Legislative flop impacts Google village project

SAN JOSE >> The failure of a legislative bill in Sacramento has complicated plans for Google’s gamechanging transit village proposal in downtown San Jose, a setback that has prompted the city’s mayor to urge lawmakers to set up a special session to address the dilemma.

Senate Bill 995, which would have smoothed the path to fast-track development of certain major projects in California, failed to gain approval of state lawmakers after time ran out in the hectic final hours of the Legislature’s session on Aug. 31.

San Jose Mayor Sam Liccardo on Sept. 4 requested that the state Legislature convene a special session to take up the measure, which would have created a four-year extension to give projects such as Google’s Downtown West development more time to qualify for a fast track.

“In a moment of historic levels of joblessness and amid our chronic shortage of affordable housing, we will continue pushing forward with this transformative project to ensure that our community can benefit from thousands of affordable apartments and millions of square feet of workspace,” Mayor Liccardo said in a prepared statement.

Google’s Downtown West project would create a huge mixed-use village on the western edges of downtown San Jose near the Diridon train station and SAP Center.

“We urge a special session that will enable the Senate to consider SB 995,” Liccardo said.

Google envisions a transit-oriented neighborhood of office buildings, homes, shops, stores, hotel rooms, entertainment centers, cultural hubs, and open spaces where the search giant could employ up to 25,000 people.

The company is assessing the impact and is working closely with the city on potential next steps, a Google spokesperson said Sept. 4.

Liccardo opined that the Downtown West project already qualifies for the fasttracking, and the mayor blamed coronavirus-linked delays that hampered efforts to get the development approved this year by city officials.

“This project has already met state criteria,” Liccardo said. “If not for COVID-RElated delays, the city wouldn’t need an extension.

Local leaders agreed with the mayor that a special legislative session should be convened.

“The Diridon Area Neighborhood Group ( DANG) agrees with the Mayor urging a special session convene to approve SB 995,” said Bob Staedler, a land-use consultant and representative for the DANG organization. “It is needed now more than ever with the economic impacts of COVID-19.”

A separate bill, AB 900, which is now state law, authorizes the governor to certify that a project in California is “an environmental leadership development project” that is eligible for a streamlined regulatory and legal review.

“Everything changed six months ago with the pandemic,” said Scott Knies, executive director of the San Jose Downtown Association. “The state Legislature understands how this has disrupted most PRE-COVID deadlines.”

Local agencies are under pressure to get projects approved by Jan. 1, 2021.

San Jose’s Downtown West approval process, which originally was due to be completed by year’s end, has slipped due to the complexities of the development as well as complications unleashed by the coronavirus.

“It is only fair this extension to AB900 is granted as soon as possible by the state,” Knies said.