Time-lapse photo montage of Downtown high-rises

What happens when you piece together dozens of photos taken from City Heights between 2012 and 2016? You get a really neat 33 second montage showing the construction of One South, Centerra, and Silvery Towers. Check out the video below!

Big thanks to David Cheung for sending this in.

Starbird: super-premium fast food launches in Silicon Valley

Starbird is a restaurant with a very unique beginning as it was actually created by a restaurant consulting company. What better way to show your customers you know what you're talking about than to create your own restaurant from scratch and practice what you preach? They invited me to come and try out their food and I have been back there a couple times since.

I'm not a huge fan of fast food (Chick-Fil-A and The Habit are my two exceptions), but have to say that Starbird does an outstanding job. They use Petaluma Farms free-range chicken, organic eggs, fresh-baked bread, and they make all of their sauces in house. Despite the high-end ingredients, the prices are still reasonable and the food comes out quickly.

My favorite item so far is the Free Range Ranch sandwich--crispy chicken, slaw, bacon, pimento cheese, and Greek yogurt ranch. They also have chicken tenders (the maple aioli was my favorite dipping sauce), wraps with an international twist, salads, breakfast sandwiches, and a house made chocolate-dipped ice cream cone with crushed toffee or almonds.

The decor is impressive for fast food. Starbird really put in a high attention to detail inside and out. The interior was clean and modern with some nice features like the plants in the middle of a communal table. They have a nice patio with plenty of tables and creative lighting. I can't say the seating was super comfortable, but it's not supposed to be for fast food.

Starbird also baked in the latest tech available for restaurants. You can always see the status of your order by looking at a large flat-screen so theoretically they don't have to shout out names or numbers. There is even a smartphone app that allows you to order, park, and have the food delivered to your car (think drive-through 2.0). It really seems to embody everything you would expect from a new fast food restaurant launched in Silicon Valley--not just the tech but the quality of the food, atmosphere, and the desire to innovate as well as challenge people's perceptions of fast food.

The first Starbird is located at 1241 El Camino Real in Sunnyvale. The owners are planning to open 9 more locations in Silicon Valley. For more information, head over to the Starbird website.

A Recent Visit to Hermitage Brewing Company

Since their opening in 2009, Hermitage Brewing Company has grown five-fold in terms of their brewery and operations space at their 7th Street location. Their growth is a reflection of the growing demand for their beers and their brewing services.

Recent beer awards and accolades include the bronze medal for Maltopia Scotch Ale in the Scottish-Style Ale category at the prestigious World Beer Cup held earlier this year, 1st place in the Sour Ale category for Sour Cherry Sour at this year’s California State Fair Commercial Craft Brew Competition and inclusion in this year’s top 50 (out of 247) of Paste Magazine’s popular American IPA blind tasting for Citra Single Hop IPA, coming in at #35.

They also have a separate sour beer making facility to release more of their own sour beers, while maintaining their high quality standards.

I recently visited Hermitage and toured the facilities with brewmaster Peter Licht and head brewer and cellarmaster Greg Filippi. I also took a bunch of pictures. Click here for the post.

Cheers!

Silvery Towers at Sunset

This beautiful photo from C2K Architecture shows off the Bank of America building and both cranes from the Silvery Towers project in Downtown San Jose. It looks like both high-rise buildings are going to get a stunning sunset view when completed next year.

Source: Hillrise from the San Jose Development Forum

Photo by Edward Nowak: www.edwardnowakphotography.com

The Hard Truth - live concert to benefit pediatric cancer and team Sofia

1993 Bellarmine Alumni, Matthew Largent (The Hard Truth) and Coach Mike Rodriguez, (father of Sofia Rodriguez currently battling Leukemia) are hosting a benefit concert to help raise awareness and funds for all children and families battling pediatric cancers.

The event will be on Saturday August 27, 2016 at 5:00pm at Bellarmine’s Sobrato Theatre with a short drink reception followed by an hour and a half set played by The Hard Truth. The evening will then conclude with speeches bringing awareness to struggles of pediatric cancer patients and families. The night will end roughly around 7:30pm.

All in attendance will have the opportunity to purchase music and apparel (#teamsofia) in which all proceeds will go directly to Team G foundation honoring Sofia Rodriguez. The money raised will help fund Pediatric Cancer Research at Lucile Packard Children’s Hospital as well as programs to benefit the well-being and comfort of children battling cancer. We look forward to seeing you there!

REGISTER TODAY: CLICK HERE

For more information:  www.teamsofia.causevox.com, http://posthope.org/team-sofia,
Coach Mike Rodriguez: mrodriguez@bcp.org
Follow: @thehardtruthmusic , @lolasounds , @matthew_largent

Silicon Valley Pride festivities take place this weekend

Pride kicks off tomorrow in Downtown San Jose with an electronic dance music party on Almaden Boulevard from 6pm to 11pm. Then on Sunday, the parade starts at 10am on Market Street and is followed by a huge festival from 11am to 6pm. There will be food, drinks, cosplay, a family garden, games, and live performances. They are even advertising 7 hours of Pokemon Go lures (why not). For more information and for tickets, head over to svpride.com.

Strike Brewing Company Scores a Hit with its Bullpen Series

The Bullpen Series from Strike Brewing Company has been all about the chance to offer guests a wider variety of beer styles at the taproom. It's also provided an outlet for Strike to develop and try out new recipes.

Recent beers coming out of the Bullpen Series have included Berliner Weisse with blueberries and pomegranate, Rained Out Pale Ale with pineapple and toasted coconut, Bergamot Breakfast Pale Ale with local lemon zest and Earl Grey tea, Milk Stout and Big Wall Imperial Stout with Madagascar Vanilla Beans.

With such creative beers coming out every month or so and only available at the taproom, it's not a surprise that these Bullpen beers don't last long upon their release.

I was curious about how the Bullpen Series came about and was able to connect with its developer, Strike brewer Ryan Bridge, a South Bay native. My Q&A with him can be found here on my local beer site.

Strike is also celebrating the 2nd anniversary of their taproom opening on Oct. 8. Click here for more info. and tickets.

Cheers!

JINS is coming to Valley Fair on August 31st

JINS is a Japanese eyewear company with 350 retail locations in Asia. They opened their first US store last year in San Francisco. San Jose gets the honor of being their 2nd location in the US. The 2,300 SQFT Valley Fair store features 960 different styles (all designed in Tokyo) and customers can receive their glasses in only 30 minutes. Prices are reasonable, starting at $60 for frames. 15 minute eye exams will be available as well.

This marks yet another instance of San Jose grabbing an international brand that not widely available in the US. Others include Warby Parker, Kit & Ace, Bonobos, Scotch & Soda, Halston, MUJI, David Yurman, Miu Miu, and many more.

JINS will be located on the second floor between Nordstrom and Old Navy.

Tower of Power performs Aug. 25 at Music in the Park

Show opens with popular local band Super Soul Brothers

SAN JOSE – Tower of Power returns to Music in the Park on Aug. 25.

Acclaimed for its five-piece horn section, Tower of Power tours the world each year, playing hundreds of dates and pleasing their audiences with a parade of funk and soul classics including: “You’re Still a Young Man,” “Down to the Nightclub,” “So Very Hard to Go,” “Time Will Tell,” and “What is Hip?”

Tower of Power previously appeared at Music in the Park in 1994 and 1995.  Founding members Emilio Castillo (tenor sax and vocals), Stephen “Doc” Kupka (baritone sax), Francis Rocco Prestia (bass) and David Garibaldi (drummer), have never stopped recording or touring in 48 years.

Marcus Scott joined T.O.P. as its new lead singer in April.  “I have always been known as a ‘Soul Man’ but the T.O.P. has me singing Soul with a capital S,” he said.

The show begins at 5:30 p.m. with Super Soul Brothers, which combines funk and jazz with familiar melodies from classic video games, anime and TV and movie soundtracks.

All Music in the Park shows are at Plaza de Cesar Chavez, located in downtown San Jose along Market Street and surrounded by the Fairmont San Jose, Tech Museum of Innovation, San Jose Museum of Art and other downtown landmarks.

The Tower of Power date is the last of four Music in the Park concerts scheduled for 2016:

June 24:  Los Lobos and Maxx Cabelllo, Jr.
July 14:  AC/DShe, The Killer Queens and The Drought
Aug. 4:  Ozomatli and Sonido Clash Session
Aug. 25: Tower of Power with Super Soul Brothers

For more about the Aug. 25 artists, visit http://www.towerofpower.com and http://www.supersoulbros.com.

Tickets --$10 per adult and free for 12-under when accompanied by an adult -- are now available at www.musicintheparksj.com. At the door, admission will be $15 per adult.

Music in the Park is presented by Metro Newspapers and produced by the San Jose Downtown Association.  The events are supported by a grant from the City of San Jose Office of Cultural Affairs.

Visit www.sjdowntown.com for information about downtown San Jose and the San Jose Downtown Association.

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About San Jose Downtown Association:  SJDA, a non-profit membership-based organization founded in 1986, represents business and property owners and works to enhance downtown’s vitality and livability.

Samsung adding retail at San Jose HQ

Samsung opened their North American headquarters last year in North San Jose (at Tasman and First Street). One of the perks of the new campus is that is is publicly accessible unlike most tech offices in Silicon Valley (ex: Google, Facebook). However, while you can walk around the beautiful campus there really isn't much to do as a non-Samsung employee. That is about to change with two need retail options that will be a perk to employees and visitors alike. Samsung is adding a Honey Berry and Peet's on the ground floor.

As Nathan Donato-Weinstein alludes to in the source link, tech companies have become pretty notorious for discouraging outsiders to visit. Perhaps that is due to fears of intellectual property leaks or wanting to build camaraderie with internal employees. This mentality really does not feel like the right thing to do in an urban environment. It's great to see Samsung trying to do something different that will perhaps pay dividends by promoting their brand to the local community.

Honey Berry is a popular Asian ice cream/dessert shop that will be a welcome addition to the North San Jose community. They have a few other locations in Silicon Valley, but none in North San Jose. I highly recommend their ice cream sandwiches. Peet's I think requires no introduction.

Speaking of being open, Samsung's corporate cafeteria is also open to the public! I was not aware of that until reading Nathan's article.

Source: SVBJ

Chacho's Taco Festival is this Saturday

The second annual Chacho's Taco Festival is going to bring a ton of tacos, live music, and good times to St. James Park this weekend. Part of the festivities include the only MLE (Major League Eating) sanctioned taco eating contest in Northern California. In 2014 Matt Stoney won the inaugural competition by eating 101 tacos in 8 minutes (!!!).

The event runs from 11am to 8pm. Admission is $10 and parking is available at 64 N. Market St. and San Pedro Square. For more information head over to the Taco Festival website over here.

Uproar Brewing Company Hopes to Open by the End of the Year

I thought I'd pop in to provide a quick update on Uproar Brewing Company. I recently visited the brewery to check out the progress on their buildout and to find out when they might be looking to open.

Though there weren't any specific opening dates mentioned, they were all hopeful that they would be able to open by the end of the year.

It was evident inside the building that a lot of construction has taken place, and it was great to see that most of the brewery equipment had already arrived.

I wrote a quick post about the visit - with a bunch of pictures - over at my local beer site at gratefulhubby.com.

Prost! Gunbae! Cheers!

JetSuiteX launching twice daily service from SJC to Burbank

The week would not feel right without at least one post about a new SJC route. Currently JetSuiteX's only San Jose route is to Bozeman, Montana. If you have never heard of JetSuiteX before, there is good reason--the airline does not fly out of Terminal A or Terminal B. They fly out of the private aviation terminal on the other side of the airport. That means fewer security hassles and going from the door to the plane in as little time as possible.

They just announced that they will by flying from SJC to Burbank twice per day, typically once in the morning and once in the afternoon. Tickets range from $129 one way for a ticket bought more than a week in advance to $199-$249 less than a week. The plane is an Embraer 135s with just 30 seats (10 rows of 3 seats). It's as close as you can get to flying private without spending thousands of dollars each way.

Source: SVBJ

2nd Annual San Jose Mini Maker Faire takes place September 4th

The second Maker Faire festival is coming to San Jose's History Park on Sunday, September 4th from 10am to 6pm. This family-friendly event is being run by History San Jose and will showcase makers, inventors, tinkerers, artists, builders, and crafters. It should be a great event to celebrate the creativity in Silicon Valley!

Tickets start at $12 for adults if you purchase your ticket in advance over here. There are discounts for children and History San Jose members. Prices at the door are 25% more expensive.

Major mixed-use redevelopment project proposed on Stevens Creek

West San Jose has not been getting a lot of attention lately when it comes to major development projects--especially when compared to Downtown and North San Jose. Developer FortBay LLC is stepping up to the plate and is proposing a 244,000 SQFT office complex along with 500 apartments at Stevens Creek and Lopina Way. That would been enough space for 1,500 jobs in West San Jose, allowing more residential to be built without contributing to our current jobs/housing imbalance.

The apartments would be built in two six-story buildings, the office would be in a separate six-story building, and there would be a six-story garage to handle the parking. It looks like the developers are a fan of buildings with six levels. Unfortunately it does not sound like there is a retail component.

Right now the area is not permitted for residential, so the developer is hoping to get "signature project" status which would given them a bit of leeway here. Combining office and residential into an urban village makes a lot of sense from a logistics and parking perspective, so I hope this goes through.

Source: SVBJ

WeWork is now open in Downtown San Jose

The Silicon Valley Business Journal has some great photos of San Jose's largest coworking space. WeWork has opened a 75,000 SQFT facility at 75 E. Santa Clara Street that provides flexible working space for small businesses and entrepreneurs. Over 60 companies are already in the process of moving in. The total capacity is 1,500 people (100-200 small companies).

Prices range from $350/mo for a "hot desk", $400-$450 for a dedicated desk, $660/mo for a one-person office and increase from that point on. WeWork provides all the necessary amenities and infrastructure such as internet access, printers, conference rooms, cleaning services, water, and coffee.

It's a great model for small companies that also provides a sense of community. Oh yeah, coworking also injects hundreds of entrepreneurs into the Downtown San Jose community, adding to the vibrancy of the area. NextSpace was the first coworking space in Downtown San Jose and it helped to transform that corner at 97 S. 2nd Street.

Check out the source link below for photos of the WeWork facilities and more information.

Source: SVBJ

United and JetBlue add more flights at SJC

This is becoming an ongoing theme. San Jose International continues to attract more and more flights, something which I find very well deserved. Beside the obvious location advantages, it is one of the best operated airports I have ever been to. Flights are rarely delayed, it is surprisingly fast to get to the gate, baggage comes quickly, even the TSA seems friendlier than other airports.

Finally the word is getting out--passenger traffic is up 9% at SJC in the first six months of 2016 and both United and JetBlue are adding more flights and routes. United is taking a page from Alaska's book and will fly directly from San Jose to Newark in March. That is not only the exact same time-frame as the new Alaska Airlines flight to New York, but the flight will leave and return at the exact same time (6:30am departure from SJC, arriving at EWR at 2:55pm, return flight leaves EWR at 4:05pm and arrives at SJC at 7:40pm). I was suspicious that this is the same flight as Alaska Airlines co-listed as United, but that does not seem to be the case. United is also adding a twice-daily nonstop from San Jose to Chicago O'Hare.

JetBlue is launching a nonstop between San Jose and Long Beach starting January 4th, 2017. The best part is that the route will be flown not once, not twice, but four times each day. This addition means that San Jose now has direct flights to all five LA airports (LAX, Burbank, Orange County, and Ontario are the others). JetBlue is promoting the flight with rates as low as $39 each way.

Sources: Forbes (thanks Josh Russell for sending this in), SVBJ

August 2016 Downtown Dimension Highlights

Here are my notes from the latest edition of Downtown Dimension:

• The Family Justice Center is now open, merging six locations into a single courthouse facility. The eight story building is 233,906 SQFT and contains 20 different courtrooms.
• Four landscaping and design firms each received $25k to create a new vision for St. James Park. The new design must include a water feature and Levitt Pavilion outdoor stage.
• Downtown Doors expands to 103 sites, 20 new pieces of artwork have been added to Downtown sites.
• Starlight Cinemas is bringing back its movie series at St. James Park. Jurassic Park will play on Aug. 31 and Beetlejuice will air on Sep. 21.
• Jazz Summer Fest is taking place from Aug 12-14th, featuring 120 performances on 12 stages and bringing tens of thousands of people to Downtown San Jose.
• Origins Juicery, Downtown's first cold-pressed juice store, is now open at 150 S. 1st Street
• Pieology is now open at 99 E. San Fernando St.

To read the newsletter, click here!

Omescape San Jose adds a 4th escape game - Pandemic Zero

Escape games are continuing to become more and more popular in the Bay Area. I love them, even thought I lost the first three rooms I attempted. They are not easy (only 15-33% of teams escape), but even if you lose it is a great experience.

The concept is similar for all of these rooms: you are locked in and have an hour to solve a series of puzzles in order to unlock the door and escape. Some companies create rooms that are better and more interesting than others. So far I have done three of the Omescape rooms and they have been among my favorites. Omescape uses a lot of special effects, tactile challenges (as opposed to solving lots of math problems), and utilizes multiple rooms/secret doors for each escape.

Omescape San Jose launched with three rooms: Kingdom of Cats (easiest, 2-6 players), Dark Altar (medium difficulty, 4-6 players), and Joker's Asylum (very hard, 6-10 players). Their fourth room is called Pandemic Zero and is medium difficulty (3-6 players). Here is a description of their latest challenge:

Pandemic Zero
A super virus has infected 95% of the world's population.
You have discovered the location of a top-secret lab. However, the entrance to it has been locked because of a citywide quarantine.
Can you find the hidden entrance underneath the city in the sewers and finish work on the cure before you become infected too?

I'm really stoked to try it out next weekend. They are also working on a fifth room that is still 2-3 months away, which will make it the largest escape room facility in the Bay Area and perhaps California. If you have yet to do an escape room, try Kingdom of Cats and you'll be hooked.

Omescape San Jose is located at 625 Wool Creek Dr, Ste E, San Jose 95112. Check out their Facebook page over here and book tickets here.

Almaden Boulevard is getting an exercise loop

The first time I saw a public outdoor exercise area with free equipment to use was in Israel five or six years ago. Since then I have always thought this would be a great addition to San Jose, especially given our weather and the fact that San Jose is one of the healthiest cities in the US. It looks like we are finally getting such a space in 2017.

A one-mile-long exercise loop will be built in Downtown San Jose thanks to donations from Kaiser Permanente, the Sharks Foundation, and SAP. The loop will consist of two exercise elements: the loop itself (which is designed for walking, jogging, or running) and a "Fitness Hub" in the median of Almaden Boulevard and Santa Clara Street. There will also be smaller fitness areas placed throughout the loop for smaller groups.

The Fitness Hub will have several pieces of equipment that residents and visitors can use and it is right next to a Bay Area BikeShare station. This is a great way to encourage people to be healthy while and removing the financial barrier of a gym membership.

The Downtown PBID (property-based improvement district) is also seeking a designer to construct and install a sign for the exercise loop. If you know anyone that may fit the bill for that type of job, contact information is below.

Request for Qualifications (RFQ)

The Downtown Property-Based Improvement District (PBID) is seeking to select a designer(s) to construct and install a vertical entry sign/monument for the Exercise Loop in downtown San Jose. The designer(s) will work with the San Jose Downtown Association (SJDA) to develop their piece in the Fitness Hub located in the median of Almaden Boulevard and Santa Clara Street.  The entry/monument will not only identify the Exercise Loop by name, but must also express branding and wayfinding elements for the Exercise Loop itself.

To be considered for this project, refer to the application process and send the information by Friday, August 19, 2016 by 5:30 pm.

For more Information, please direct questions to Stephanie Wong, PBID Project Coordinator, swong@sjdowntown.com

Gree opening commercial flagship store in san jose

Gree Electric is the largest air conditioning firm in the world. With the opening of their flagship store in San Jose, it will mark the very first time that Gree's commercial products will be available in California. While these are not the types of products you and I would buy for our homes, it will benefit Silicon Valley businesses that are looking to reduce HVAC costs and be more "green."

San Jose, CA -- Gree, the world's largest air conditioning manufacturer and a leading Chinese manufacturer of innovative, green, heating and cooling solutions is opening its first showroom for commercial products in California on August 9, 2016. The grand opening reception is scheduled for 9:30 AM to 11:30 AM on Tuesday at ECS Design, Inc. 502 Auzerais Avenue, San Jose, CA 95126. A special ribbon cutting and ceremonial lion dance will take place at 10:00 AM.

ECS Design has been a general contractor and HVAC specialist in San Jose for more than a decade and a strong advocate for green building construction for sustainable growth. According to Richard Wong, President of ECS, "the significance of Gree coming to San Jose is about green energy movement in the US. They are a leader in VRF* air conditioning systems which are emerging in importance everywhere around the world. It is time that we employ these energy-saving systems in the US.”

ECS Design (ecsdesign.net) will serve a role in training for commercial installation of Gree systems and expanding awareness of the company in California. Wong explains "We hope to begin installing Gree commercial systems and will be looking at larger distribution warehouses as we ramp up."

For more information contact ecs@ecsdesign.net.

About Gree
Gree (www.global.gree.com) is a multinational electric company focused on heating and air conditioning in the international market. In China it also manufactures electric appliances. It has a long history of supporting the Chinese government push toward a cleaner environment and green technology solutions. It had sales of (US) $22.9 billion in 2015. Gree is one of the largest female-led companies, operating under the leadership of President Dong Mingzhu since 2001. (http://www.makers.com/china/dong-mingzhu).

* Variable refrigerant flow is an HVAC technology that was invented in Japan by Daikin company in 1982. It uses refrigerant as both the cooling and heating medium and has gained popularity in many parts of the world, but has been slower to catch on in the US.

Saturday Stats: San Jose is the 3rd most educated city in the US

Given that the tech industry is fueled by some of the brightest minds in the world, it should come as no surprise that San Jose ranks as one of the best educated cities in the country. WalletHub looked at the 150 largest metros in the US and compared nine key metrics such as percentage of adults with bachelor's degrees, public school rankings, University rankings, racial gaps in educational attainment, and gender gaps in educational attainment.

After all the numbers were crunched the San Jose metro came in 3rd on the list, only bested by Ann Arbor and Washington DC. Boston came in 6th followed by the San Francisco metro at #7. The same study ranked San Jose as #7 in 2014, so there is a positive trend in our area. To see the full list as well as more stats check out the source link below.

Source: WalletHub, thanks to Barclay Livker for sending this in!

Five Points Cocktail Bar coming to San Pedro Square

Does Downtown San Jose really need another craft cocktail bar? Heck yes it does. Five Points is coming to the San Pedro Square area, nestled between Britannia Arms and AFK Gamer Lounge. There isn't much information on their website besides the following text:

"Honoring the traditions and culture of the old saloons and bars that graced one of the most notorious neighborhoods in America"

Intriguing! For some photos of the interior space head over to the Five Points Facebook page.

Epic list of Downtown San Jose projects

Rosellen Downey from the Silicon Valley Business Journal has compiled a list of major projects in Downtown San Jose. All I can say is wow. If even half of these are developed the Downtown area will look quite differently that it does today.

Source: SVBJ

Enoteca La Storia coming to Little Italy

Little Italy is about to get another flagship restaurant across the street from Henry's Hi-Life. Enoteca La Storia will bring more fresh pastas, pizzas, and paninis to the neighborhood along with Italian cocktails and wines. They already have a very successful and highly rated location in Los Gatos (4.5 stars on Yelp) at 416 North Santa Cruz Ave., Los Gatos. I can't wait for the San Jose version to open up!

For more info head over to the Enoteca La Storia website.

San Jose's Strike Brewing Co. wins a Silver Medal at the 2016 US Open Beer Championship

Huge congratulations to one of San Jose's first craft beer companies. Strike Brewing Co. scored 2nd place at a national championship among thousands of entries. Their Screaming Hand Imperial Amber Ale took home the Silver in the Imperial Red category. The beer is now sold throughout California, but I would recommend visiting Strike's taproom for the full experience at 2099 S. 10th St. (Wed-Thu 4pm-8pm, Fri 3pm-9pm, Sat 1pm-9pm, Sunday 1pm-7pm).

For more information head over to the Strike website or read the press release below.

SAN JOSE — San Jose craft brewer Strike Brewing Company has won a silver medal for their Screaming Hand Imperial Amber Ale.

Brewmaster and co-founder Drew Ehrlich said, “We’re very proud that Screaming Hand Imperial Amber Ale took Silver in the Imperial Red category of the 2016 U.S. Open Beer Championships. We already thought this beer was special. But it’s great to get the recognition the too.”

Strike co-founder and CEO, Jenny Lewis says “Not only is this great news, it is also perfect timing as we’re helping iconic local skateboarding company Santa Cruz Skateboards celebrate the 30th anniversary of Screaming Hand at their art opening on Friday, August 5th.”

Award winning Screaming Hand Imperial Amber Ale is available throughout the state of California.

For more information, visit StrikeBrewingCo.com/ScreamingHand

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ABOUT STRIKE BREWING COMPANY
Strike Brewing Company was founded in 2014 and was born out of the desire to make great craft beer. With their standard lineup of ales, seasonal rotation of holiday specialties, and experimental Bullpen Series, Strike Brewing Co. is helping make San Jose a craft beer destination. For more information, visit StrikeBrewingCo.com.

ABOUT SANTA CRUZ SKATEBOARDS
Santa Cruz Skateboards, located in Santa Cruz California, was established in 1973 by then owners, Richard Novak, Doug Haut and Jay Shuirman who founded NHS Inc. Santa Cruz Skateboards has long been revered as one of the original skateboard companies that has not only survived over the years but contributed to the innovation and modernization of skateboards and skateboarding. In 2013 NHS celebrated its 40th anniversary. Follow us on Instagram @Santacruzskateboards and @Santacruzskate on Snapchat, Twitter and Periscope.

First renders of a bright residential tower for SJSU students

Last week Nathan Donato-Weinstein wrote an article about "The Graduate @ SoFA," a new 19-story tower that is being proposed where The Tech Shop and McDonalds used to be in Downtown San Jose (area bound by San Carlos, Third Street, and Second street). The new renderings look quite impressive for the area--I love the bright yellow accents that remind me of a highlighter. We may have some very spoiled SJSU students in a few years.

The L-shaped building has 260 units, with most having four bedrooms. Over 1,000 students could be housed in the tower. There is an amenity deck with a swimming pool on the fourth flour and 10,000 SQFT of retail on the ground floor. There are intentionally very few balconies as a "safety feature" (university students can party pretty hard).

A side benefit to SoFA is that it moves students closer to the Downtown core and places them a block away from South First Street. This will help increase activity and vibrancy in the area.

Rents will go for around $1,000/mo for a room, a bargain in Silicon Valley. While the project is targeted to SJSU students, I don't think there is anything legally preventing non-students from moving in. There is still no ETA on when the building could break ground--the developers are still working on design and entitlements.

Source: SVBJ