May 2018 Downtown Dimension Highlights

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

• The BART Board of Directors has officially joined the VTA Board in recommending a single bore subway under Santa Clara Street, greatly reducing the impact to Downtown businesses as well as construction time.
• Four micro-retail spaces at the Market-San Pedro Garage will open on May 18th. Collectively these will be called MOMENT.
• A temporary dog park will open at St. James Park later this month, further expanding uses for the park. A full remodel of the park is still in the works with a stage (50 music events per year), two dog parks, children's playground, and a lunch grove.
• Google purchased the San Jose Water Co. site from Trammel Crow. This has already been entitled for 1 million SQFT of offices, 325 residences, and 35,000 SQFT of ground-floor retail.
• Miro is adding 20 more units to their high-rise at 33 N. Fifth, across from City Hall.
• A 14,000 SQFT 18th floor is being built out at 50 West San Fernando, right above the Capital Club. Elevators are currently being extended and the Art Deco circles at the top will soon be replaced with windows.
• Cinnaholic is now open at 115 E. San Carlos St.
• Habana Cuba has moved from Midtown to the SoFA Market and is now open.
• Formula Nutrition is now open and selling supplements at 15 N. Second St.
• Music in the Park returns June 22nd.

To read the newsletter, click here!

Happy Mother's Day!

Rick Jensen has some great Mother's Day suggestions from the latest edition of the Downtowner Online. Check out the full weekly over here.

Mother's Day
Sunday, May 13 | Celebrate in Downtown San Jose!

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Spend some quality family time in Downtown San Jose this Mother’s Day. Enjoy a Pre-Mother’s Day wine tasting with pop-up shops at Enoteca La Storia this Wednesday at 6 pm. This Wednesday or Thursday at the Hammer Theatre, go see The (M)others, which highlights the stories of four mothers brought together after losing a loved one at the hands of the police. Show Mom your appreciation by taking her to a Mother’s Day Brunch also at Enoteca La Storia this Sunday from 10 am – 3 pm. Or take Mom out for great food, beer and music at Forager Tasting Room & Eatery, where the SoFA Street Fair will be presenting a LoveSeat Session with local artists performing classic rock from 4 pm – 8 pm! More downtown dining options.

The San Jose Blog's 9th Anniversary!

It is hard for me to believe that the blog has been running for 9 years. I still remember writing the initial post fueled by the desire to prove San Jose is worthy of being the 10th largest city in the county and the capital of Silicon Valley (I re-posted it below, just for fun). Since then, there have been 3,406 additional posts and 3.34 million visitors to The San Jose Blog.

There is still much we can improve as a city, but it is no longer a challenge to argue San Jose is a world-class city. Rarely does a week go by without San Jose being in the national news. We are getting new development proposals weekly and across all sectors (office, housing, hotel, etc.), major infrastructure improvements such as BART and an airport expansion are moving forward, new landmarks such are a modern Light Tower are now an actual possibility--and most importantly--we have a culture that revolves around innovation. That means a willingness to grow, recognize where we can do better, take risks, and try things that push the world forward. As long as we keep innovation as a core value in our culture, the future will always be just a little bit brighter.

Thank you all for supporting this blog over the years. Special shout out to Jennifer Bullock and Kimberly Vacca who have moved out of San Jose for their next adventures. We appreciate all of their contributions to the blog and wish them the best on their future adventures--hopefully they will find their way back to SJ in the future ;) 

Now for a quick step back in time...

Music in the Park is back for 2018!

One of the largest outdoor music events in the South Bay is returning this summer. Music in the Park 2018 features four different bands: Tony! Toni! Toné! (R&B) on June 22nd, Toots & the Maytals (Reggae) on July 12th, Third World with Jordan T. (Reggae) on August 3rd, and Malo (Latin rock and soul) on August 24th.

Super early bird tickets are available now for $10 per person and once those sell out, general admission tickets will sell for $15 in advance or $20 the day of the show. VIP passes with a drink ticket, free water, and private seating are available for $35. You can order them over here.

Tony! Toni! Toné! Bring back the '90s - it ‘Feels Good’ with R&B hits from Tony! Toni! Toné! Come on, let’s get down, let’s get down, let’s get down (on June 22). Buy Tickets Toots & the Maytals  From '54-46 what’s my number' to 'Pressure Drop', Toots & the Maytals have been performing reggae since reggae’s earliest days. Experience the beats on July 12. Buy Tickets

Third World with Jordan T.Classic roots reggae meets island reggae fusion. Get your groove in your festival best with Third World and Jordan T. on Aug. 3. Buy Tickets Malo Malo brings Latin rock, soul and oldies center stage with hits including “Suavecito.” Grab a friend and jam out on Aug. 24. Buy Tickets

Southwest launching new flights from SJC to Hawaii

The good news continues to roll in for our airport. Southwest announced last week that they are going to add flights from San Jose to Hawaii. This is already one of the most popular destinations from SJC and is currently serviced by both Hawaiian airlines and Alaska Airlines. Competition means more departure options, lower fares, and more tax dollars for San Jose (both directly and indirectly). Southwest already implied that they will have the lowest rates for the route, great news for us.

Southwest is planning to fly to four different islands, Oahu, Maui, Kauai, and Hawaii-"The Big Island" (Kona). Tickets sales will begin later this year and service could begin as soon as this winter using long-range versions of Boeing 737s.

As an added bonus, Southwest is also planning to add inter-island flights. That means lower fares for those that want to travel to multiple islands on one trip.

Source: SVBJ

Cinco de Mayo celebration

Olla Cocina is throwing an all-day Cinco de Mayo party tomorrow with live music, tacos, and margaritas. Admission tickets are $15 and food and drink tickets are $10 each on-site. This one is only for those 21 and over, so leave the kiddies at home.

Greater Rose Garden Certified Farmers Market

A new farmer's market near the Rose Garden will take place every Saturday from 10am to 2pm starting this weekend. There is no official end date, it will continue as long as the community is willing to support it.

The exact location is 577 Dana Avenue (a Lincoln High School parking lot). The official Grand Opening Celebration of the new market is on May 12th at 11am.

Thanks to Alex Shoor for sending this in!

Veggielution's 1st Saturday

This Saturday, May 5th, Veggielution is co-hosting their 1st Saturday event with the Open Space Authority. Veggielution is a great organization that is taking us back to the roots of the Valley of Heart's Delight by farming right here in San Jose. The event is kid-friendly and free.

You can find the schedule below. For more info head over to the Veggielution FB page.

Schedule:

9:00am - 10:00am YOGA by Jovanna at Vida Lifestyle Yoga in collaboration with Be The Change Yoga & Wellness (Bilingual English & Spanish/donation based)

10:00am - 11:00am Gardening 101 Workshops by La Mesa Verde (English & Spanish)

10:00am - 2:00pm Farm Stand

10:00am - 12:30pm Farm Volunteering

10:00am - 12:30pm Neighborhood Harvest (fruit gleaning off site)

10:00am - 12:30pm Youth Garden Volunteering & Activities

10:00am - 12:30pm Our Community Kitchen Food Truck will be serving FREE samples prepared by a Community Chef alongside the volunteer food truck team

10:00am - 12:30pm Cocina Cooking Class - Spanish Language Cooking Class - Contact Rosa Contreras at 408-753-6705 ext 7 to sign up (25 max capacity)

12:30pm - 1:30pm Community Lunch (food offered and potluck encouraged)

12:30pm - 3:30pm Live Music

1:30pm - 3:30pm Art in the Garden