Google plan is breath of fresh air for San Jose
Google’s release of details for its momentous downtown San Jose transit-oriented housing and commercial development is the best news the city has received since the pandemic hit just over a year ago.
The details, unveiled Tuesday, appear to have the blessing of business, labor and community groups — a rare feat in today’s political environment.
The fears that COVID-19 would potentially kill part, or all, of the project can be set aside, at least for now. The proposal still needs to clear numerous hurdles — including City Council approval. But Google’s announcement makes clear that it is moving forward with its mega-project that will bring good jobs and much-needed housing to San Jose, which has the worst housing-jobs ratio of any major U.S. city.
Google estimates that it could bring as many as 20,000 workers to downtown San Jose once the mile-long neighborhood is completed in about 10 years. The project, located around Diridon station, includes an estimated 7.3 million square feet of office space, 4,000 housing units (onequarter of which would be affordable homes), 15 acres for parks, plazas and green spaces, and 500,000 square feet for retail, cultural and educational use.
Perhaps the biggest — and most welcome — news Tuesday was Google’s plan to contribute $200 million in community benefits, demonstrating the company’s desire to establish itself as a fully engaged corporate citizen.
Of that, $150 million would go into a community fund devoted to affordable housing and fighting homelessness. The fund, which would be run by community members chosen by the City Council, would also include money for homeless services, education initiatives, workforce development and programs for small-business resilience and entrepreneurship.
The remaining $50 million would be devoted to local hiring, to career exploration and to help award design and construction contracts for the office buildings to local, small and diverse businesses.
Silicon Valley Rising, an umbrella organization of community groups, fully supports the community fund. The group’s campaign director, Maria Noel Fernandez, and Mayor Sam Liccardo both called the fund “a new model” for transforming the relationship between tech and the surrounding community.
The project also includes $30 million for transportation improvements and $55 million for parks and trails dedicated to the city.
Companies such as Google must be engaged as community members and do their fair share to address the housing, transportation and income disparity issues that plague the Bay Area. But it’s important to remember that Google and other tech titans aren’t solely responsible for the problems, that all players — business, government and taxpayers — must also do their part to provide solutions.
Google’s hope is to create a more walkable, connected city, highlighted by 5 miles of walking paths connecting housing to jobs, parks, plazas and retail.
The proposal is far from becoming a reality. Negotiations will continue in the months ahead, and changes are expected on a project that will likely take more than 10 years to complete. Construction of crucial infrastructure and streets won’t begin until at least 2022, and ground won’t be broken on new buildings until 2023.
But it’s exciting to see Google move forward with a plan with broad-based support that should be regarded as the most-transformational downtown project in San Jose’s history.