NextEV (Chinese Tesla Competitor) Building R&D in San Jose

There is a little known fact that before purchasing the NUMMI plant, Tesla was trying to build their factory in North San Jose. Since they would not qualify for federal incentives at that location, the deal fell through. However, Tesla still does have some history with San Jose as they chose to open the first Tesla Store in San Jose--which is still considered to be the United States flagship store. I should also note that they are rumored to be seeking office space in San Jose.

Well, it turns out Tesla won't be the only electric vehicle (EV) company in town for very long. A Chinese company called NextEV has selected North San Jose as their location for a significant R&D center. The company already has a supercar that competes in the Formula E racing series. Now their goal is to manufacture a mass-market electric car in 2017 for the Chinese market as well as a US-bound electric car in 2019. The company seems pretty serious unlike previous EV companies like Coda. They have hired a former CEO of Maserati and poached employees from both Tesla and BMW.

NextEV has leased a 85,000 SQFT building at 3200 North First Street. The R&D center will focus on "connected car" functionality. Manufacturing will be done in China while car design will be handled in Germany.

Now all we need is an Apple facility for their future self-driving cars as well as a relocation of the Tesla Headquarters to San Jose--then we'll have hands-down the EV capital of the world.

Source: SVBJ

Wednesday Wishlist: More Public Art

A few weeks ago I was in Vancouver and was surprised at the amount of public art around the city. Below is one example that I really loved. This piece turns a bland, windowless side of a building into an attraction that tells a story about the the building itself. There are so many walls throughout San Jose that could use something like this.

I love all the murals going up in San Jose right now, especially Japantown. Let's take it to the next level and aim for something at the scale shown below!

P.S. Notice the green rooftop. Despite having much worse weather than San Jose, almost every high-rise had trees, shrubs, and patios on the roof.

Kit and Ace Opening First Silicon Valley Location in San Jose

Santana Row is getting yet another premier tenant this month. Kit and Ace is a contemporary luxury apparel store that prides itself on "technical luxury," a combination of premium fibers with comfort and functionality. High-end clothing tends to be dry-clean only or fades/falls apart after a few washes. Kit and Ace specifically designs their clothing to be easy to maintain and last a long time--perhaps due to the fact that the line's proprietors are closely related to the founder of Lululemon. Even their cashmere apparel is machine washable.

I also like how there is an element of technology and innovation in their clothing line. Features includes smart ventilation, articulated knees on pants, hidden pockets, sewn inseams, and special materials that minimize wrinkles. It seems like an appropriate clothing store for Silicon Valley.

Hyper-local elements are also incorporated in each store. The San Jose location will have light fixtures and custom furnishings created by a San Jose designer.

Kit and Ace only has two other locations in California: Los Angeles and San Francisco. Their Santana Row store will be the first in Silicon Valley when it opens this Thursday, September 24th. To learn more about the company and see their clothing lines, head over here.

Shannon and JJ Wilson (wife and son of Chip Wilson, Lululemon founder)

Bay 101 is Moving Forward With a New Cardroom

Ever since Bay 101 purchased the San Jose Airport Garden Hotel on North First Street years ago, we knew it was just a matter of time before they would move ahead with a new project closer to M8trix. That time is apparently now, demolition of the 512 room hotel is going to begin by the end of the year. Bay 101 is going to construct a new casino and hotel worth around $100 million on that site.

The new card club will be two stories, 67,836 SQFT, and the same number of card tables as the current location (49). The layout will be more spread out and they are planning to do a high-end restaurant as an added attraction. The hotel would be seven stories and 174 room, which is actually much smaller than the hotel is replacing. It is too bad they are not planning to go larger with the first phase, because we really could use the extra hotel rooms.

There is a second phase being planned with a 10 story hotel tower and 150 rooms. In an area that could easily accommodate a 30 story hotel building (which would draw extra attention to the cardroom), this scale is very disappointing to me.

The parking lot east of the card room could also be developed into a 250,000 SQFT office building with 12 stories, but that would be in a far later phase. Bay 101's new home should be ready for gaming by Fall 2017.

Source: SVBJ

Pentagon Selects San Jose as Innovation Hub for Hybrid Electronics Manufacturing

The United States Defense Department has selected San Jose's FlexTech Alliance to lead an initiative on advanced manufacturing. FlexTech will receive $75 million in federal funding in order to pull several disparate manufacturing processes together and build the next generation of electronic sensors. The new sensors will weigh less and be highly malleable, allowing them to easily be worn or embedded just about anywhere. 96 companies will be a part of the FlexTech Alliance, along with 11 laboratories and 41 colleges.

San Jose made a strong name for itself in semiconductor manufacturing in the 90s and 2000s. It's great to see an innovation center being created locally to support the next generation of manufacturing high-tech components. The FlexTech is headquartered at 3081 Zanker Road, in the heart of North San Jose's Golden Triangle.

Source: SVBJ

Saturday Stats: San Jose Metro has Nation's Strongest Job Market!

The South Bay has the strongest job market in the US based on a new government report. In the 12 month period that ended in July, total payroll employment increased by 6.2%, giving us the fastest growing job market by a huge margin. Tacoma came in second at 5% job growth, while the San Francisco and Salt Lake City metros were tried for third at 4.4%. The East Bay did not rank in the top 10 and had a gain of 2.2%.

To add more color on this data, over the last year 60,400 jobs were added in the San Jose Metro. Half of them were high-tech jobs (presumably with high salaries). We're not just adding tons of jobs, we're adding tons of great jobs.

Source: Siliconbeat

Centerra Has Two Pending Leases!

That giant high-rise across the street from the San Pedro Square Market already has leases pending for two of its five retail pads on the ground floor. L'epi D'or is a popular Asian Bakery in Cupertino. A bakery has been at the top of people's wishlists for the San Pedro Square Market, so I think this will be a great addition to the area.

Popbar would take the prime corner spot at St. John and Almaden Avenue. It is a dessert shop featuring handcrafted gelato on a stick. It is a small chain with several international destinations but only two locations in the US (New York and Anaheim). The pistachio gelato wrapped in crushed pistachios and dipped in dark chocolate looks amazing. If this opens up, I will definitely be swinging by every time I go to the San Pedro Square Market.

The fact that this retail is already filling up is exciting news and a great sign for the San Pedro area in Downtown San Jose!

Source: Robertee from the San Jose Development Forum

San Jose State University is Beating Out Elite Schools for Tech Jobs

A recent CBS report reveals that getting hired at a high-paying Silicon Valley tech company does not require a degree from an "elite" school. In fact, Silicon Valley companies are hiring more San Jose State University alums than any other college or university. As an example, SJSU topped both Stanford and Cal for the most alums working at Apple.

What is the secret of the university's success? SJSU students have a reputation for getting stuff done. You can sit around and talk about a problem all day, or you can get your hands dirty and fix it. I imagine the prestigious schools spending more time teaching their students about theory and planning versus execution. Plus, many SJSU students are already working while studying, and nothing beats real-world experience.

The word is starting to get around. SJSU enrollment is up to 33,000 students this year, and many of them are coming internationally from countries like India. The University is building a global brand and an outstanding reputation, something that will benefit San Jose and our local economy for generations!

Source: CBS, Big hat tip to Dan De La O for sending this in!