I think it's great that they're moving to San Jose. Probably just a drop in the bucket, but it'd be great for the Bay Area if San Jose were to increase in desirability relative to San Francisco.
I've spent a few evenings in San Jose after Sharks games, and shows or conferences at the HP Pavilion. It always seemed to be punching below its weight. Off-hand though I don't see why San Jose can't become more attractive, considering Detroit and Pittsburgh seem to be pulling it off.
Given the fact that, as others have noted, it's not like San Jose is a depressed area, the downtown--such as it is--is just sort of boring and run down in spots. I was at an open compute platform conference there for the first time in ages a couple of years back. (Many moons ago I used to attend Intel Developers Forums there regularly). On the one hand, the environment (restaurants, etc.) had improved somewhat but I was surprised that the overall downtown hadn't become more vibrant and interesting than it was.
Last time I went to downtown SJ it certainly did seem depressed. I just wanted to see what was going on so I took an Uber down there. At St. James Park I saw some drunks fighting, and cops trying to separate them. Nearby was an encampment of several tents. South of there on 2nd I thought I might find a cafe or deli or something, but all I found were vacant lots and empty storefronts, and more derelicts staggering around. Keep in mind this was at noon on a weekday, not the middle of the night.
South of Santa Clara on 2nd I saw more empty buildings, a Chinese mini mart, more drunks, a large surface parking lot (mostly empty) adjoining a rail line.
I thought I could get back to Mountain View on VTA, since I was walking along that streetcar line anyway, but it was going to take 80 minutes so I had to call a car to escape.
San Jose appeared to be a prosperous American city without any prosperity to speak of.
San Jose is mostly just suburban sprawl. There needs to be more investment in the downtown area, and transit — hopefully BART coming to San Jose in the 2020s will help.
I was just in SF and had to take a meeting in San Jose. The fact that I couldn't take a train all the way down completely blew my mind. What's the point of a commuter rail if it involves an hour bus ride to the other major population center in the region?
I don't see it working without a substantial increase in (more affordable) housing stock. Last I looked, San Jose had the highest median home price in the country.
I don't know what drives others, but San Jose doesn't have any of the history, architecture, or institutions that made me fall in love with Pittsburgh and Detroit. And it certainly doesn't have any of the grit.
Abandoned warehouses that are being renovated into office space, people who have struggled to get where they are today, success stories, personal loss and tragedy, you know, the human factor. A lot of people like places with "character", where character is defined as "not perfect".
I've never been to San Jose so I can't comment on it, but I've been to Pittsburgh and Detroit. They have character. Those cites are more human than many actual humans I've met.
San Jose has everything you describe. Literally next door to the train station is a block of almond factories converted into modern apartments. I wouldn't describe a place I've never been to...
I totally agree. My partner just came back from a trip to SF and a lot of her colleagues (neurosci grad students) were really disdainful of her being from Pittsburgh, but we both really love it here. There's so much culture here that was hard to find in Boston for me or SF for her.
I agree, San Jose is a nice city to visit. When I consulted at Google we lived in Mountain View and my wife and I went to San Jose to have fun about as often as SF. I am now doing my first serious iOS dev project and I might go to my first AWWDC.
I've spent a few evenings in San Jose after Sharks games, and shows or conferences at the HP Pavilion. It always seemed to be punching below its weight. Off-hand though I don't see why San Jose can't become more attractive, considering Detroit and Pittsburgh seem to be pulling it off.