San Jose and California are in a race to leave the 1960s in the past, at least when it comes to redevelopment and parking. Silicon Valley housing advocates and experts are lauding the approval of a new state law that will do away with minimum parking requirements for new developments within a half-mile of major...
UPDATE: Santa Clara leaders delay decision on affordable housing
Santa Clara leaders are postponing a vote on a controversial affordable housing project until November, amid opposition from hundreds of residents. The Santa Clara City Council voted 4-3 Tuesday to defer moving forward on a plan to build a five-story apartment building at 1601 Civic Center Drive. The project, managed by Charities Housing, would add...
UPDATE: Hundreds of affordable homes planned in San Jose
Following through on a policy priority five years in the making, San Jose is partnering with developers to build affordable housing on several city-owned plots of land, including the first housing project stemming from Google’s major downtown development. The San Jose City Council voted unanimously to approve exclusive negotiating agreements with four different developers Tuesday,...
Lawsuit stalls San Jose food bank development
Plans for a nonprofit food bank’s massive new headquarters in Alviso are on hold after a resident filed a lawsuit against San Jose over its approval of the development. In a lawsuit filed Monday in Santa Clara County Superior Court, Alviso resident Mark Espinoza claims the environmental review for the 250,000 square foot Second Harvest of...
San Jose transforms hotel for foster youth
San Jose is partnering with various agencies on a multi-million-dollar project to transform a hotel into housing for youth transitioning out of foster care. The city approved a nearly $2.8 million grant to close the funding gap on a $32 million affordable housing project in San Jose. Developer Jamboree Housing Corporation will transform the Pavilion...
San Jose resident sues city, developer over hotel plans
An Alviso man is suing San Jose over its approval of a developer’s plans to build a hotel in the neighborhood. An attorney for resident Mark Espinoza—who has been part of multiple lawsuits pushing back against development in the North San Jose community—filed a lawsuit against the city and Terra Development Partners in Santa Clara County Superior...
UPDATE: Dozens of condos proposed in West San Jose
A potentially historic West San Jose barn and cottage built near the turn of the 20th century should be demolished to make way for condominiums and ground floor businesses, the city’s Planning Commission recommended Wednesday. The vote was 8-1, with Commissioner Sylvia Ornelas-Wise dissenting, saying she thought the decision should be deferred until a plan...
UPDATE: San Jose annexes Cambrian Park Plaza for redevelopment
Major plans for revamping the iconic Cambrian Park Plaza in San Jose are one step closer to fruition. On Tuesday, the San Jose City Council unanimously voted to annex a nearly 20-acre parcel of Santa Clara County land that encompasses the plaza into the city. The procedural step will advance long-brewing plans to transform the...
Tired of waiting, San Jose residents dig their own park
After two decades, one San Jose community is still waiting for a vacant lot covered in dried grass and weeds to be transformed into a promised park. A group of Alviso residents is working, without a permit, to improve a small portion of the plot of land, raising eyebrows in the community and at City Hall. Over...
Closed San Jose golf course may become housing
East San Jose residents are raising alarms over the potential development of a massive former golf course. An obscure policy change recommended by the city’s Transportation and Environment Committee could lay the foundation for the 114-acre former Pleasant Hills Golf Course to be built out with housing, commercial space or both. The committee is pushing...