Work begins to convert San Jose office tower to housing highrise
SAN JOSE — Wide-ranging work is underway to convert a San Jose office tower into a housing highrise, a project that could enable rentals of the future residences to begin sometime in 2025.
The project would convert the Bank of Italy historic office tower in downtown San Jose into a residential highrise with at least 100 apartments.
The conversion of the historic highrise at 12 South First Street is being undertaken by an alliance of Canada-based Westbank, a developer with a worldwide reach; and Urban Community, a San Jose-based real estate firm active in San Jose’s downtown district.
“It should take about 14 to 15 months to finish,” said Gary Dillabough, a principal executive with Urban Community, referring to the project length to accomplish the conversion and building upgrade. Dillabough made the comments in an interview during a block party to spur economic activity in downtown San Jose’s historic district, where the Bank of Italy tower is located.
If that estimate becomes reality, it’s possible that marketing will begin sometime during the latter half of 2025 to enable people to move into the converted housing units.
In January, Dillabough estimated that conversion of the offices inside the building could create “100 to 125” residential units.
The vast majority of the floors in the 13-story tower will be converted from offices to housing, documents on file with San Jose city planners show.
Offices on 11 of the tower’s 13 floors would be converted to residences.
The high-rise, built nearly a century ago in 1925, is located at 12 South First Street next to East Santa Clara Street.
When Westbank and Urban Community bought the tower in 2019, it was one of several sites the real estate allies purchased in downtown San Jose with the intent to dramatically transform the city’s urban core.
The original plan for the Bank of Italy was a top-to-bottom, floor-by-floor and inside-and-outside renovation and revamp of the 13-story tower, a downtown San Jose icon. The building is an example of Mediterranean Revival Beaux-Arts architecture style. The tower is a San Jose Historic Landmark and is on the National Register of Historic Places.
The goal of the revamp was to create a tower offering creative workplaces for small tech companies and startups. Each office would have been relatively small.
However, the coronavirus pandemic, business lockdowns, a sluggish return to the workplace, tech layoffs and a fast-shifting economy forced Westbank and Urban Community to ponder alternative uses.
Housing units instead of small offices became the new plan.
The residences would be developed on floors two through 12, the proposal states.
The project envisions a residential area in the attic level of the tower, which is just below the landmark spire and cupola atop the Bank of Italy building.
In recent days, construction crews poured concrete on the upper floor of the tower as part of an upgrade of the elevator system, according to Dillabough and Jeff Arrillaga, who also is a principal executive with Urban Community.
Once the upgrades and conversions are completed, the developers believe they can find an interested audience to occupy the newly revamped residences.
“We believe there is going to be tremendous demand for housing downtown,” Dillabough said.