SAN JOSE — A slender residential tower of 26 stories is being planned in downtown San Jose at a key spot where a future BART stop is expected, plans on file with city officials show.
Eterna Tower, a housing highrise proposed near the corner of East Santa Clara Street and North First Street, is envisioned by its developer and architect as a dramatic addition to a key section of downtown San Jose.
The residential tower would add 96 residential units, described as studios, to a site at 17 E. Santa Clara St., according to documents filed with the city by developer Roygbiv Real Estate Development and project designer Anderson Architects.
“It’s a great location, right in the middle of the downtown,” said Kurt Anderson, a principal executive with Campbell-based Anderson Architects.
Eterna Tower would be perched next to a BART station that would be just one stop away from the location of a transit village that Google has proposed near the Diridon train hub.
“It is a true transit-oriented development,” Anderson said. “A BART station will be right there. You could live in Eterna tower, go downstairs, catch a BART train, and be on your way.”
At present, the project site is the location of a boarded-up former adult sex shop that was gutted by an arson fire in 2019.
“Any new investment on this block would be most welcome,” said Scott Knies, executive director of the San Jose Downtown Association.
Much of that stretch of East Santa Clara Street, particularly on the north side of the thoroughfare between First and Second streets, is dominated by empty retail sites and boarded up windows.
However, numerous plans are underway to revive the area of First and Santa Clara streets. Major projects are underway for renovations of buildings on three of the four corners of that intersection.
“There is so much going on in downtown San Jose and close to Eterna Tower,” Anderson said. “There are so many opportunities in this part of the downtown and elsewhere.”
Among the notable projects at or within a half-block of the site:
— Bank of Italy historic office tower at 12 S. First St., undergoing a major renovation by a Gary Dillabough and Westbank development venture.
— Former JC Penney building at 1 W. Santa Clara St., is being redeveloped by Jay Paul Co. as an office building.
— Former Bank of the West building at 2 W. Santa Clara St. is in the final stages of a complete renovation as an office building, a project undertaken by Divco West.
— An office and restaurant project with a rooftop cafe is being planned at 26 S. First St. next to Fountain Alley by Urban Catalyst in a development that will also preserve and incorporate a historic building.
— Just a few blocks east of the Eterna Tower site, The Miro, a big mixed-use project consisting of two housing towers and ground-floor retail, is under construction at East Santa Clara Street and North Fourth Street.
The Eterna Tower project at 17 E. Santa Clara St. is poised to be part of all that new development, in Anderson’s view.
“We can be part of the new wave of living in downtown San Jose,” Anderson said. “The project lends itself to a very unique style of living. With four units per floor, everyone can get a good view. Everyone gets a corner of the building.”
Concepts of Eterna Tower on file with city planners show that the residential project could be a striking addition to the San Jose skyline. For one thing, it would be significantly taller than other buildings in the immediate vicinity.
“We really wanted this to be a very iconic building, a real show-stopper,” Anderson said.
