Super Micro Plans 2M SF Silicon Valley Tech Campus
Growing info tech firm buys site of landmark Fry's Electronics from Bay West affiliate.
Super Micro Computer, a rising tech firm with revenue of more than $7B, has acquired a 20-acre site that was once the home of Fry’s Electronics-a North San Jose landmark consumer store known for its Mayan-themed décor-and entitlements from the city that will allow it to build a 1.9M SF office campus.
The information tech company, which is based in San Jose, purchased the site from an affiliate of Bay West Development for $80M, according to an SEC filing reported by the San Jose Mercury News.
Bay West received approval from the San Jose Planning Commission in January of last year to build a cluster of seven eight-story office buildings on the site of the electronics store at 550 East Brokaw Road near the I-880 interchange. Also approved were two parking facilities encompassing 1.65M SF.
However, Bay West’s plans changed last May, when the developer tapped Newmark to lease up to 124K SF of the space at Fry’s, which closed in 2021 when Fry’s Electronics went under. The consumer electronics store, shaped like a Mayan temple, opened in 1996.
The existing structures at the site encompass 294K SF, including a warehouse and office that served as the corporate headquarters for Fry’s and the San Jose Sabercats arena football team.
In May, Newmark cited waning demand for office space due to layoffs by Bay Area tech companies and marketed the property for industrial or light manufacturing use.
Super Micro, which has its headquarters about a mile away at 980 Rock Avenue, leased the warehouse space at the Fry’s site.
In its SEC filing, Super Micro sent a strong signal that it intends to follow through on the original plan to demolish the structures at Fry’s and replace them with a huge tech office campus.
“The seller previously obtained, and the company is acquiring under the purchase agreement, discretionary entitlements for a potential redevelopment of the property” as an office campus, the filing states, according to Mercury News report.
Speaking of the Mercury News, Super Micro in 2013 bought the headquarters of the newspaper, which moved to downtown San Jose from Ridder Park Drive.
In 2018, Super Micro redeveloped the property with new office and research buildings, which the tech company calls its “green computing campus.” The East Brokaw Road site will become Super Micro’s third office campus in San Jose.