Santa Clara celebrates more housing in former industrial park

Construction is underway on the next phase of a major housing development in Santa Clara’s growing mixed-use neighborhood near Levi’s Stadium known as the Clara District, as officials continue transforming the former industrial area.

City officials, developers and residents on Thursday celebrated construction starting on Parkside, a market-rate apartment community expected to open in fall 2028. The project includes 301 apartments and is the second residential development by Ensemble Real Estate Investments in the Clara District.

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Construction is underway on a major housing development in Santa Clara’s growing mixed-use neighborhood near Levi’s Stadium. Regional Reporter Maryanne Casas-Perez was at Thursday’s groundbreaking.

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The 45-acre neighborhood is planned to include approximately 4,500 homes, restaurants, retail and 10 acres of parks and open space. More than 2,200 homes have already been built, with additional construction planned in future years.

“This new development will bring over 300 market-rate units to Santa Clara at a time when housing remains one of our most urgent challenges in Silicon Valley,” Mayor Lisa Gillmor said at the groundbreaking. “Projects like this one are important because they are part of the solution.”

Gillmor said the groundbreaking marks another milestone in the Clara District’s long-term redevelopment, which city leaders envisioned more than a decade ago.

Located at 2301 Calle Del Mundo, Parkside will include a two-story fitness center, co-working spaces, podcast studios, a rooftop lounge, golf simulator and dog park. The development will also expand the adjacent public park and include a community room available for reservation through the Santa Clara Parks and Recreation Department.

Ensemble Real Estate Investments is investing about $190 million in the project, which includes land acquisition, financing and construction costs.

“There wasn’t a ton of housing (in the area), especially not multifamily housing,” Rob Gomez, vice president of development at Ensemble Real Estate Investments, told San José Spotlight. “Given all the employers and tech companies nearby, there were certainly people that wanted to live in the area close to their jobs, close to transit.”

Gomez said the project had already been entitled before rising construction costs and interest rates made it financially difficult to build. Ensemble redesigned the project to simplify construction and improve efficiency while preserving amenities. He said the project exceeds the city’s parking requirements and is designed to provide enough parking for future residents.

Demand at Ensemble’s first Clara District apartment community, AVE Santa Clara, gave the company confidence to move forward with Parkside, Gomez said. The earlier development leased quickly after opening in February 2025, which showed continued demand for housing near major employers and regional transit.

Although Parkside will not include affordable apartments, Gomez said the project’s affordable housing obligation is fulfilled through the nearby Mainline North development, where multiple Clara District projects pooled their affordable housing requirements into one 100% affordable community. He said the arrangement allows residents to access more services and resources than if affordable homes were distributed among several market-rate buildings.

Santa Clara’s state-mandated housing plan requires the city to plan for 11,632 homes by 2031, of which 6,506 need to be below market rate, or below 120% of the area median income.

District 1 Councilmember Albert Gonzalez said the project reflects continued demand for housing in North Santa Clara, noting the nearby AVE Santa Clara apartment community is about 98% occupied.

“The more that we build, the more that we can stabilize some of the prices,” Gonzalez told San José Spotlight.

He acknowledged residents have raised concerns about parking as the Clara District grows and said the city is exploring ways to balance new housing, bike lanes and available parking.

Natascha Haywood, who lives across the street in the Mainline North affordable housing community, said she’s excited to see the neighborhood continue to grow and appreciates the area’s safety and amenities. But she worries additional housing could worsen an existing parking shortage, particularly during events at Levi’s Stadium.

“That’s the biggest challenge I’m telling you that they will face,” Haywood told San José Spotlight. “My first thought was ‘Oh my God, more cars.’ There’s no way.”

Contact Maryanne Casas-Perez at [email protected] or @CasasPerezRed on X.