Senior care building could rise from former school bus yard

What was once a school district bus yard could become a residential care facility for seniors.

Houston-based Belmont Village Senior Living is proposing to construct a fourstory assisted living and memory care building at the corner of Union Avenue and Los Gatos-Almaden Road in San Jose. The property, which exceeds 5 acres, is owned by the Union School District and borders Los Gatos.

The school district could lease a 3.3-acre section of the parcel up to 75 years for the senior facility. It issued a request for proposals in March 2017 and received four responses, including one for a medical building that Superintendent Denise Coleman said would have “people coming and going at all times.” Belmont Village, on the other hand, “can be flexible scheduling employees and we’re told most of their residents don’t drive,” she added.

The school board unanimously selected Belmont Village in June 2017.

“We’re currently working on details with the city to see if the project is feasible,” Coleman said. “The property was once a bus yard, but we don’t bus students anymore. So, we don’t need that amount of space.”

The district has been “actively” searching for ways to maintain fiscal stability, Coleman said, and the long-term lease is one possible avenue.

“If you sell it, that’s the end of the funding stream,” Coleman said. “If you lease it you can continue the funding.”

Andy Gerber, Belmont Village’s vice president of acquisition and investment, said the property is currently zoned for singlefamily homes. He plans to ask the city to rezone it to commercial neighborhood, clearing the way for the senior housing facility.

“A residential care facility for the elderly is condition- ally permitted in a number of San Jose community zoning districts,” Gerber said.

Belmont Village has three senior care facilities in the Bay Area — one in San Jose’s Santana Row, one in Sunnyvale and one in Albany.

“San Jose is one of the best markets in the country for senior housing,” Gerber said. “There’s very high demand and very low supply.”

The senior care facility would contain between 150 and 160 rental units ranging from 500 to 600 square feet, as well as studios of about 350 square feet, Gerber said.

A community meeting was held May 31 to acquaint neighbors with the project. Residents have expressed concerns about the project’s size and its potential impact on the adjacent Ross Creek Wildlife Corridor, privacy and traffic.

“We will do a traffic analysis,” Gerber said, pointing out that “Senior housing generally means less traffic.”

A geologist determined the proposed building should be at least 35 feet from Ross Creek, and Gerber noted the setback actually will be “further back than 35 feet to keep it as far away from the neighbors as possible.”

Although a specific date has not been set, Gerber said he plans to hold another community meeting next month. At that time, he’ll roll out an early design for the facility that incorporates neighborhood input.

The soonest construction could begin would be early 2020, Gerber said. He estimated construction would take 16 to 18 months.