San José’s Downtown to Welcome Data Center and Hundreds of Housing Units
- — Two large-scale housing developments, coupled with data centers, have received the green light from the San Jose city Council.Approved April 8, these projects mark the first beneficiaries...
- The council unanimously approved proposals from Westbank, a Canadian real estate firm, to construct 1,492 residential units within two multi-story towers in downtown San Jose.
- This program is designed to attract housing developers by possibly waiving standard city development regulations.
San Jose Approves Downtown Housing, Data Center Projects
Table of Contents
- San Jose Approves Downtown Housing, Data Center Projects
- san Jose Approves Downtown Housing and Data Center Projects: Your top Questions Answered
- What’s happening in downtown San Jose?
- What are the key components of the approved projects?
- Who is the developer behind these projects?
- What is the “Innovative Project Route Program” and how does it relate to these developments?
- why is San Jose focusing on attracting investments in downtown?
- What are the specific details of the approved projects?
- How will these data centers impact the city’s revenue?
- Are there concerns about data centers and downtown revitalization?
- How is the city addressing concerns about a lack of pedestrian traffic around data centers?
- What is Westbank’s perspective on these projects?
- what about affordable housing?
- What are the next steps for these projects?
- Summary of Key Project Details
SAN JOSE, Calif. — Two large-scale housing developments, coupled with data centers, have received the green light from the San Jose city Council.Approved April 8, these projects mark the first beneficiaries of mayor Matt Mahan’s initiative aimed at expediting developments that offer important advantages to the city.
Westbank’s Proposal Accepted
The council unanimously approved proposals from Westbank, a Canadian real estate firm, to construct 1,492 residential units within two multi-story towers in downtown San Jose. The advancement also includes two data centers. These projects were submitted following the announcement of the Innovative Project Route Program by Mahan and Vice Mayor Pam Foley in November.
This program is designed to attract housing developers by possibly waiving standard city development regulations. This includes possible reductions in construction taxes and exemptions from affordable housing impact fees for specific projects,with the goal of opening more downtown areas for residential development.
Addressing Investment Challenges
“We don’t want our zoning and current land-use designations to hinder innovation,” Mahan said at the meeting. “We understand how difficult it is to attract investments to our downtown. We have approved many homes that were paralyzed and have not been built due to lack of financing.”
City leaders initiated programs like the Innovative Project Route Program after the housing department reported a slowdown in multifamily housing project starts last year.
Data Centers and Revenue
According to city officials, the construction of a 99-megawatt data center is projected to generate an estimated $3.5 million to $6.4 million annually in new property taxes and public service user fees.
Balancing Priorities
Mahan and Foley have noted the potential conflict between data centers and the city’s goals of beautifying and revitalizing the downtown area.
“Data centers are low-use uses that do not generate pedestrian traffic or dynamism, and of course, that is what we want,” Foley said at the meeting. ”It is indeed essential that we demand certain conditions to remain faithful to the essence of the General plan; the reason we are considering data centers in the center is as this project accompanies the construction of high density housing.”
Project Details
one project envisions an 18-story apartment complex with 345 units at 323 Terraine St.,integrated with an 11-story data center and a 10-story parking structure providing 621 spaces.
The second project features three 30-story towers, offering 1,147 homes at 300 S. First St., complemented by a 10-story data center, five levels of underground parking, and over 18,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space.
AI Economy and Housing
Andrew Jacobson, U.S. Development Vice President for Westbank, emphasized the role of data centers in the artificial intelligence economy, stating San Jose is well-positioned to capitalize on this trend.
“We all know the difficulties we face in the Bay area and the difficulty that technology companies have enough homes, which is moving the people from our communities,” he said at the meeting. “We believe that the data centers and homes are complemented very well…we will capture the residual heat of the data center and feed it to the housing project next door.”
Affordable Housing
Councilmember Peter Ortiz inquired about the number of affordable housing units planned for the projects.A Westbank representative responded that they are collaborating with city officials to meet affordable housing requirements.
Mahan noted that residential buildings would be prioritized, acknowledging the easier financing of data centers. to address concerns about data centers not attracting pedestrian traffic, city officials are considering allocating a portion of future data center revenue to arts, entertainment, and cultural initiatives.
“in our multifirma memorandum we ask the builder to guarantee that the ground floor of the data center is activated creatively, beyond a public art installation,” Mahan said. “We invite the applicant to be really creative in the way we activate that space.”
Future Approvals
Chris Burton, the urban planning director, indicated that the projects are likely to return to the City Council for final approval after plans with Westbank are finalized. Burton also expressed a desire to avoid implementing broad policy changes affecting the downtown area.
“We have worked hard to boost new residential developments,especially high buildings throughout the center,” Burton said at the meeting. “The idea was to provide the City with the opportunity to provide us with initial comments on individual projects so that we could then design a process that would be applied later.”
san Jose Approves Downtown Housing and Data Center Projects: Your top Questions Answered
What’s happening in downtown San Jose?
The San Jose City Council has approved two large-scale projects that include housing developments and data centers.These projects are among the first to benefit from Mayor Matt mahan’s initiative designed to speed up developments that benefit the city. The proposals are from Westbank,a Canadian real estate firm.
What are the key components of the approved projects?
The projects include:
Residential Units: 1,492 residential units within two multi-story towers.
Data Centers: Two data centers are part of the development.
Who is the developer behind these projects?
The projects are being developed by Westbank, a Canadian real estate firm.
What is the “Innovative Project Route Program” and how does it relate to these developments?
In November, Mayor mahan and Vice Mayor Pam Foley announced the Innovative Project Route Program. This program aims to attract housing developers by potentially:
Waiving standard city development regulations
Reducing construction taxes.
Providing exemptions from affordable housing impact fees for specific projects.
The overall goal is to encourage more residential development in downtown areas. These approved projects are among the first to utilize this program.
why is San Jose focusing on attracting investments in downtown?
Mayor Mahan emphasized the need to attract investments, stating that the city doesn’t want zoning and land-use designations to hinder innovation. City leaders initiated programs like the Innovative Project Route program after a reported slowdown in multifamily housing project starts. The city recognizes the difficulty of attracting investment in downtown areas.
What are the specific details of the approved projects?
here’s a breakdown of the projects:
Project 1:
18-story apartment complex with 345 units.
11-story data center.
10-story parking structure with 621 spaces.
Project 2:
Three 30-story towers with 1,147 homes.
10-story data center.
Five levels of underground parking.
Over 18,000 square feet of ground-floor commercial space.
How will these data centers impact the city’s revenue?
The construction of a 99-megawatt data center is estimated to generate between $3.5 million and $6.4 million annually in new property taxes and public service user fees.
Are there concerns about data centers and downtown revitalization?
Yes, there are potential conflicts between data centers and the city’s goals of beautifying and revitalizing the downtown area. City officials like Vice Mayor Foley have noted that data centers typically don’t generate pedestrian traffic or create a dynamic surroundings. However, since the data centers are being built alongside high-density housing, the city is considering this a worthwhile trade-off.
How is the city addressing concerns about a lack of pedestrian traffic around data centers?
To address concerns, city officials are considering allocating a portion of future data center revenue to arts, entertainment, and cultural initiatives. They are also encouraging the builder to activate the ground floor of the data center creatively.
What is Westbank’s perspective on these projects?
Andrew Jacobson, U.S. development Vice President for Westbank, highlighted the role of data centers in the artificial intelligence economy. He stated that San Jose is well-positioned to capitalize on this trend. He also emphasized that data centers complement the need for more housing in the Bay Area,as these developments will help bring much needed homes. The projects will also capture residual heat from the data centers and feed it to the housing projects.
what about affordable housing?
Councilmember Peter Ortiz inquired about the number of affordable housing units planned for the projects. A Westbank representative responded that they are working with city officials to meet affordable housing requirements. Residential buildings are being prioritized, with officials acknowledging that financing data centers is easier to secure.
What are the next steps for these projects?
the projects are likely to return to the City Council for final approval after plans with Westbank are finalized. The city’s urban planning director, Chris Burton, indicated a desire to avoid broad policy changes affecting the downtown area.
Summary of Key Project Details
Here’s a rapid reference table summarizing the key features:
| Feature | Project 1 | Project 2 |
|---|---|---|
| Residential Units | 345 | 1,147 |
| number of Towers | 1 | 3 |
| Tower Height | 18 Stories | 30 Stories |
| Data Center | 11 stories | 10 stories |
| Parking Spaces | 621 | (underground) |
| Commercial Space | | 18,000+ sq ft |