Big north San Jose office complex eyed amid hot tech market

SAN JOSE — Buoyed by tech company expansions in north San Jose, developers are eyeing a vacant lot for a big new office complex that could cater to a large tenant.

Potentially 1,700 to 1,800 people could work in the office building proposed by Hudson Pacific Properties in north San Jose a short distance from the airport.

“There has been a ton of leasing activity in the San Jose airport market and north San Jose,” said David Buchholz, a senior vice president with Colliers International, a commercial realty brokerage.

A nine-story, 350,000-square-foot office building is being proposed by Hudson Pacific Properties in a new set of planning documents filed with San Jose officials. The site, at 1601 Technology Drive, is just south of Skyport Drive and next to State Route 87.

Hudson Pacific is in the very early stages of the project, the developer said in an email to this news organization. But the developer is offering the city more details on the project than it had previously, Hudson Pacific stated.

The 5.3-acre empty site has an assessed value of $10.9 million, according to Santa Clara County property records. The parcel is owned by Hudson Skyport Plaza Land, a Hudson Pacific affiliate.

As the planning process unfolds, Hudson said it intends to work closely with the city and the community.

Roughly 1,750 people could work in the building, using typical ratios for new office buildings in the Bay Area.

“This building would be in the size range that really appeals to larger tech companies,” Buchholz said.

And its an area that’s seeing a lot of activity. On Aug. 3, this news organization reported that Roku has leased 472,000 square feet of offices in a mega-deal at the fast-filling Coleman Highline office, retail and hotel complex adjacent to San Jose’s international airport.

Also this year, 8×8, Hewlett Packard Enterprise, Bloom Energy and Micron Technology struck deals to relocate major operations to San Jose. Nio USA this year doubled its north San Jose footprint by leasing a 99,000-square-foot building next to its 85,000-square-foot head offices on North First Street.

Like Roku, 8×8, HPE and Bloom are all shifting their headquarters to San Jose. Micron Technology is moving large operations from Milpitas to San Jose, but is keeping its headquarters in Boise.

“I’m sure that all the leasing success at Coleman Highline and other buildings in the area make development more attractive for Hudson Pacific,” Buchholz said.

Adding to the potential for a new development: More office leases have been completed in downtown San Jose, which is a few minutes from the airport by freeway, and some of Silicon Valley’s big names are eyeing major expansions in the downtown district.

Adobe Systems is actively working on a plan to expand its three-building downtown San Jose headquarters by adding a fourth office tower at an adjacent property. And Google is planning a transit-oriented community of offices, residences, stores, restaurants and open spaces where 15,000 to 20,000 of its employees would eventually work near the downtown Diridon train station.

“Downtown is really healthy right now, so if tech companies can’t get into the downtown, they will look at the airport market,” Buchholz said. “Hudson Pacific’s new office building will be very competitive against buildings downtown.” That could be especially true when the potential size of each floor in the proposed building is factored in compared to the typical size of individual floors in downtown San Jose towers.

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