Thursday, April 5, 2012
DS2 Raises $12.7M
DS2 is a company that specializes in computational design platforms and electrical equipment. They were founded in 2007 and are currently in West San Jose. They raised $12.7M in a Series C round. Perhaps in a couple of years we'll see them IPO.
Wednesday, April 4, 2012
Wednesday Wishlist: Free WiFi for the City of San Jose
Wherever people go, more and more they are expecting access to all of their data whether it is work or play. Speaking of work, most of the innovation happening today in Silicon Valley is focused around the internet, whether it is software as a service, mobile apps, or underlying infrastructure. It just makes sense to make the internet ubiquitous here. Mountain View already has city-wide WiFi courtesy of Google, and Santa Clara will be next (via Silicon Valley Power). To stay on the cutting edge, we really need to make this standard infrastructure as accessible as possible.
A huge step in the right direction is the $100k upgrade of our free WiFi system Downtown. The current system was built in 2004, is slow, and drops frequently in many areas. The new system being provided by Ruckus Wireless will be substantially faster and have far better coverage. The next step will be expanding it beyond Downtown!
A huge step in the right direction is the $100k upgrade of our free WiFi system Downtown. The current system was built in 2004, is slow, and drops frequently in many areas. The new system being provided by Ruckus Wireless will be substantially faster and have far better coverage. The next step will be expanding it beyond Downtown!
Tuesday, April 3, 2012
Veggielution Expansion!
Over the weekend Veggielution announced that they are tripling their acreage over at Emma Prusch Farm! This will allow them to greatly increase production of their fresh San Jose-grown fruits and vegetables as well as create a fruit orchard, outdoor kitchen, and a permanent farm stand. For all the details, read the press release below.
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Veggielution was founded in 2008 to change the way we think about food and create a sustainable food system in San José. The nonprofit farm has expanded every year thanks to the energy of thousands of volunteers, extensive support from the City of San José, and generous funding from hundreds of donors and foundations.
The expansion to six acres, from just under two acres previously, will allow Veggielution to substantially increase its production of fresh vegetables and fruits in order to increase access to these healthy foods for all San José and Santa Clara County residents. Over the next several years, Veggielution will need three times as many volunteers and greatly expanded funding in order to expand the farm operations and Veggielution’s many educational community programs.
“This is an extremely exciting time for Veggielution,” said Amie Frisch, Veggielution co-founder and Executive Director. “We could not have reached this point without help from the strong and growing network in this community that cares about our local food system. We will be counting on that network and on our supporters’ help more than ever in the years to come. Together we can make a tremendous impact.”
In 2010 and 2011 alone, Veggielution grew more than 35,000 pounds of vegetables, following sustainable farming principles and without the use of synthetic fertilizers or chemicals. The produce is given for free to volunteers after their labor during the farm’s near-daily workdays, sold at low prices at the Saturday farm stand at Emma Prusch Park, donated to soup kitchens, and sold at local farmers markets and restaurants to support farm operations.
“Veggielution helps people connect with the food they eat, and helps foster a sense of community and environmental stewardship in those who participate,” said Mark Anthony Medeiros, Veggielution co-founder and Farm Director. “At the farm, anyone can come and get dirty growing veggies, make friends with cool new people from their community, and buy produce at affordable prices. We’re very excited that the City of San José is supporting us by allowing us to expand our farm to include even more people.”
Expansion Plans
The proposed design for the expanded farm, prepared by local landscape architect Bruce Hill in consultation with Veggielution staff, incorporates elements of Prusch Farm Park's original 1972 Master Plan and input that Veggielution gathered from the community. The plan includes fruit orchards, an outdoor kitchen for cooking and nutrition classes, a permanent farm stand, a packing and cooling shed, an expanded greenhouse and shadehouse complex, and a mobile office. Veggielution will work with City staff on every step of implementation.
The design preserves and deepens the volunteers’ and visitors’ educational experience with signage and nods to the agricultural history of the Valley of Heart’s Delight. The increase in farmed land dramatically increases the number of volunteer opportunities for people of all walks of life and skill levels, while also allowing Veggielution to add to its existing offering of cooking and nutrition classes, Dig Crew high school youth program, off-site school gardens, and workshops.
The expansion to six acres, from just under two acres previously, will allow Veggielution to substantially increase its production of fresh vegetables and fruits in order to increase access to these healthy foods for all San José and Santa Clara County residents. Over the next several years, Veggielution will need three times as many volunteers and greatly expanded funding in order to expand the farm operations and Veggielution’s many educational community programs.
“This is an extremely exciting time for Veggielution,” said Amie Frisch, Veggielution co-founder and Executive Director. “We could not have reached this point without help from the strong and growing network in this community that cares about our local food system. We will be counting on that network and on our supporters’ help more than ever in the years to come. Together we can make a tremendous impact.”
In 2010 and 2011 alone, Veggielution grew more than 35,000 pounds of vegetables, following sustainable farming principles and without the use of synthetic fertilizers or chemicals. The produce is given for free to volunteers after their labor during the farm’s near-daily workdays, sold at low prices at the Saturday farm stand at Emma Prusch Park, donated to soup kitchens, and sold at local farmers markets and restaurants to support farm operations.
“Veggielution helps people connect with the food they eat, and helps foster a sense of community and environmental stewardship in those who participate,” said Mark Anthony Medeiros, Veggielution co-founder and Farm Director. “At the farm, anyone can come and get dirty growing veggies, make friends with cool new people from their community, and buy produce at affordable prices. We’re very excited that the City of San José is supporting us by allowing us to expand our farm to include even more people.”
Expansion Plans
The proposed design for the expanded farm, prepared by local landscape architect Bruce Hill in consultation with Veggielution staff, incorporates elements of Prusch Farm Park's original 1972 Master Plan and input that Veggielution gathered from the community. The plan includes fruit orchards, an outdoor kitchen for cooking and nutrition classes, a permanent farm stand, a packing and cooling shed, an expanded greenhouse and shadehouse complex, and a mobile office. Veggielution will work with City staff on every step of implementation.
The design preserves and deepens the volunteers’ and visitors’ educational experience with signage and nods to the agricultural history of the Valley of Heart’s Delight. The increase in farmed land dramatically increases the number of volunteer opportunities for people of all walks of life and skill levels, while also allowing Veggielution to add to its existing offering of cooking and nutrition classes, Dig Crew high school youth program, off-site school gardens, and workshops.
About Veggielution
Veggielution empowers youth and adults from diverse backgrounds to create a sustainable food system in San Jose. Our urban farm engages the community by providing access to healthy and local food, creating youth leadership opportunities, and developing creative solutions to social and environmental justice issues.
Veggielution is a 2 acre non-profit community farm dedicated to creating a more sustainable food system in San Jose. We empower people to change the way they think about food by getting their hands in the soil, connecting with the land, and tasting the fruits of their labor. For more information visitwww.veggielution.org.
Monday, April 2, 2012
Apple May Come to San Jose!
This is not an April fool's joke, although this just so happens to be the exact same parcel between Bay 101 and M8trix that was mentioned yesterday. Now that Apple has bought out or leased all available space in Cupertino and most of the remaining space in Sunnyvale, they are looking at North San Jose for expansion possibilities. This space could support at least one million square feet of office space. The owner, Peery-Arrillaga, is supposedly working with Apple on a build-to-suit development on this very site. It looks like the city's new strategy of cutting fees and reducing development barriers is already paying dividends!
Source: SJBJ
Source: SJBJ
Sunday, April 1, 2012
Breaking News: The Bellagio is Coming to San Jose!
MGM Resorts International have announced plans to build a Bellagio-like card room in the vacant space between Bay 101 (red area below) and the brand new M8trix Casino (blue area). If approved, the $350-400M project will include a 35-floor hotel tower with over 500 rooms, several new restaurants, and a theater for entertainment acts. Could this be the start of a mini-Vegas in San Jose?
Source: Press Release
Source: Press Release
Saturday, March 31, 2012
Saturday Stats: San Jose is the Most Active City (Based on Foursquare Check-ins)
Okay, so this isn't exactly a scientific survey but it's pretty cool nonetheless. According to Shape magazine, San Jose ranked as the #1 most active city in the US and the #3 city for healthy eating. This data is coming from the 15 million foursquare users in the country. For the full article, click here.
Hat tip to Cassie for sending this in.
Hat tip to Cassie for sending this in.
Friday, March 30, 2012
Kori Thompson at Ohana Board Shop
Basic Space, all new paintings by Kori Thompson.
Music by RS2
Live skate demos on Ohana's new ramp
All ages welcome.
Saturday, March 31, 6-8:30pm
Ohana Board Shop
3575 Stevens Creek Blvd.
San Jose
Thursday, March 29, 2012
New Year-Round Saturday Farmer's Market is Launching Downtown!
The post below is from the San Pedro Square Market blog. This is excellent news for Downtown. In addition to our seasonal Friday Farmer's Market in the summer, we'll have a brand new peak-time Saturday market open all year round. I'm really looking forward to seeing how this develops in conjunction with the San Pedro Square Market. Also, a hat tip to Arlene for sending this news in.
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Okay, so we know that we keep advertising for our Farmers' Market and how Spring is around the corner. Well folks, it is finally here! Saturday April 7th , is the opening day of the year-round, rain-or-shine Saturday Farmers' Market. Here is what you need to know:
It will be open 10am-2pm.
Located on W. St. John between N. Almaden and N. San Pedro, directly in front of SPSM.
Around 40-50 vendors, mostly farmers, prepared food, and flowers.
The timing of it is perfect for all you that work during the week! Get your grocery shopping done at the farmers market, then come enjoy the rest of your Saturday at the Market! Enjoy some lunch, drinks and entertainment here at SPSM since there is always something here to entertain you. We’ve even got some special surprises lined up for you during and after the Farmers' Market. We’ve got author signings, live music and so much more to make sure you have the best enjoyable weekend here at San Pedro Square Market.
Please note that this is a separate event from the Downtown Farmers Market that occurs seasonally on Fridays on San Pedro St.
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