The building will be a total of seven floors, two for parking and the rest for the apartments. There is no retail component, but tons of restaurants are available within three blocks (including Ike's). The total unit count will be 119 split across in 2-4 bedroom configurations, all of which will come fully furnished. While they will rent to anyone, this building is really designed for students. Symphony is planning to rent by the room at a rate of $750 to $1,250 a month, and that will include internet, cable, etc.
Also on tap are study rooms, barbecue pits, a recreation center, and swimming pool. While it may not be as tall as we would like, I think it will be a great infill project that will be an asset to the SJSU community.
Source: SVBJ
Am I reading this correctly—there are two levels of parking above ground?
ReplyDeleteWhy wouldn't you put the parking underground?
Way less expensive to go above ground.
DeleteI get that, but why not plan long term? There should be zoning restrictions that force new construction to build parking underground. It's not good long-term planning by the city if they truly want a liveable, walkable downtown in the future. Disappointing.
DeleteIt's because the city truly doesn't care about making a walkable city, if they did, this horrible design would not be permitted.
DeleteYeah, they sure don't care about making it walkable. All 180 square miles of it. /Sarc. This is a VERY VERY LARGE city, last I checked. This isn't some bumfugk Midwestern town or a Peninsula village.
DeleteIf they didn't care, they wouldn't make a trail that runs the length of the city. If they didn't care, they wouldn't have gone out of the way to put buffer lanes and green bike lanes in Downtown. The damage that was done to Downtown is only now beginning to be worked on. So give it time.
Cheaper to put parking above ground. Look at what they're charging for the rent--ridiculously cheap if that's true. So they had to build cheap to begin with.
ReplyDeleteI stand correct. Looks like they rent by room. So if we take 1BD + 1 LR = 1250 X 2 = $2300/mo. About normal I think, though with more "luxurious" features.
DeleteThe rent rate is hard to believe.
ReplyDeleteAnother short, bland non-descript building for downtown San Jose. At street level you will have the always inviting parking garage to look at and the remainder of the building looks like a prison. Sigh. Welcome to downtown San Jose.
ReplyDeleteIt actually looks decent, design-wise. Very campus-like, awnings on top with red brick "masonry" on the bottom 2 floors. Looks very similar to SJSU's current Campus Village. It actually looks better than SJSU's Phase 2 for Campus Village!
DeleteAnd what's with the "Welcome to Downtown San Jose" attitude? One ugly building (in your opinion) = entire Downtown is ugly?
Bitch all day, whine at everything.
Its only one block from school. Why do you need a parking lot at all? Now they are encouraging the students with parking oversupply to get in their cars and drive one whole block! to school. Seriously. San Jose can't even build a downtown dorm-room that is car-lite? Its just sad. One of the advantages of going to SJ State is that you don't have to have a car. Now students trying to walk to class will need to dodge cars zooming out of their vast parking lot. Other cities are looking at SJ are just laughing at how inept the city is at building a downtown. Its just embarrassing.
ReplyDeleteLooking at room rent, I can tell this building is built for the "luxury students". They will bring their cars with them when they rent these rooms, to go to places other than schools. My buddy who went to Cal Poly brought his car with him, so that he can drive to LA, Vegas, SD, and Santa Barbara on his weekends after he's either completed or procrastinated with his weekly studies.
DeleteThe parking garage will be shared with the Vintage Tower apartments. Their current structure is being torn down to make way for this project.
DeleteAnother parking crater, eyesore for downtown. If students want to live in car dependent housing, they have an infinite sea of choices in San Jose that they can commute from. Downtown should be emphasizing walking, instead of using valuable land for long term car storage just in case someone might want to take a road trip. Ridiculous.
ReplyDeleteIt won't be that much of an eyesore, it's pretty hidden behind the Art Deco building and the other businesses directly to the north of it on the same block. Granted 2 floors of parking is A BIT MUCH, and the unit count is SMALL, that is kinda lame.
DeleteLooks like the 'architect' dragged dropped an embassy sweets off is saved buildings directory, removed the atrium and replaced with a swimming pool. 10 minutes, done. Did they even use a real architect, or just an intern. It has 80s style cheap hotel written all over it. Since its near city hall, why not something a little contemporary that would fit in better. Does the city have any idea what placemaking is.
ReplyDeleteYou do know that this building sits right north of the Art Deco building built back in the 30's right? That's why they picked a more "classical" design, to fit with the Art Deco building's design.
DeleteThe design is fine the way it is. I just wish that they had more unit counts ie taller building.
Another boring design. What is up with the architects and the designers of downtown San Jose???
ReplyDeleteThey're too busy working on good looking designs like the Pierce, Centerra, Silvery, and One South (which took some proddings, granted). They've also put in some good work like the apartments on 4th and 3rd, Axis, 360, 88, Campus Village at SJSU, and San Pedro Square Market.
DeleteOnce in a while we're going to get a dud. Get over it folks :) I personally thinks it looks fine, though more unit count would have been so much better.
It's not so much lame architects as it is the city accepting bad, uninspiring design. The developer isn't from San Jose, so they'll build this crap, get paid, leave and do it again somewhere else.
ReplyDeleteI've never lived in a city that is so prone to lying on it's back and accepting anything for the sake of in-fill or as the result of bad or no planning. It's laughable.
So here it is, another cream and earth toned midrise building. How exciting and fortunate we are to have this wedged in a half block from city hall. San Jose is asleep at the wheel.
I don't think I'd pay for my kid to live at "Vintage Tower." That place is sketchy as hell.
ReplyDelete5 stories of residential over two stories of parking, that replaced a one story parking garage. More then likely this garage will be split between aspen village and the new building since theyve already demolished the ugly 10ft tall structure that was there. Did loose a cool mural however. This is an infil development guys, for students, developers not looking to spend $100 mil. those projects are happening elsewhere, it's a balance. This isn't terrible considering what it's offering.
ReplyDelete