a new potential customer.

Well, once and a while Restaurant.com features promotions, and right now they have one that is INSANE. Select whichever certificates you want and when you are checking out use the discount code: NINETY. You will get a 90% discount on the price of your gift certificates! So in essence, a $25 gift certificate will cost you $1. There is absolutely no reason to pass this up. The promotion expires on 9/14, so get your "almost free" certificates while you still can.

Below is a list of Downtown San Jose Restaurants that you can get certificates for (bolded my favorites):

• A Perfect Finish
• Agenda Restaurant & Lounge
• Azucar
• Britannia Arms
• Fahrenheit
• Flames
• Gumbo Jumbo
• Hawgs Seafood Bar
• Island Grill & Bamboo Lounge
• La Nostra Pizza
• Loft Bar & Bistro
• Pagoda
• Pizza Chicago
• Rokko
• San Jose Bar & Grill
• Scott's Seafood
• Tandoori
• Teske's Germania
• The Grill on the Alley
• Tres Gringos
• Vegetarian House

The San Jose Blog is on Twitter!

It seems like the entire world is on Twitter now... and The San Jose Blog is no exception!! I'll be tweeting short blurbs and links to news impacting San Jose, mostly positive stuff (development news, restaurant/retail openings, and interesting events). Don't worry, I won't be posting what I'm doing every minute of every day... just relevant news ;) Click here to follow The San Jose Blog on Twitter!

The Market Is Now Open!

Downtown San Jose is now home to The Market, a well-designed and unique grocery store operated by Safeway. Occupying almost the entire ground flood of The 88 (2nd & San Fernando), the new store is impossible to miss.  The feeling that you are embarking on something new actually begins in the parking lot.  Unlike any other grocery store in San Jose, you park in a garage directly below the Market and ride an elevator to the center of the store.  However, what really makes The Market different from your cookie cutter Safeway is a strong focus on ready-to-eat foods. You'll find a fully stocked Delicatessen, fresh baked pizzas, a Sushi Bar (yes, that's right, a Sushi Bar), the entire Signature Cafe catalog, and even a Tully's coffee shop inside the store... all supported by plenty of seating both inside and out.

The focus is clearly on instant gratification. As packed as the new store was this weekend, within 10min you could easily walk in, grab everything you need for dinner, and be on your way. The 6 self checkout stands and 6 (at least) manned checkout stations played no small part in this. The idea is that instead of doing all of your grocery shopping everyone week or two, you could swing by The Market every couple days... grab whatever fresh food you're in the mood and either take it home or enjoy it right there in the store. The concept is very well suited at an urban lifestyle and I'm sure is destined for success. I also need to mention that I have never met friendlier staff at a grocery store before, they really make you feel welcomed there.  

Downtown San Jose, meet your new retail anchor:

ZOMBIE-O-RAMA '09 Photos!

Here are a few Zombie Crawl photos courtesy of Helen Garcia.  It looks like a huge success!  I'm hoping we'll see this event again in downtown San Jose again next year!

For more photos click here!

ZOMBIE-O-RAMA '09 - August 26th, Downtown San Jose

We have a pretty interesting event coming to Downtown San Jose next Wednesday, San Jose's first Zombie Crawl!  What better way to get ready for October?

This event is centered around a screening of Shaun of the Dead, one of the most entertaining zombie movies I've seen. However, the real fun  is going to be joining the zombie hoard and marching through downtown dressed up as a zombie. There is even a make up artist on hand to help give you that authentic "zombie look." I've never heard of anything like this before, but I already hope it becomes a San Jose tradition, sounds like a lot of fun!

There will also be a zombie themed art show at SLG Publishing Boutiki and Gallery, as well as specials for the undead at Cafe Trieste, The Blue Chip, Brix Nightclub, Agenda Lounge, and South First Billiards. Checkout the official Zombie-O-Rama map below!

August 2009 Downtown Dimension Highlights

The latest issue of Downtown Dimension has arived! Here are the highlights:

• The Market (Safeway) opens it's first Downtown San Jose store on August 28th!  There are some concerns that it might put Zanotto's out of business.
• SJSU will have to cut enrollment by about 10% due to budget cuts.
• Silk Road Cafe has opened at 185 Park Ave. (same owners as Silk Road Bistro on San Fernando).
• The Art Glass Center of San Jose has set up shop at 465 S. First. St.
• D'Town Express offers dry cleaning and alterations at 15 Fountain Alley.
• Headcase Salon is now providing hair and tanning services at 151 W. St. James St.
• Legacy Partner's Riverpark Tower 2 is now leasing 316,000 sqft of Class A office space.
• The Civic Auditorium was lit July 24rd with a new high-tech LED lighting system (as reported here earlier).
• Downtown hotel occupancy is down from 67.04% last year to 55.65% this year.

Adobe HQ Photos - Part 3 of 3 (Click to Enlarge)