Alviso/North San Jose entertainment district is now a data center

Next to the Topgolf in Alviso was a grand plan for an entertainment district containing shops, restaurants, and two hotels. Five years later, the area around Topgolf is still barren (although Topgolf is doing very well on its own). 

Now, the owners of the land are coming back to the city with a very different proposal that is likely to be a lot less exciting for North San Jose residents... a giant data center. I'm digging the exterior design with a living wall for the 172,500 SQFT two-story building and it's neighboring 174,400 SQFT three-story power center--but it's still a server farm. 

There is still hope for a 15,000 SQFT retail space, which could house a few restaurants. However, that is nothing compared the the multi-million SQFT projects Santa Clara is planning down the street. In a few years there will be tons of new apartments, office buildings, restaurants, shopping, and at least one new hotel across from Levi's stadium. Not to mention all of Great America will likely be turned into some mixed used mega-property like Santana Row over the next 10-15 years. 

Something is better than nothing from a city tax dollar perspective, but we should question whether this is the best use for this land. Once it's a data center, I don't think it will be convertible to anything else.

Source: The Merc

Famous Korean BBQ spot Baekjeong opens first Northern California location in San Jose

Speaking of BBQ (see previous post today), Baekjeong is opening their very first location in Northern California at Westfield Valley Fair. This is a chain owned by Korean celebrity Kang Ho-dong and is extremely popular in LA and New York. San Jose will be one of just a two locations to accept reservations and they are already going fast on Resy.

While many malls around the country are struggling, Valley Fair somehow is continuing to expand and attract compelling restaurants. Eataly, Din Tai Fung, iChina, Maestro's, Kingfish, and Ramen Nagi are some of the other flagship dining destinations within the mall.

Guide to San Jose BBQ spots

SJ Today has a handy guide for the top BBQ spots in San Jose. Many of my favorites are on there including my personal top choice, Smoking Pig BBQ. Smoked Out BBQ in Santa Clara is also fantastic and in one of the most random places you will ever find a restaurant.

Check out the SJ Today list over here.

 

Content 15.4 "Profiles" pick-up party

Content Magazine is releasing their newest issue on Thursday, August 17th. As is tradition they are hosting a party to celebrate the release, which is taking place at the San Jose Museum of Art (SJMA). Music and entertainment will be provided by DJ Weezmatic, Yosimar Reyes, Ervin Wilson, James Mertke, Paul J. Gonzalez, Together We Create, and more.

The event takes place from 6-9pm and is free to the public. Content Subscribers also get a complimentary beverage and hors d'oeuvres courtesy of El Cafecito by Mezcal Restaurant.

For more info or to become a subscriber, head over here.

Cinequest 2023 ("Energized") kicks off tomorrow

The 33rd Cinequest returns tomorrow, August 15th and runs through the end of the month. It features over 300 films this year, 84 of which are US or world premiers. This has become a top-10 film festival in the US, so it's well worth checking out. My favorites are always the collections of shorts, especially the comedies.

For a short guide, head over to SJ Today. To see the full list of films and buy your passes, Cinequest.org is your best bet.

San Jose office building may be converted to residential or hotel

A 10-story, 113-year-old office building at 2 West Santa Clara St. might be converted to become either a residential building or a hotel.

Like many urban areas today, Downtown San Jose has a very high office vacancy rate. In Q2 it was 26.6%, partially because the massive 200 Park office tower was completed, adding greatly to the amount of available office space in the area. Santa Clara is also at 26.1% and San Francisco has a whopping 31.6% office vacancy.

So it makes quite a bit of sense to take some of the older office buildings and convert them to other uses that have more demand. Some of the plans up for consideration for 2 West Santa Clara are 65 residences, a hotel with 147 rooms, or a 73-unit co-living space (e.g. The Grad). 

The building has a great location in central Downtown San Jose but is only 100,000 SQFT and has small floor plates that are not popular with tech companies these days. Since every office has windows already, it should a pretty easy conversion to residential or a hotel.

Source: SFGATE

New housing proposed for East Capitol Expressway

Yet another housing project is being proposed near a San Jose train stop. 203 residential units and a cafe are being planned for the intersection of East Capital Expressway and Highway 87. The multi-phase project would also have an open plaza, paseo, a library, public art, and community spaces.

It's an interesting transit-oriented location across from an existing Light Rail Station and the onramp for Highway 87. Based on the renders it looks like they are planning to incorporate a bus hub into the project as well and there seems to be a plenty of room for future expansion. 

I imagine much of the Capital Expressway Auto Mall across from the freeway will be redeveloped long term, so it will be interesting to see what this neighborhood will become.

Source: SVBJ

Downtown San Jose restaurants playing musical chairs

Several Downtown restaurants are making moves to new locations and filling critical corner retail gaps on city blocks. 

Elyse--one of my favorite Downtown San Jose restaurants--has outgrown their previous spot (famous for House of Siam until 2014). They are moving to a much larger corner space previously occupied by Nemea Mediterranean. Elyse is the ultimate date-night spot, with an eclectic French Vietnamese menu and craft cocktails. Hopefully they will keep the romantic atmosphere from their old location.

Next door is Angkor Chef, a brand new Cambodian restaurant. A few doors down from that in the former Pizza Flora spot (RIP, another one of my favs) is Angelou's Mexican Grill. They are moving from North 2nd Street and upgrading to a full bar. If it's anything like the previous location they'll be open until 2 or 3am as well. 

Then we have Mas Pizza from Paseo de San Antonio which will be taking over the Mumbai Local restaurant and nightclub. Like most of the previously mentioned spots, they will be significantly increasing their footprint and the owner envisions turning the pizza spot into an upscale sports bar.

Last but not least, the space that used to be Tony DiMaggio's and Pizza Chicago will become El Cabron Kitchen & Cantina.

The Downtown San Jose food scene continues to evolve, so please support your local restaurants--especially the family-owned unique spots that make Downtown special.

Source: The Merc