Sourisseau News: Local Residential Architecture

The latest edition of Sourisseau News discusses a polarizing topic--residential architecture. San Jose has had a wide variety of residential styles over the decades, most of which you can still find in or near Downtown San Jose. Check out the two minute video below for several examples of local architectural styles, most of which we would now consider "historic homes."

To see an archive of past videos, head over here.


Sourisseau News April 2016 Local Residential Architecture from WMS media Inc. on Vimeo.

The Dancing Cat partners with Silicon Valley Pet Project seeking location to re-open in San Jose

SAN JOSE, CA - April 7, 2016—Silicon Valley’s first cat adoption lounge, The Dancing Cat, is back better than ever with the announcement of  a new partnership with Silicon Valley Pet Project (SVPP).  SVPP is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit animal rescue organization that rescues at-risk cats and dogs from the San Jose Animal Care Center, Silicon Valley’s largest municipal animal shelter.

The Dancing Cat was originally conceived as a four-week pop-up lounge in downtown San Jose in May, 2015, designed to help potential adopters meet and become acquainted with adoptable pets.  The Dancing Cat was so embraced by the community, that it remained active and of service to the public for six months. More than 50 adult cats were adopted, 12 community events were held in the space, and over 2,000 visitors passed through the doors.

Building on the organization’s success, The Dancing Cat's founders Mary Rubin and Ann Chasson are joining with Silicon Valley Pet Project to create a permanent space for people to meet, mingle and spend time with adoptable cats. The main goal of the partnership is to find loving forever homes for adult cats who are at risk in the shelter by providing a free-roaming, comfortable and safe space for these cats to be showcased.  Additionally, the project seeks to present a unique venue for social and educational events in the community.

To date, SVPP has primarily focused on foster parents and local adoption events to rehome rescued animals, but that strategy is expanding.

“We were incredibly inspired by Ann’s and Mary’s commitment and passion to feature adoptable adult cats in such a creative way,” said Melissa Lisbon, President of Silicon Valley Pet Project.  “The adult cats SVPP selected to be featured at The Dancing Cat were quickly adopted by wonderful families. We are excited to join forces in our common mission to save more lives in our community through innovative initiatives.  The Dancing Cat represents the Silicon Valley spirit by addressing a challenge with a fresh perspective: the animal welfare challenge of the overpopulation of adult cats in our local shelters.”

The Dancing Cat team is currently searching for a suitable permanent location in the San Jose area.  Anyone with information about a possible available location can contact thedancingcat@svpetproject.org. The project is accepting financial donations towards the reopening of The Dancing Cat on its website.

“It was exciting to see how enthusiastically the space was embraced,  resulting in so many successful adoptions,” Rubin said.  “We in the volunteer and nonprofit arenas can make a bigger impact on a problem like homeless pets when we work together, leverage our passion and learnings.  We look forward to continuing The Dancing Cat with SVPP's contributions of both talent and support.”

About
The Dancing Cat is a passion project developed by a small group of cat lovers and creatives who work to improve the quality of life for the cats in Silicon Valley. We are dedicated to connecting these valuable members of our community with their forever homes in a responsible way. Recognizing that there are many cat lovers amongst us, we also hope The Dancing Cat will provide opportunities for new partnerships among people who are contributing to the vibrancy and creativity of our community. www.thedancingcat.org

Silicon Valley Pet Project (SVPP) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization of volunteers committed to saving local at-risk shelter pets through rescue, community involvement and education. www.svpetproject.org

Plans for two towers at Greyhound station are coming together

The same investor that is building Silvery Towers (San Jose's largest residential project ever) is now gearing up for an even larger project. KT Urban and their partner have acquired the 1.6-acre Greyhound bus site for $39 million. The latest concept for the site calls for two towers around 24 stories tall with with 708 residential units and 13,500 SQFT of retail.

The next step is to acquire construction financing, which should be no problem despite the recent slowdown of investment markets. Construction will begin soon after they receive financial approvals from the city, which is expected later this year.

So what will happen to the Greyhound bus station in Downtown San Jose? All Greyhound operations will move to Diridon Station in late May. Customers will be able to purchase tickets at the Amtrak counter and easily connect to other bus services, VTA Light Rail, Capitol Corridor, ACE, Caltrain, and eventually BART and California High Speed Rail. Greyhound should have likely been located at Diridon to begin with, so the move will correct a transit mistake created long ago.

Source: SVBJ, SVJB #2

First Music in the Park show scheduled for June 24th

SAN JOSE - Multi-Grammy Award-winners Los Lobos will headline the Music in the Park 2016 series opener June 24 at Plaza de Cesar Chavez.

The Mexican-American roots-rock group from East Los Angeles has been recording since the late 1970s. Their crossover hit, La Bamba, from the 1987 film reached phenomenal worldwide popularity. Their current tour supports their latest album release, Gates of Gold.

Los Lobos’ three Grammy Awards:
1983 – Anselma – Best Mexican-American Performance (song)
1989 – La Pistola y el Corazon – Best Mexican-American Performance (album)
1995 – Mariachi Suite – Best Pop Instrumental Performance

The show begins just after work at 5:30 p.m. with South Bay guitarist Maxx Cabelllo, Jr.

Tickets are now available at www.musicintheparksj.com.

Advanced tickets are $10 per adult and free for 12-under when accompanied by an adult.  At the door, admission will cost $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 the City of San Jose.

This is the 28th season of Music in the Park. Three more Music in the Park concerts are also planned this summer at Plaza de Cesar Chavez, which is located along Market Street and surrounded by downtown’s museums, hotels and office buildings.

For more about the artists, visit www.loslobos.org and www.maxxcabellojr.com.  Visit www.sjdowntown.com for information about downtown San Jose and the San Jose Downtown Association.

Saturday Stats: San Jose is the top place for minority-owned businesses in the US

We all know San Jose is one of the most diverse cities on the planet and also one of the best cities for business. So it should not come as a big surprise that San Jose is the best place for minority-owned businesses.

At $83,406/year, San Jose had the highest minority median income in the US. The average revenue per minority-owned business in our area comes in at $317,979 and there are 45.74 minority-owned businesses per 1,000 residents. 6th on the list was San Francisco and New York was all the way down at #51.

Source: Nerdwallet, SJ Economy News

2nd Annual Silicon Valley Bikes! Festival and Bike Show

From San Jose Bike Party:

Join San Josè Bike Party and the Valley’s racing, road, recreation, fixed gear, cruiser, vintage, lowrider, mountain biking and cool urban lifestyle cyclists and their families for a day of fun and community building on Sunday, May 15th, 11am to 5pm at Kelley Park’s History Park, 635 Phelan Avenue at Senter Road in San Josè.

Admission to the public is $5, kids two and under are free and $5 per show bike.

• Food Trucks
• Craft Beer
• Kids’ Space
• Bicycle Show
• Free Valet Bike Parking
• Expo
• Amazing Vendors
• Talks
• Music

San Jose's Vasona Networks raises $14.6 million

Venture funding may be slowing down, but that has not stopped Vasona Networks from raising new funding from Bessemer Venture Partners, New Venture Partners, and NexStar Partners. The company provides mobile network infrastructure that makes it easier to manage spikes of internet traffic.

This latest round of $14.6 million will bring total funding to $48 million. They will use the money to expand their services to additional cities around the globe.

Vasona Networks is headquartered at 2025 Gateway Pl. in North San Jose near the airport.

Source: SVBJ

April 2016 Downtown Dimension Highlights

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

• General sales tax and business tax hikes have been proposed in order to help fund public services.
• Two plans are in the work to house the homeless, a permanent housing project on 278 N. Second Street and a temporary housing facility at the former Plaza Hotel.
• More food and drink openings!
• Our House at 185 Park features farm-to-fork cuisine
• Social Policy is now open at 200 S. First, a sister coffee shop to Bellano Coffee and B2 Coffee
• 2nd Story Bakeshop is a new bakery at 138 E. Santa Clara
• Ola's Exotic African Coffee and Tea is open at 30 E. Santa Clara, Suite 120
• Olla Cocina at 17 N. San Pedro offers a fresh take on traditional Mexican favorites.
• A seven-story building is moving forward near Whole Foods. It would have 35,000 SQFT of office and commercial space as well as 164 apartments. 
• The first Music in the Park show of the season will be headlined by Los Lobos on June 24th at Plaza de Cesar Chavez.

To read the newsletter, click here!