SAN JOSE — A downtown San Jose site that for decades was used for tire sales would be converted to a large new residential complex under a plan being floated by the property owner and a veteran real estate executive.

Real estate broker Ralph Borelli has teamed up with property owner Jon D’Amico to seek changes in San Jose’s general plan as well as specific zoning approvals for the site.

The plan: 140 residential units would sprout at the now-shuttered tire sales building, which is located at 802 S. First St. near the corner of Virginia Street on the southern edge of downtown San Jose.

“We are used to this being a tire store, but the property screams redevelopment,” said D’Amico, whose family owns the property and was the operator of a tire sales store over a span of three generations.

D’Amico’s grandfather built the structure, which hasn’t changed much from when it first appeared in the 1940s.

“Housing in this area is certainly what San Jose wants and needs,” D’Amico said. “We are in full support of that and are ready to proceed with a housing proposal.”

A growing level of activity has emerged on the south side of downtown. The Sparq apartment complex is under construction a few blocks north.

Plus, the South First Area, also known as the SoFA district, has become a hub of theaters, restaurants, beverage lounges, entertainment outlets, and other nightspots, which helps to further expand the sites of activity downtown.

“A lot of things are happening to move activity in that direction of the downtown,” said Ralph Borelli, principal executive with Borelli investment. “As the activity continues to grow, it expands the boundaries of the downtown.”

Plus, the site is located in an opportunity zone in downtown San Jose. The United States has more than 8,750 opportunity zones, which are places where property developers and investors can defer or even eliminate capital gains taxes. The benefits were enabled by President Donald Trump’s tax cut program of 2017.

“Opportunity zones help attract capital to a deal,” Borelli said. “When you have rising construction costs, you need to put more capital into a deal to help make it work and attract financing. Opportunity zones can make a deal more feasible.”

The D’Amico and Borrelli team is attempting to get entitlement approvals for the site, which they would then sell to the actual developer. The property, which fronts on South First, Virginia and South Second streets, is being offered for sale at a price of $10.5 million.

“We’re getting a lot of interest on the property,” Borelli said. “The city wants urban infill on transit corridors, and that is consistent with the urban nature of this project.”

D’Amico and Borelli believe tenants could be interested in this site for their future homes. Plenty of corporate expansions are underway in downtown San Jose or are in the wings.

Adobe has begun construction of an office tower that would dramatically expand its downtown headquarters campus. Google is pushing forward with plans for a transit-oriented community of office buildings, homes, shops, restaurants, hotel rooms, open spaces, and other amenities near the Diridon train station. Intacct has just expanded its offices at a downtown San Jose tower.

“Tech workers, young professionals, service employees, and students” are among the groups that hunger for housing in downtown San Jose, a sales brochure for the property said.