Related Santa Clara Drops Plans for 4M SF of Offices
Developer swaps in advanced manufacturing, light industrial at mega-project
Related Santa Clara—Related’s 9.2M SF mega-project in Santa Clara getting underway on 240 acres of city-owned land across the street from the home of the NFC Champion San Francisco 49ers—has had a major adjustment in the mix of its mixed-use development.
As originally planned and approved by the Santa Clara City Council in 2019, Related Santa Clara envisioned 5M SF of office space as well as 1,680 residential units, a 700-room hotel and a “city center” that will include retail, entertainment, a food market with several restaurants, and a 35-acre public park.
A partnership between NYC-based Related Companies and the City of Santa Clara, the massive mixed-use project on Tasman Drive directly across from Levi’s Stadium bills itself as “an urban center for Silicon Valley designed for the Vision of Tomorrow,” according to the project website.
It turns out, the Vision of Tomorrow is going to have much less office space: Last week, Related announced major revisions to the plan while maintaining the total size of the project.
Cut from the plan is a 4M SF corporate office campus. In its place, Related now plans to develop 1.4M SF of light industrial and advanced manufacturing space on the property’s eastern periphery. The remaining 2.6M SF is being folded into the mixed-use city center.
In a statement, Steve Eimer, executive VP of Related Companies and co-managing partner of Related Santa Clara, said the switch from offices to light industrial and advanced manufacturing is a reflection of shifting market demand.
“Reimagining portions of the project in ways that better suit today’s economic environment has the potential to accelerate economic benefits to the city,” Eimer said, adding he is “optimistic this adjustment will allow us to advance construction of Related Santa Clara by focusing on market segments where there is demand.”
Construction has yet to get underway at the Related Santa Clara site. The project got the green light from the city in 2019 but was delayed when the pandemic hit.
Adjacent to the site to the east, construction is expected to be completed later this year on Tasman East, a complex of apartment and condo buildings, as well as senior housing.
Related is developing a 22-story, 509-unit luxury apartment tower in Tasman East at 2300 Calle De Luna. Also nearing completion is a 20-story, 191-unit senior housing complex that is being built by Coterie, a joint venture of Related, Atria and Welltower.