Willow Glen, California Since 1992
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By Sheila Sanchez The San Jose Planning Commission unanimously approved at its June 12 meeting the rezoning of a chunk of land at the southwestern corner of W. Virginia Street and Bird Avenue in northern Willow Glen to allow the construction of 16 single-family, attached residential units on 1.5 acres of land. The rezoned land is presently occupied by the Yellow Cab Company. The site is irregular in shape and is bounded by an active railroad track to the south, a small, triangular, unkempt property owned by the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board to the west, W. Virginia Street to the north and Bird Avenue to the east. Noise from the 72 trains that use the railroad line will be mitigated by the construction of a sound wall and by setting back the project 90 feet from the tracks, said Greg Blackwell, the project's developer. Blackwell will build 16 Spanish Eclectic–style, single-family town home units with three and four bedrooms. Each unit will have a two-car garage and will range from two to three stories high, reaching a maximum height of 32 feet. The units will sell for approximately $500,000, Blackwell said. "We've done a good job at making this site work for the residents," Blackwell said. "Once it's in place they'll see the high quality of the project and be happy." Blackwell said that he would like to continue to expand the town homes to the corner of the site east of the railroad tracks, creating one comprehensive residential project with the support of the neighborhood and the San Jose Department of Planning. The property, however, is presently occupied by the AAA Auto Upholstery shop and the Fairmart Market liquor store. The developer has no control over that area. The San Jose City Council will give the project's final approval June 18 and then the developer will go through a permit process, which takes several months. Construction of the units is expected to begin at the beginning of next year, and their completion is projected for the summer of 2003. "This is a nice gateway residential project, something that supports the high quality of homes that presently exist in Willow Glen," Blackwell said. Jerry Strangis, who represents the Yellow Cab Company and its president, Larry Silva, as its real estate agent, told commissioners, "This is a difficult site, with a railroad on one side and a major arterial on the other. It was a challenge to make it work." Silva, who lives in Willow Glen, said that while he's sad about leaving the neighborhood, having operating at the site since 1953„nearly 50 years„he's outgrown the facilty. He's planning to relocate the business to a site on Seventh and Alma streets. Silva said that the cab company, which was bought by his father, the late Arthur Silva, was originally built for 25 cabs and has now grown to 350 cabs. "We're in the middle of a nice residential area and I think that we've outgrown the facilty. We need a bigger place, and I think it's going to be pretty neat to have a nicer-looking gateway to Willow Glen," he said. "Our building is in dire need of repair." According to Silva, the owner of the land on which the two businesses are located had been approached by the developer about buying the property. San Jose District 6 City Councilman Ken Yeager was instrumental in getting the developer to agree to landscape a small triangular lot located between the site and the railroad tracks. The developer has also agreed to remove a billboard located next to Bird Avenue on city-owned property. Dan Erceg, vice president of the North Willow Glen Neighborhood Association (NWGNA), said that he supported the project and that he represented the majority of residents who live in the area. "The cab site is no longer appropriate for a residential neighborhood like this, and the entire corner has become quite blighted," Erceg said. "We're not really in support of keeping the retail store on the corner and not the way it is, with lots of problems there. The store quite often sells liquor to minors, and it's been a real neighborhood eyesore and a neighborhood crime spot," he added. "We're actually in favor of this development taking over that retail spot. We're hoping that it will be possible." Allison England, president of NWGNA, praised the project's developer for being receptive to the neighbors' concerns and helping to solve the blight problem in the corner. Strangis said that most people in the neighborhood don't like the Yellow Cab Company there because it's a commercial use in a residential neighborhood. "Because of the condition of the Yellow Cab Company and its dilapidated appearance, they want to see it go and a new project put in," Strangis added. "The businesses will eventually be forced out by the city if they don't leave the site anyway because they don't conform," Blackwell said. The Greater Gardner Strong Neighborhood Initiative plan identifies the intersection of W. Virginia Street and Bird Avenue as a key gateway to the neighborhood. The plan states that residents have expressed desire to enhance the identity of the neighborhood. |
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