October 2016 Downtown Dimension Highlights

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

• SJdowntown.com has been relaunched with a more personal touch [Josh: the new site looks great!]
• For the first time, food traffic can reliably be counted along Downtown's eight busiest walking corridors. San Pedro Street, Santa Clara west of First, and First between Santa Clara and San Fernando have the highest consistent pedestrian volumes Downtown while SoFA has the lowest of the corridors monitored.
• SJDA Recommendations on local measures:
• Measure A ($950M affordable housing bonds) - YES
• Measure B - street repair and transit improvements - YES
• Measure E - small businesses must offer extra hours to part time workers - NO
• Measure F - pension modification for public employees - YES
• Measure G - business tax modernization - YES
• The public is invited to the 30th SJDA annual meeting on Oct 14th at First United Methodist Church (24 N. Fifth) from 8am-9:30am.
• Google purchased Apigee for $625 million.
• NextSpace expands to a 7,000 SQFT pace 97 S. Second St.
• Coast Poke Counter is now open at the San Pedro Square Public Market.
• Five Points is a new craft cocktail bar at 169 W.Santa Clara Street with drinks inspired by the saloons that graced the Five Points neighborhood in New York City.
• WESTCA, a boutique gym, is moving into the Sperry Station building at 30 N. Third St.
• Steve Borkenhagan will be the first recipient of the Business Support for the Arts Award issued by the San Jose Arts Commission.

To read the newsletter, click here!

Content Pick-Up Party tomorrow (Issue 8.4 - Profiles)

Content subscribers can enjoy an evening of art, music, food and drinks in the Citadel Art Studios Gallery to celebrate the release of Issue 8.4. This issue highlights 45 leaders in art, fashion, design, and music who are key to changing and growing the culture of the South Bay.

Snack on appetizers, sip refreshing beverages, and experience creations by some of the artists featured in 8.4 including Max DeHart, Tyson Johnston, Agency Furniture, David James Keaton, and more. There will also be a musical performance by the sibling duo Bird and Willow. Subscribers to Content Magazine will receive a complimentary beverage when picking up their issue.

The Citadel is the largest artist community in the South Bay with over 70 studios, fostering both established and emerging artists. Originally a cannery, the industrial feel of the building gives artists the freedom to express their creative side.

The event goes down tomorrow (Oct 19th) from 7pm to 9:30pm at 199 Martha St. in San Jose.

If you are not already a subscriber, you can find out more information over here.

San Jose Metro led the nation in economic growth for 2015!

Out of the 382 metros tracked by the Bureau of Economic Analysis, only 292 saw their economies grow in 2015. Of the 20 largest metros, guess which had the most growth.

The San Jose Metro grew its economy by an incredible 8.9% last year. This is miles away from the next city which is Houston at 4.6%. For all the buzz San Francisco got, they grew their economy by 4.1% last year, less than half of San Jose and putting them fifth on the list. New York barely made a dent at 1.7%.

What is even more impressive is that if you look at ALL 382 metros, including the smaller ones where it is easier to have big economic swings, San Jose still had the 2nd fastest growing economy in the US. Only Midland, TX with a population of 140k had a faster rate of growth.

The bubble chart below the grid shows economic performance versus the size of the metro (larger bubble = more population). San Jose is still performing like a fast-growing startup (hot small city) despite the fact the metro has 2 million people.

To paraphrase a Twain quote: the reports of Silicon Valley's death are greatly exaggerated. Every economy in the US would love to be where San Jose is today.

Source: CNBC, Hillrise from the San Jose Development Forum

Saturday Stats: San Jose has the highest density of computer and math-related jobs

The fact that San Jose is #1 in this stat should not surprise anyone. However, the gap between San Jose and any other city in the US when it comes to computer and math occupations is quite amazing. For every 1,000 jobs in San Jose, 124.9 of them are related to computers or math. This compares to just 78.9 in San Francisco, 76.6 in Seattle, 32.8 in New York, and 64.5 in Austin.

The chart below compares each city to the national average. A rating of 4.3 means San Jose has 4.3 times the national average of computer and math jobs. For stats on other types of jobs, hit the source link below.

Source: Abodo, Hillrise from the San Jose Development Forum

New "Visit San Jose" video

Team San Jose did an exceptional job of producing their latest promotional video for San Jose. The 1:37 long video highlights San Jose's diversity and culture and is one of the best promo videos I have seen yet for San Jose. Check it out below.

You can follow the "Visit San Jose" Facebook Page over here.

Aesop opens first Silicon Valley location at Santana Row

Aesop is a high-end retailer with skin, hair, and body "formulations." They have just opened a signature store at Santana Row, which is the first and only Silicon Valley location. They have four stores in San Francisco and hundreds all over the world.

The store is open now and is located between Gucci and Tesla. Hours are Monday-Saturday from 10am-9pm and Sunday from 11am-6pm.

St. James Park finally getting redesigned

Four finalist proposals have been selected in a competition to do a complete overhaul of St. James Park. As we all know, over the past several decades the park has become an unpleasant place. It is a shame given the park's central location and history that includes everything from presidential visits to one of the last lynchings in the US.

A finalist will be selected on October 15th, so you still have a few days to submit your opinion. The proposal will be selected based on how well the park addresses the needs for the Levitt Pavilion (year-round permanent music venue), the needs of the whole community, how original and creative it is, and how likely people are to visit it.

At least 50 free, family-friendly concerts will take place each year in the new St. James Park. Other requirements include picnic areas, greenery, and "whimsical" fountains. The cost will range from $30-60 million, but that money will be well spent if it can transform the area and add value to the community for decades.

You can view each of the four proposals over here.

Source: The Merc, huge thanks to Nick Fishler for sending this in!

More details on the Valley Fair expansion

We have been waiting a long time for the repeatedly-delayed Valley Fair expansion, but now plans are getting very real. Westfield has a video showcasing the massive 624,000 SQFT expansion. I can't give you a direct link or embed it, but all you have to do is go to this page, and scroll down to the middle of the page.

The official price tag will clock in at a whopping $1.1 billion. Given it is one of the most profitable retail centers in the world, I'm sure that investment will pay off.

The video starts off with a lot of nice things to say about us as consumers:

The heart of Silicon Valley
#1 Wealthiest Metropolitan Area in the U.S.
#1 Highest Median Home Value in U.S.
#1 Center for Technology and Innovation in the World
#1 Fastest Growing County in U.S.
Highest Concentration of Millionaires and Billionaires in the U.S.
Hyper Educated
Hyper Entrepreneurial

Then it goes into some of the details...

624,000 SQFT Expansion
Upscale Cinemas
150 New Retail Shops
New Flagship Bloominddails
Luxury Vallet and Elegant Outdoor Dining

And then you get the posh renders of what is being planned. I grabbed a few images from the video, but recommend watching it to get the full effect.

Huge thanks to Joe Meduri for sending this in!