Downtown San Jose is about to experience a number of upcoming developments, including a possible new hotel, according to a recent article from The Mercury News. Evidently, developers are looking to construct a seven story hotel in the SoFA district, at the corner of South Second and East Reed streets. The building would have 109 rooms, according to city planners’ documents.
This proposed development is part of a larger-scale transition taking place downtown, and will provide visitors to the area with a more cozy lodging option. President of realty brokerage Ritchie Commercial, Mark Ritchie, said in the article, “In any growing downtown, along with the major hotels, you have smaller ones that may have a lower price.”
Considering where the hotel will be located, the project is certainly a practical one; the neighborhood is home to plenty of restaurants, entertainment, and live theater options. Not to mention, just a few blocks away is San Jose’s convention center.
Bob Staedler, principal executive with land-use and planning consultancy, Silicon Valley Synergy, was also quoted in the article, saying, “There’s a lot more activity in the SoFA area, and this hotel will help with that… You’re seeing a really nice vibe in the SoFA neighborhood.”
To further illustrate Staedler’s point an additional project is being planned just a block away from the future hotel, which includes three residential towers, a retail and dining space, and a theater. There are also plans in place to construct a 27-story residential tower, which could be the tallest building in San Jose.
Additionally, a complex known as the Sparq apartments, which includes 105 residential units and a ground-floor retail space, is also under construction at South First and East Reed streets.
As noted by Jim Heilbronner, founder and president of Architectural Dimensions, the company designing the hotel, “there is an explosion of hospitality growth throughout the Bay Area.”
Based on a July 3 report from CBRE Hotels, when comparing the first four months of this year to the same time during 2017, average revenue per available room increased in the Santa Clara County and Peninsula areas by 7.7%, compared to a 5.4% increase in Northern California.
In addition to the proposed hotel, downtown San Jose is also the focal point of Google’s upcoming expansion, which will include a transit-oriented community located near Diridon Station. Adobe has also expressed interest in expanding its operations downtown, and plans to
build a new office tower next to its existing campus.
If nothing else, we can all agree that the downtown area is becoming increasingly attractive to companies, residents, and tourists alike, thanks to the multitude of ongoing developments.
