The San Jose Redevelopment Agency announced yesterday that Safeway is moving forward with plans to open a scaled-down of its grocery market at the ground level of downtown San Jose’s new residential high-rise complex, The 88. (But you heard that here first.) The grocery store chain agreed to lease 24,000 square feet of retail space at The 88 will be located on the corner of San Fernando and Second Streets. Apparently, all that needs to happen now is a rubber stamp from the City Council approving a $1.85 million expenditure for an elevator that would serve customers going to and from the parking garage. Once the City Council gives its blessing on the elevator cost, which most expect will happen, downtown San Jose will have a new grocery store by the end of this summer.

The new Safeway store will be a smaller, upscale neighborhood version dubbed “The Market”. The store itself will be half the size of its normal stores but still be a full-service grocery store. The Downtown San Jose location will be the first of its kind in Northern California for The Market, which was first featured in Long Beach. The Market format focuses on providing customers with fresh produce, edited product selection, its Signature Cafe, and an extensive selection of prepared foods. The “grab-n-go” meals are perfect for today’s busy consumers and a perfect, easy stop for nearby residents. Hmm, sounds a little bit like what’s already offered at Zanotto’s Downtown Market which features its Zanotto’s “Grab and Go” and “Meals in Minutes”.

Read more about the Safeway coming to downtown San Jose from the Redevelopment Agency in the documents below.

Safeway at the 88 - Free Legal Forms

Looking to be more environmentally friendly and to encourage consumers to use reusable bags, the City of San Jose is considering adopting an ordinance that would require retail establishments charge consumers a 25 cent fee for each disposable paper or plastic bag used. Let’s say the next time you go to Zanotto’s Downtown Market and you buy a half gallon of milk, a loaf of bread, a dozen eggs, two chicken breasts, and a can of tuna. And since one of your New Year’s resolutions included eating healthier, you throw in a few bananas. You’ll probably need two or three bags to carry these groceries and maybe even need to double bag the carton of milk. Assuming you need four paper bags, you’ll be charged an extra $1.00 on top of your grocery bill for the disposable bag surcharge. That may not sound like a lot but in these difficult economic times, every dollar counts. Especially if you go grocery shopping on a regular basis. Most, if not all, retailers now offer reusable cloth or canvas carrying bags for a minimal fee.

The City of San Jose Environmental Services Department will be holding public meetings to discuss the proposed fee for paper or plastic disposable bags. You can provide your two cents on the 25 cent issue or learn more about how the fee will help reduce litter by attending one of the following public meetings. If adopted, the single-use bag fee ordinance would take effect as soon as July 1, 2009.

Public Meeting on Proposed Fee on Paper and Plastic Bags

Wednesday, January 28, 2009
2:00pm - 3:30pm
San Jose City Hall Council Chambers
200 E. Santa Clara Street
Downtown San Jose

OR

Thursday, January 29, 2009
6:00pm - 7:30pm
San Jose City Hall Council Chambers
200 E. Santa Clara Street
Downtown San Jose

For additional information on the public hearing, click here, call (408) 975-2570 or email Bring-Ur-Bag@sanjoseca.gov.

There have been lots of questions about what’s going on with Safeway at The 88. And with every question about whether Safeway has pulled out of the deal to anchor the ground level retail space at The 88, there have been even more rumors. Safeway is out. Safeway is still in. No one really knew. And no one would really commit to saying whether Safeway was a go or a goner. Well, it sounds like Safeway is still in and that Safeway has finalized its lease and will officially be in at The 88.

At last Thursday night’s San Jose Downtown Residents Association (SJDRA) meeting, San Jose Councilmember Sam Liccardo (District 3) confirmed that Safeway has not pulled out of The 88 location. Liccardo said that while certain obstacles had come up, including the credit crunch, the grocery store chain has always been committed to coming to downtown San Jose. While he would not commit to any specifics, Liccardo did say that there would be a big announcement in the next few weeks regarding Safeway in downtown San Jose. Well, apparently someone beat him to the punch and the word on the street is that Safeway has signed its lease and will be going forward at The 88.

Did you ever think you would hear the words “real estate boom” again? Its not necessarily a boom, but how about a mini boom then? According to a Forbes article, many cities hardest hit by the real estate bust are now experiencing mini sales booms. Savvy buyers and investors are taking advantage of the decline in prices and buying properties now rather than waiting. Some foreclosure properties are even getting multiple offers. With the real estate downturn comes opportunity and buyers are jumping on great deals.

San Jose ranked #9 on the list of cities nationwide where it makes most sense to buy now. The article placed Las Vegas at the top of the list of cities to buy now just ahead of Sacramento and San Diego. One expert cited in the article also predicted that real estate prices will start to see appreciation again by 2011. Hopefully, we’ll also hear the words “real estate boom” again too.

Read the Forbes article here.

Downtown San Jose has been on a recent spree of openings for restaurants and eateries. And now downtown San Jose has Blendz. The “Fun-Fresh-Food” healthy food fast food franchise features tossed-to-order salads, grilled panini sandwiches, smoothies, soups, and coffee drinks. Healthy and fresh with the ease and convenience of traditional fast food. What a concept! Blendz opened its first store in Campbell and has expanded to what will soon be 15 stores throughout the Bay Area. The Campbell store was recently named Business of the Year by the Campbell Chamber of Commerce.

Blendz is conveniently located at the street level front of the Paseo Villas complex on San Fernando between Third and Fourth Street. Blendz is between Cafe Yolicious and Santa Clara County Federal Credit Union.

Blendz
132 E. San Fernando Street
Downtown San Jose
(408) 286-0668

The San Jose Downtown Residents Association (SJDRA) will be holding its Winter Quarterly Meeting on Thursday, January 22, 2009 at San Jose City Hall. The meeting will feature a special guest appearance by San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed. The focus of the Winter Quarterly Meeting will be to establish downtown neighborhood priorities for 2009. If you would like to share your ideas, vision, or thoughts about downtown San Jose, please attend this important community meeting. This is your opportunity to get involved and make an impact in your neighborhood. Everyone is welcome!

San Jose Downtown Residents Association (SJDRA)
Winter Quarterly Meeting
Thursday, January 22, 2009
7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
San Jose City Hall
200 E. Santa Clara Street
The Wing, Room 120

For more information or to RSVP for the Winter Quarterly Meeting, email SJDRA@yahoo.com or call (408) 794-0153.

Upcoming SJDRA Events

Evening Social at Flames Coffee Shop
February 19, 2009
7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
88 South First Street
Downtown San Jose

Evening Social at Caffe Trieste
March 19, 2009
7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
315 S. First Street
Downtown San Jose

SJDRA Spring Quarterly Meeting
April 16, 2009
7:00 pm - 8:30 pm
San Jose Athletic Club
196 N. 3rd Street
Downtown San Jose

The Leonardo da Vinci exhibit at The Tech Museum has been extended to January 25, 2009. If you haven’t already seen it, or want to check it out again, now you have until January 25th to check out this fascinating exhibit. The exhibit, “Leonardo: 500 Years Into the Future,” features the most comprehensive collection of the innovative art, science and engineering works by Leonardo da Vinci and the Reneissance Engineers. This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to see how da Vinci and his 15th Century contemporaries inspired much of the technology that we use today. The 30,000 square foot exhibit showcases over 200 artifacts, drawings, life-size models of the art, sculptures, mechanisms, and machines from one of the most innovative eras in history. Don’t miss Leonardo at The Tech!

Leonardo: 500 Years Into the Future - now until January 25, 2009
The Tech Museum of Innovation
201 S. Market Street
Downtown San Jose, CA 95113
(408) 294-TECH (8324)

To learn more about the Leonardo exhibit at The Tech Museum, watch this Best of the Bay clip.

The latest craze in frozen yogurt is coming to Santana Row. Yes, ladies and gentlemen the oh so trendy Pinkberry will be opening one of its frozen yogurt stores at Santana Row on January 22. Like other frozen yogurt retailers (such as Cafe Yolicious and Penguin Froyo in downtown San Jose), Pinkberry sells frozen yogurt and smoothies. But Pinkberry is best known for the “Swirly Goodness” of its tart, nonfat frozen yogurt which is made from real nonfat milk and real nonfat yogurt. Pinkberry carries an assortment of frozen yogurt flavors including pomegranate and greent tea, as well as toppings such as fresh kiwi, blueberries, granola, and Fruity Pebbles. The Santana Row location will be the first Pinkberry in the Bay Area for the Los Angeles-based frozen yogurt chain. If you like frozen yogurt, then you will definitely want to check out Pinkberry.

Pinkberry
Santana Row
(408) 551-4611

Talks of an urban market in San Jose came to light last month when the San Jose City Council approved a $6 million public expenditure to support the development. The proposed San Jose Public Market would be located in downtown San Jose at the north end of San Pedro Square and is designed to encompass the historic Peralta Adobe and Fallon House. Project representatives have described the proposed open-air market as being similar to Pike Place Market in Seattle or the Ferry Building Marketplace in San Francisco. The west side of the Market Street Garage, which faces San Pedro Street, would also be converted into retail shops and restaurants. City council officials call the project a big boost in the continuing redevelopment efforts in downtown San Jose.

The San Jose Public Market would be a public-private partnership with the project developers, which include former San Jose Mayor Tom McEnery, pouring millions of their own dollars into the project.

Click here for more images of the proposed San Jose Public Market.

Now that we are a full week into the new year, let’s take a quick peak at what happened in the downtown San Jose real estate market in the last few months of 2008. Remember, the last quarter of the calendar year includes the holiday season and is historically a slower time of the year. You’ll notice that the number of transactions increased in the months of October and November from the previous year. But you’ll also see that the median sales price dropped significantly this year during those two months. In December, total sales volume fell drastically from the previous year. No doubt news of the recession hitting hard during this time. But there are people out there still buying. Read this San Jose Mercury article or Silicon Valley Business Journal article to find out who’s buying.

Reminder: The following statistics represent resales of Central San Jose’s (MLS Area 9 which includes downtown San Jose) condos, townhomes, and lofts. As noted in past statistical postings, these numbers may not include sales from new construction developments. New developments may or may not provide information to the MLS.

Food for Thought #1: Something you won’t necessarily see in the stats . . . In October ‘08, nine of the eleven lowest priced transactions involved either a bank-owned property or was a short sale. The bottom five lowest priced sales in November ‘08 involved either a bank-owned property or was a short sale. The three lowest priced properties sold in December of 2008 were bank-owned properties.

Food for Thought #2: During the last quarter of 2008, according to MLS data fifteen bank-owned properties were sold in this area. Of those transactions, eleven sold for at or above the last posted asking price. The others sold very close to asking price. In fact, the percentage of listing price received for all of these bank-owned properties was an astounding 99.57%. Round up and you get 100%! Why is this significant you ask? Well, if you are thinking about making an offer on a bank-owned property that is significantly lower than asking price, you may want to think again . . .

*These statistics are generated using information from the MLSListings, Inc. (formerly RE InfoLink) MLS, but have not been verified and are not guaranteed. MLSListings, Inc. disclaims any resposibility for the accuracy and reliability of these statistics. This information should not be relied upon for real estate transaction decisions.