What it will take to make downtown home to web search giant’s campus
Now that San Jose has approved negotiations with Google for a massive new tech campus in the heart of downtown, what are the steps toward making it a reality? Like San Francisco’s Mission Bay renewal, the Mountain View search giant’s development would reshape downtown San Jose in a dramatic fashion. Tapping transit links into Diridon Station, the project would bring 15,000 to 20,000 Google employees into San Jose, elevating the city that is home to Cisco Systems, Adobe Systems and eBay as among tech’s biggest host cities. Q
What is the current status of the Google project? A
On June 20, the City Council voted 10-1 to negotiate exclusively with Google to sell 16 city-purchased parcels on Montgomery and Autumn streets near the Diridon transit station to the search giant.
Two of the parcels are cityowned and the rest are owned by the Successor Agency to the Redevelopment Agency, or SARA, an organization overseen by city, county, education and special district representatives. It is tasked with ensuring that local governments receive fair compensation on sales of proper--
ties purchased by redevelopment agencies after the state disbanded them in 2012.
To sell the SARA properties, the city and SARA board must approve something called a “compensation agreement” that identifies how the fair market value of the property will be determined and a distribution of the sales proceeds back to the local government agencies.
Once that happens, the properties are transferred to the city and the city will sell the land at a fair market value based on an appraisal. City officials hope to complete that process as well as the direct sale of city-owned parcels by Dec. 31, 2017. Q What has the City Council agreed to? A The council has agreed to negotiate exclusively with Google for the sale of the 16 properties through July 2018. The city manager has authority to extend that term for another year. Q What are some of the things that might come up during negotiations? A City officials would not discuss specifics, but beyond the sale price, issues San Jose’s elected leaders raised at the City Council meeting include ensuring that job growth during and after construction encourages good labor standards and potential local hire policies. The council also directed that no taxpayer dollars will be used to subsidize the development, and that there be a “transparent engagement process” with residents, small businesses, faith-based and local organizations. The city runs the process in partnership with Google. Q What has Google agreed to? A The company has agreed only “to negotiate in good faith for the land,” said Nanci Klein, San Jose’s assistant director of economic development and the Google project manager. “We are just exchanging words and ideas right now — it’s too soon to tell if we have a project.” Q What happens next? A By the end of March 2018, the city will develop a “memorandum of understanding” with Google that outlines specific terms and expected elements of the project. It could include a plan with goals about public space like parks and plazas, housing requirements, a better idea of the project’s total footprint and shared parking.
If the city and Google can agree on the property sales, then Google will develop a detailed project description and site plans that outline how the buildings would look, the mix of retail and office space, parking construction and traffic impacts.
Then Google will submit an application to the city to begin the project’s development and land-use entitlement phase.
That process will include environmental review, zoning amendments, applications for land use and building permits. It also will include proposed changes to the Diridon station area plan, which outlines a vision for development near the transit hub. The permit process can take a year or two. Q When does the community engagement happen? A Though it’s unclear when the meetings will be held, city officials hope to start that process in the fall, when they will work out the details and timing, including the locations of public meetings in partnership with Google. Q How long before the project really begins? A It’s hard to say because city officials don’t know what the project is yet. They will have a better sense of the project and timing when the MOU comes to City Council in March. Q What else is Google doing about coming to San Jose? A In recent weeks, Google-linked investors have spent about $135 million purchasing an assortment of properties on the western frontiers of downtown San Jose. In June, the TC Agoge group bought properties at six different addresses. TC Agoge is an affiliate of San Francisco-based Trammell Crow, a development partner for Google in the Diridon Station development efforts.
The most recent purchases included a house and vacant land near the corner of South Montgomery and West San Carlos streets.