San Jose Could Be Home to the Largest Rooftop Bar in Silicon Valley

The latest development news has focused heavily on office space, residential units, and the influx of big-name tech companies interested in downtown San Jose. A recent proposal by San Jose-based developer, Urban Catalyst, is now introducing the possibility of adding Silicon Valley’s largest rooftop bar to downtown San Jose.

Urban Catalyst hopes to develop 3 contiguous parcels that include the Lido Building at 30 S 1est Street, a 30-space parking lot, and the historical building at 34 S 1st Street. They are proposing to redevelop these buildings/lot into a six-story building that would include 73,000 square feet of office space, 14,000 square feet of retail, and space for a restaurant on the ground floor. This would leave room for a 5,000 square foot bar and lounge on the rooftop of this six-story building.

Regarding this giant rooftop bar concept, Erik Hayden, founder and managing partner of Urban Catalyst, said:

“Here in San Jose, in Silicon Valley, we have 300 days a year of sunshine […] We wanted to design a space that really takes advantage of that. […] There needs to be more than just the Googles and the Adobes and the Facebooks of the world that are going to come in and take millions of square feet of office space. The smaller-size tenants are important to our economy, and we want to make sure that there’s a place for them. This [Fountain] building is a perfect place.”

The plans include a glass elevator would be added to the side of the building that would be separate from the building’s lobby elevators. This glass elevator would provide direct access from the street to the rooftop lounge.

Urban Catalyst launched in late January with the intention of taking advantage of a federal tax break that is being offered to developers that invest in specific neighborhoods around the US that are considered disadvantaged or in need of investment. Most of San Jose qualifies for this program, also known as the “Opportunity Zone” fund.  

The developer is projected to break ground on this project in 2021, once the lease for the Lido Building expires. They hope to have the project completed by 2022.

Source: https://www.bizjournals.com/sanjose/news/2019/09/24/opportunity-zone-investor-to-create-largest.html?ana=TRUEANTHEMTWT_JO#i/11458065