A new vibrant neighborhood that will add 2,600 homes to Santa Clara’s housing stock alongside office space and public parks is set to move forward after being unanimously approved by the city council.
Located at 3005 Democracy Way, and bordered by Tasman Drive to the north and Old Ironsides Drive to the east, the Mission Point project by San Francisco-based developer Kylii Inc will transform a vacant 48.6-acre site that was previously planned for a Yahoo! campus. A large section of the lot is currently used for temporary parking for nearby Levi’s Stadium.
Mission Point’s size has been significantly scaled back since it was first proposed in 2017, when height limits maxed out at 600 feet and the project called for 3.5 million square feet of office, 600,000 square feet of retail and 6,000 units of housing. The Federal Aviation Administration had expressed concerns about the height limits, as the project is near the San Jose Mineta International Airport.
The project approved by the council includes 2,600 homes — 15% of them will be affordable — 2.2 million square feet of office space, 100,000 square feet of commercial space, a childcare facility and several public parks. Maximum building heights will range from 132 feet to 192 feet. There will also be 9,400 parking spaces, including roughly 3,000 spots underground.
The council chose between two options for the planned development, eventually deciding on the one with 800 more homes.
Mayor Lisa Gillmor called the project a “valuable lynchpin” in the wider development of the area.
“This is going to bring a different dynamic to that area once you have a residential development and the mixed use,” Gillmor said. “There’s a vibrancy that comes along with it, and I see the synergy between this project and the Patrick Henry development and Mission College and everything out there working together.”
Reena Brilliot, the city’s director of economic development and sustainability, said that Kylii Inc agreed to a 10-year development agreement with three five-year extensions, allowing for a “longer time to build out a project in phases in exchange for the city to receive some additional benefits.”
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“What those extensions are based on is whether or not the project achieves certain milestones with the delivery of affordable housing, parks and grocery store and a childcare (facility) — or if they don’t make those milestones with the project, there is also an option as proposed for the applicants to pay a fee,” Brilliot said.
A majority of the council — including Councilmember Kathy Watanabe ,whose district includes the project — praised the developer last week for listening to the community, as Mission Point has undergone several changes over the years.
“I so appreciate how Kylii has reached out to the community continuously and had community meetings both online during COVID and then in person in your facility to make sure every voice was heard,” Watanabe said.
Mission Point also received support from housing advocates, including Manuel Salazar — a housing planning and production associate at the nonprofit SV@Home — who said the project “offers a promising pathway to addressing Santa Clara’s critical housing needs. Mission Point represents a unique opportunity to transform an underutilized 48.6 acre parking lot into a vibrant mixed use urban center that will benefit the entire community.”
Salazar and other housing advocates, though, said they wished the project had deeper levels of affordability.
Vice Mayor Anthony Becker and Councilmember Kevin Park echoed those sentiments.
“If we are going to have a community that is supporting people making high income, you need to have service workers that live here, and those people make under $60k,” Becker said. “I feel deep affordable housing needs to be addressed. I know Kylie development won’t solve the issue overnight, but it is something that we need to take into consideration.”