New Mural in Fountain Alley

A 140-foot long mural called "Phylum of the Free" has recently been completed in Downtown San Jose's Fountain Alley. The artist is Jeff Hemming, an instructor at at UC Santa Cruz. The work blankets the side of Lido Nightclub and bring some much-needed character to the area. The $20,000 project was funded by the DA's office, Lido, the San Jose Downtown Association, and Republic Services.

Source: The Merc

Axis Honors Paris

If you look at the Downtown skyline, you might notice a tribute to Parisians on top of Axis. The lights were changed to the colors of the French Flag as a sign of respect to those in mourning.

Photo by Tom Wohlmut

Saturday Stats: San Jose is the "Richest" and Most Productive Metroplitan Area in the United States

Bloomberg analyzed the 100 largest metros in the US and ranked them by Gross Metropolitan Product (GMP) per capita. Essentially this is how much value or output the average resident contributes to the economy. The greater the GMP, the more money you are likely to be making if you live in that area.

The San Jose Metro ranked #1 on the list by a significant margin. San Jose's Gross Metropolitan Product per resident was an astounding $105,482. Bridgeport, Connecticut came in second with $94,349. In third place was San Francisco with $80,643. New York was 8th with $70,830.

Source: Bloomberg

Kaiser is Building North San Jose Medical Offices

Oakland-based Kaiser Permanente is gearing up to develop 9.7 acres in North San Jose at the intersection of Skyport Drive and Technology Drive. The healthcare provider wants to build a 153,000 SQFT medical facility with 103 medical offices. Kaiser purchased the empty plot of land almost three years ago and has just now submitted a formal development application.

While many living in San Jose choose Kaiser as their provider, there are currently zero Kaiser facilities in the North San Jose area. Fortunately, that will soon change.

Source: SVBJ

BART is Bringing Retail to Stations

Several modular retail kiosks are coming to the Bay Area's 44 BART stations. This should add extra convenience to BART's 400,000 daily users. There will even be a companion app to the retail pods that would allow passengers to run errands such as dropping off and picking up laundry as part of their trip. These types of services could go a long way in helping people get out of their cars and utilize public transit more.

Perhaps instead of using kiosks, retail can be fully baked into the design for the upcoming BART Silicon Valley Phase 2 extension--especially since the bulk of those stations will be located in the Downtown San Jose area.

The retail kiosks are already operating in Downtown San Francisco and will reach five more stations by the end of the year. Square footage is going to vary from 600 SQFT at Union City to 2,172 SQFT at Castro Valley. I imagine that San Jose's Berryessa station will likely be towards the larger end of the retail spectrum given the station's size and location.

Source: SVBJ

Wednesday Wishlist: Vertical Forests

As San Jose grows, so will the need to increase building density and build up. I'm not just talking about Downtown San Jose and North San Jose, but many parts of our city. There are a few innovative ideas that can help make dense projects less intimidating, fit better into surrounding neighborhoods, and even contribute in a positive way to the environment.

Lausanne, Switzerland is about to build the world's second "vertical forest." This is a stunning residential tower that will be covered with hundreds of trees and shrubs. Besides the aesthetic benefits, the vegetation filters air pollution and produces oxygen. I can see this type of project working well in Everygreen and South San Jose as old strip malls and shopping centers become ready for redevelopment.

Source: Inhabitat

Silver Spring Networks Moving Headquarters to San Jose

Silver Springs Networks is a company that specializes in smart grid products for energy companies as well as software to help consumers reduce their energy consumption. They have decided to move their headquarters from Redwood City to San Jose. Silver Springs will take on 191,800 SQFT of prime office space at Champion Station (210 and 230 W. Tasman Drive). The company is yet another welcome addition to North San Jose's burgeoning portfolio of tech companies.

Source: SVBJ

Federal Realty Building 1 Million SQFT of Office Space Across from Santana Row

Federal Realty is changing their development plans for the former Winchester Theaters parking lot across from their flagship property, Santana Row. Residential has been completely removed from the project. Instead, they have decided to double-down on offices and develop a million square feet of high-end commercial space across six buildings. Each of those will range between six and nine stories, with parking taking the first three floors on the majority of the buildings. There is no surface parking, all 2,545 parking spaces will be in the garages.

There will be at least one retail component, a 29,000 SQFT grocery store that I'm sure will be popular with residents across the street at Santana Row. There is also a big question mark on what Federal Realty will do with the only Dome that was saved (which you can see on the lower left of the first render below). Speculated use has ranged from a performance arts theater to a beer garden.

This won't be the only major project in the area. Westfield is well underway with a $600 million expansion of Valley Fair. Plans have been submitted for a 12-story boutique hotel at 2850 Stevens Creek, where a gas station currently sits. There is also a proposal for 650 new apartments at 881 S. Winchester Avenue (replacing a 216 unit project), and another one for 160 residential units along with 12,000 SQFT of retail at 751 S. Winchester.

The neighborhood is certainly going to look quite a bit differently in a few years. Hopefully the new Bus Rapid Transit line will be operational by the time these projects are completed. A new Winchester Advisory Group has been meeting to great a plan with recommended transit improvements. At least the office project will not add to weekend traffic and will add much needed parking spaces to the Santana Row/Valley Fair area.

Source: SVBJ