RIP Franchises of our youths

[thatguy]

It was that fruit company!

This was in the SF Chron, link goes to Apple News: 
https://apple.news/Aef63W8b5ROKrBKh-FCgK1w

LOCAL

Cupertino megaproject will include world’s largest green roof. Here’s what it will look like

After seven years of lawsuits, failed ballot measures and a global pandemic, the contentious effort to replace a dead mall a mile from Apple’s headquarters in Cupertino is preparing to begin construction.

What was once a 1970s mall called Vallco will now be branded as The Rise, a $4 billion behemoth of a project that will include 2,400 housing units and nearly 2 million square feet of office space and 429,000 square feet of new shops and restaurants. At 7 million square feet, the entire project will be more than twice as large as Apple Park.

The project will feature a 29-acre green roof that will be the world’s largest and accessible to the public, giving the project its new name, which was announced Friday. Leasing efforts will now begin to fill the commercial space, said Reed Moulds, managing director of project developer Sand Hill Property Company.

Local residents opposed the project’s scale and said it would exacerbate traffic. The city of Cupertino fought the project as well, but the project won approval in 2018 thanks to SB 35, a housing law that streamlined approvals if a project includes 50% affordable housing. Sand Hill prevailed in a lawsuit filed by opponents in 2020, clearing the way for the project.

Sand Hill is securing building permits and hopes to start excavation in the next few months. The first phase will include around 800 housing units, most of the retail and open space, taking around three years to complete. The second two phases will include the office space on the western and east sides of the site. Rafael Vinoly is the project’s architect and Olin is the landscape architect.

Half of Vallco’s homes will be reserved for low and very low income residents, or those making 80% or less of the area median income.

“There’s been a lot of discussion around the housing crisis and how the Vallco project can help,” Moulds said. “We want to be part of the best-possible solution.”

Sand Hill’s equity partner is the deep-pocketed Abu Dhabi Investment Authority. The project has full financing and the owners plan to be long-term operators, Moulds said.

In response to the pandemic, the housing, which will include rentals and units for sale, will have more auxiliary rooms for home offices and other uses, Moulds said.

After community feedback, Sand Hill increased the number of one-bedroom affordable apartments to 537. There will also be 103 two-bedroom and three-bedroom affordable units, which will help provide housing to families, many of whom struggle to find accommodations in the pricey Silicon Valley suburb.

The project is seeking a range of retailers, along with restaurants and entertainment venues including theaters and potentially a bowling alley and ice skating rink, Moulds said.

“It will feel like a collection of districts,” he said, with elements for work, play and convenience. “This is the 5-minute city version of the 15-minute city,” an urbanism concept that calls for easy access to essential services.
Although major Bay Area companies are cutting back on days in the office, Moulds said the project would be vibrant and have the open space and other amenities to draw people and potential tenants in. Remote work also hasn’t extinguished tech’s growth: Apple signed a huge 700,000-square-foot office lease in nearby Sunnyvale last year, and Facebook’s parent Meta also signed major deals in the Valley.

“The market shows us there’s still a very strong appetite for incredible work environments,” Moulds said. “Certainly in this region, anything at scale is going to be unique.”

--tg