New 27West renders

A skinny 22-story residential tower in Downtown San Jose's historic neighborhood is moving forward, albeit with a less unique design than what was originally proposed. The tower--currently named 27West--would be at 27 S. First St. in one of the more lively sections of Downtown. You might know the space as Local Color or remember it when it used to be Ross (or a furniture store called Black Sea Gallery before that). Good Karma, Paper Plane, Temple Bar, Nomakai, CREAM, Tea Alley, 55 South, and Original Gravity are all steps away from the proposed building.

27West would have a total of 350 residences and 5,100 SQFT of retail. I don't want to call the new design bland, but it is quite a bit less exciting than the previous renders. I also wish they did something with the roof like a small park, pool, or amenity space. It does appear to better blend into the neighborhood which features several historic buildings.

The developers behind 27West are hoping to begin construction by the end of the year and complete the tower in 2020.

Source: The Merc

Alaska Air offering a new San Jose >> New York flight

In an effort to keep Southwest at bay, Alaska Airlines is continuing to add new flights at San Jose international. The latest is a new nonstop from SJC to JFK that starts on July 6th.

JetBlue already has a redeye to JFK and Delta will start a new redeye on June 8th. Both Alaka and United have flights to Newark International as well.

One major convenience the new Alaska flight offers is that it's not a red eye. The flight leaves at 7:05am from SJC and arrives at JFK's Terminal 7 at 3:43pm. The return flight leaves JFK at 4:45pm and arrives back home at SJC at 8:23pm. The route will be served by an Airbus A320 (twin-jet, single-aisle).

San Jose went from having one direct flights to New York to five nonstops within a few years. It feels like there is still a lot more to come.

Source: SVBJ

VTA moving forward with single-bore subway for BART

There has been a heated debate on whether to use a twin bore or single bore subway for BART's extension from Berryessa to Downtown San Jose. Proponents of the single bore argued that it would greatly minimize disruption to Downtown businesses as it would avoid gutting all of Santa Clara Street. It would also cut the construction timeline by as much as a year. On the other hand, this type of subway has never been built in the United States and would not be consistent with the rest of the BART system. In the end, VTA staff has officially recommended single bore.

The $4.7 billion tunnel will have a diameter of 47 feet, enough to accommodate two lines stacked on top of one another (see image below). This also means that all of the stations will be on one side of the street.

Two other important related decisions were also made. There a couple options for the Downtown Station: City Hall and on Market and 1st Street. By choosing single bore, VTA was able to select the more central Market/1st Street location without having to shut down the Light Rail line during construction. The second decision was the alignment of the Diridon station. With single bore the station can be built right under Santa Clara Street with easier access to SAP, all without having to close the street down during construction.

Source: SVBJ

Local developer contemplating 1.5 million SQFT project in North San Jose

SiliconSage Builders submitted an enhanced preliminary review request for a 31 acre site in North San Jose near Cadence. The massive 1.5 million SQFT project would have 500,000 SQFT of retail, 700,000 SQFT of office, a 350 room hotel, 3,250 residential units, a 50,000 SQFT theater, a 30,000 SQFT amphitheater, and 4.5 acres of open space.

If that sounds ambitious, that's because it is. Those kinds of numbers are very similar to Santana Row. If you look at the massing below, the residential component would both be on top of the retail and in a high-rise cluster off of the side that could reach up to 20 stories.

The project could keep some tax dollars in San Jose after City Place is completed in Santa Clara next to Levi's Stadium. This North San Jose proposal is still very early on, but shows that developers are being more ambitious about future San Jose development.

Source: SVBJ

Easter Brunch

Rick Jensen has a great suggestion for last-minute Easter Sunday plans in the latest edition of the Downtowner Online. Ludwig's is one of my favorite restaurants Downtown and they are using Easter to kick off weekend brunches. If you haven't been to Ludwig's before, you're in for a treat. They have an amazing outdoor patio, specialty German beers, and a great menu. It's a unique restaurant that you will only find Downtown. For more info, click here.

Sunday – Happy Easter! – Happy Easter, San Jose! Have fun spending the day brunching or Easter egg hunting with friends and family! Starting this Sunday, Ludwig's Brunch is back every Saturday and Sunday from 10 am - 2 pm. Downtown Dining. 

HP Enterprises is moving HQ to San Jose

Hewlett Packard Enterprises has long been an anchor tech tenant for Palo Alto. However, yesterday they announced that they are relocating their headquarters to San Jose by the end of the year.

The company will take 220,000 SQFT at 6280 America Center Drive near Alviso. That is large enough to relocate about 1,000 employees. Flextronics, Polycom, and Versa Networks also have a presence in that office park along with a brand new Aloft hotel. The location is minutes away from the @First shopping center and Levi's stadium. While there are few public transit options, BART will soon have a station in Milpitas about 12min away.

This is another big win for San Jose, both in terms of tax dollars and brand. Also, no financial incentives were required to make the deal happen.

Source: NBC Bay Area

Retro arcade and upscale bar on tap for Downtown this summer

"miniBoss" is the most anticipated new Downtown bar in years. The owners of Original Gravity (San Jose's first bar exclusively dedicated to craft beer) and Paper Plane (one of San Jose's first craft cocktail bars) are now opening a third venue at the corner of Santa Clara Street and 2nd Street. This is a very high-profile and easily accessible space that was last occupied by Toons years ago.

Clocking in at 5,528 SQFT, miniBoss will host dozens of old-school arcades and pinball machines. Given its pedigree, craft beers and cocktails are guaranteed. The venue will also have a full kitchen which will likely serve up surprisingly good pub fare if Paper Plane and Original Gravity are any indication. It will provide a unique entertainment option that simply does not exist in Silicon Valley right now and be yet another "cool" thing to do in San Jose.

Downtown San Jose is finally getting the traction and attention it deserves and miniBoss will undoubtedly be an anchor tenant for the growing numbers that live, work, and play Downtown. I'm greatly looking forward to its grand opening this summer.

Source: The Merc, SVBJ

7th Annual Taco Festival of Innovation

San Jose's epic taco festival returns for its 7th season on Saturday, May 6th. History Park will once again host over 20 food trucks from all over the Bay Area serving their vest renditions of tacos. Expect everything from short rib tacos, nacho tacos, Vietnamese shrimp tacos, and a few surprises. While you're stuffing your face, wash everything down with local craft beers.

Like previous years, there will be plenty of entertainment programming. The popular Lucha Libre wrestling match will be back along with live music. San Jose Made will also be there with local arts & crafts vendors.

Ticket prices are only $8 ($10 at the gate) while craft beer tasting passes are $30 for five 7oz pours. ($35 at the gate). Kids aged 3-11 are free as part of the presale.

For tickets and additional info, head over here!