Backyard San Jose

A new pop-up community space is coming to Fountain Alley in Downtown San Jose (35 S. 2nd Street). For three whole months, Backyard San Jose is turning a parking lot into a public space with cultural events, concerts, classes, and networking events. There will be something going on seven days a week.

Backyard San Jose is throwing a launch party on August 15th from 6pm to 9pm with music, food, beer, and wine.

The list of partners and contributors to this project is impressive:

• ABM Industries
• Anno Domini Gallery
• BandWagon
• Be The Change Yoga
• Beyond Meat
• Children’s Discovery Museum
• Cinequest
• City of San Jose
• Code for San Jose
• Content Magazine
• Downtown Screen Printers
• Feather
• Fractal Flora
• Gray Area Art + Technology
• Good Karma
• Heroes Martial Arts
• Local Color
• MACLA/Movimiento de Arte y Cultura Latino Americana
• Meetup
• Omnipotent Studios
• Park Lab
• Paseo Prototyping Festival
• PATH Homeless Assistance
• Pink Sparrow
• Pop Kids Yoga
• Public Space Authority
• San Jose Come Up
• San Jose Downtown Association
• San Jose Improv
• San Jose Made
• San Jose State University Cadre Media Lab
• Silicon Valley Pride
• SOMA Streat Food
• SPRO Coffee Lab
• SPUR
• Swordfighting School
• The Get Down Dance Studios
• The People’s Table
• Universal Grammar
• Urban Community
• WebEnertia
• WeWork Labs
• ZERO1

For more details and to RSVP to their launch party (not required), head over here.

Source: Gillynova from the San Jose Development Forum

San Jose is the 3rd best city for startup companies

COMMERCIALCafe has crunched data from the 50 most populous urban centers to find the places that are best suited for entrepreneurs and startup companies. Dallas and San Diego took the two top spots, followed by San Jose, LA, and Houston, and Chicago.

San Jose was ranked first for tech education, tech education growth, and for the success of Kickstarter projects (36% of projects are funded). For tech employment growth, we were 2nd. We are also the seventh-most attractive city for millennials, which is counter to most stereotypes about the South Bay.

To see the full study, please head over here.

Santana West breaks ground on 350,000 SQFT office building

Now that Santana Row is wrapping up its final building, Federal Realty is setting their sights across the street with a new project called Santana West. The first phase officially broke ground last week and consists of an eight-story, 360,000 SQFT office building and a 1,750 space parking structure. Also, by breaking ground I mean there is already active construction on the site--it was not just a formality.

Federal Realty is trying to lease the whole building to a single tenant but is building Santana West speculatively without a tenant in tow. If all goes well, there are two additional phases that will bring the project to one million SQFT.

Unlike Santana Row, this is not a mixed-use development. In fact, there is no retail component at all--not even a coffee shop. The only likely public amenity in the project is the re-purposing of the Century 21 dome. This might seem like a missed opportunity, but two of the most successful retail projects in the United States are just across the street.

If everything goes according to plan, the building will be ready for occupancy in Q1 2021, less than two years from today.

"Endless Summer Fun at Santana Row"

San Jose shoppers’ paradise keeps summer alive this August with FREE community events, hot store opening set for September

SAN JOSE, Calif. – July 23, 2019 – Santana Row is keeping summer ablaze with a hot new store opening and free community events. Fitness studio Barry’s Bootcamp is getting ready to make its debut, but not before hosting a fun (and free!) pop-up event in Santana Row Park. This will come at the tail end of the scorching fun Santana Row’s calendar of events offers this August.

With locations across three different countries and a striking roster of celebrity clients, Barry’s Bootcamp has become the fitness junkie’s choice for getting in shape fast. On Thursday, September 12, from 5:00 p.m. – 7:00 p.m., the San Jose community is invited to come see what all the hype is about with a FREE pop-up fitness event! This 2-hour class will take place in Santana Row Park, where guests can meet the team and experience the Barry’s Bootcamp “lifestyle” for themselves.

For those market-goers who enjoy shopping locally, Santana Row has got you covered with an array of options for August. Indulge your artsy side at Makers Market in the Park on Saturday, August 3, from 11:00 a.m. – 5 p.m. Stroll through the park as you shop handcrafted goods such as jewelry, ceramics, candles and more! Similarly, the Santana Row Farmers Market will take place each Wednesday in August from 4:00 p.m. – 8:00 p.m. Watch as the streets turn into a colorful marketplace offering organic produce, cheeses, herbs and beyond.

Santana Row’s calendar of events is also packed with FREE family fun this August. On Tuesday, August 13, from 10:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m., the Mommy & Me End of Summer Party will offer DIY sunglass decorating, face painting, balloon art, story time and more. Soaring ahead, kiddos will become superheroes at the Kidrageous Super Fun Run on Sunday, August 18 from 8:30 a.m. to noon. Kids will get to run alongside real superheroes and unleash their powers at this annual event, benefitting Jacob’s Heart Children’s Cancer Services.

Finally, for the petrolheads out there, Santana Row’s Cars & Croissants series will take place on Sunday, August 25 from 9 a.m. – 12 p.m. Santana Row partners with 100|OCT to present this bi-monthly gathering for exotic car owners and enthusiasts.

Head to The Row for endless summer fun this August and September with unique, free events and community celebrations. Let the good times roll!

Block 2

If you liked yesterday's unique Market Street Towers renders, Sobrato has another flagship project right around the corner that we'll call "Block 2" until an official name is released. It is located on East San Fernando St. between S 1st St. and S 2nd St.

The project looks like several stacked glass Tetris pieces with multiple sky gardens between them. This would be one of the most interesting and unique buildings Downtown if it gets built.

The schematic shows new ground floor retail, which like Market Street Towers would fill a critical gap or deadzone Downtown. Currently the only thing on this piece of land is a surface parking lot.

Above the retail and lobby would be four floors of parking and 12 floors of offices. Each floor appears to have two sky gardens, which are four-story cutouts from the main building shell. Impressive!

Source: Market Street Towers

Market Street Towers

Sobrato has just release some new renders for their Market Street Towers project. The building design is iconic. I can't say that I have seen anything like this anywhere else. While it looks like four separate towers, it is actually a single 584,658 SQFT office building with floor plates as large as 51,605 SQFT.

The ground floor will have 16,372 SQFT of new retail, which fills a dead zone between the Paseo between the Fairmont buildings and San Carlos Street. Currently this is just a surface parking lot. Speaking of parking, there will be 683 parking spaces and 152 bicycle stalls, something that will also come in handy on the weekends when the offices are closed.

My favorite part of the project is the roof, which features not one but two sky gardens with over 25,000 SQFT of combined space. The views should be incredible as you can see from the 2nd and 3rd images below.

To see more photos and 360 degree views, head over to the Market Street Towers marketing site. Tomorrow we'll post renders for another Sobrato project in the area.

Doga comes to St. James Park in July and August

SILICON VALLEY PET PROJECT PARTNERS WITH CITY OF SAN JOSE TO OFFER
“DOGA” – YOGA CLASSES FOR DOGS AND THEIR OWNERS

Doga Comes to St. James Park in July and August

SAN JOSE, CA — Pack up your yoga mat — and your dog — and join Silicon Valley Pet Project (SVPP) for “Doga” in the Park.  For the fourth year in a row, SVPP is partnering with the City of San Jose to provide fun and interactive Doga (dog-plus-yoga) classes twice a month on Sundays, at San Jose’s historic St. James Park.  A certified yoga instructor leads the one-hour class designed for bonding between people and pups of all ages and levels.  The Doga classes are made possible, in part, by a grant from San Jose Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services.

Doga sessions will take place in the area near the corner of 3rd and St. John (near the dog park and playground) from 9:00 a.m. to 11:00 a.m., with instruction from 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m.

Remaining dates this summer are: July 28, August 11 and August 25.

Registration is free but space is limited.  For more information and registration, please click here or go to http://www.svpetproject.org.

“It’s a fun and healthy way to bond with your dog,” said Melissa Lisbon, Silicon Valley Pet Project president. “We can enjoy the benefits of being in a beautiful park while enjoying the benefits of yoga.  We are thrilled to be partnering with the City of San Jose on this project again.”

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 Silicon Valley Pet Project (SVPP) is a nonprofit animal welfare organization committed to saving local at-risk shelter pets through rescue, community involvement, and education.  For more information, go to www.svpetproject.org.

Doga in St. James Park...Provided by Silicon Valley Pet Project and a grant from San Jose Parks, Recreation and Neighborhood Services.

Live version of "San Jose" by Grace Kelly

Below is a live version of the new song entitled "San Jose" by Grace Kelly. This was a casual recording at the Clos LaChance Winery and I'm sure it won't be the last time you'll see a live version of this performed in Silicon Valley. For more details on the son and to see the official music video, head over here.