SAN JOSE — Pivoting from a possible office tower next to The Tech Interactive museum in downtown San Jose, a developer is now proposing a housing development that includes a data center.
The developer, Westbank, now envisions a project that includes 391 housing units next to a data center at 180 Park Ave., according to documents filed with the city Planning Department. Westbank calls the development Park Habitat.
“The pivot to housing makes sense,” said Bob Staedler, principal executive with Silicon Valley Synergy, a land-use consultancy. “The housing will help with the nighttime population downtown, and the data center will add to the tax base.”
Staedler also applauded the prospect of a larger tech museum as part of the project.
“It’s great to see Westbank honoring the expansion of The Tech, which is a long-term institution in downtown San Jose,” Staedler said.
Westbank has proposed several projects that would produce housing tower and data center combos downtown.
“Our entire San Jose initiative is based on the premise that the best placement for housing is in central urban locations that are walkable and offer proximity to amenities, transit and workplaces,” said Andrew Jacobson, vice president of the U.S. for Westbank. “Park Habitat aligns perfectly with that strategy.”
Jacobson noted Park Habitat would be near Plaza de Cesar Chavez and within walking distance to civic and cultural hubs, as well as existing and future transit services.
“For Park Habitat, we’re building on the idea that great cities don’t have business districts or residential districts, rather they are all intermixed,” Jacobson said.
The data center would be configured to capture excess heat from the around-the-clock computing operations and use the energy to provide electricity for the adjacent residences.
“We are planning to integrate a data center in this project, using the same energy-sharing strategy” as other downtown San Jose projects the company is planning, Jacobson said.
He added, “We would capture the waste heat from the data center to provide low-cost, low-carbon energy to nearby residents.”
The proposal arrives at a time when PG&E has become more determined to pursue wide-ranging upgrades of its electricity systems in San Jose and elsewhere.
Oakland-based PG&E has encountered rising demand from energy-hungry tech companies and developers.