SAN JOSE \u2014 A South Bay school district is pondering the possible purchase of a long-empty San Jose residential tower to create a place where hundreds of the educational system\u2019s workers could live.<\/p>\n
The San Jose Unified School District is considering a plan to buy one of the two towers in the landmark residential complex at 188 West. St. James St.<\/a> in downtown San Jose, according to a document prepared for a recent school district meeting.<\/p>\n RELATED: San Jose opens interest list for public workers seeking subsidized downtown housing<\/a><\/p>\n \u201cThe district is interested in potentially acquiring a fee simple interest in the following real property comprising of 337 turnkey residential condominium units in the East Tower \u2026 and certain common space portions of the mixed-use condominium development located at 188 West Saint James St. in San Jose,\u201d stated a contracting agreement prepared for the school board meeting on June 11.<\/p>\n San Jose Unified School District would use the 337 condos in the 22-story eastern tower for \u201cemployee housing,\u201d the contracting agreement stated. The condos would be rented out to district workers.<\/p>\n The school district is contracting with CBRE, a commercial real estate firm, to evaluate the property and determine whether a deal should be fashioned for the purchase of the eastern high-rise of the two-tower complex.<\/p>\n Machine Investment Group, the owner of the residential high-rises<\/a>, is attempting to sell all the condos in the 20-story, 303-unit western tower.<\/p>\n Sales of the units in the western tower began on May 15. Through the close of the business day on June 24, Machine Investment had sold<\/a> 11 condos, a review of documents filed with the Santa Clara County Recorder\u2019s Office shows.<\/p>\n Machine Investment gained control of the two towers and their spacious common areas in June 2025 through a speedy foreclosure that valued the 640-unit residential hub at $181.9 million. That would work out to $284,200 a condo.<\/p>\n Edward Matevosian, the CBRE executive who is providing consulting services related to a possible property purchase of the 188 West St. James tower, will receive at least $50,000 and as much as $863,000 for his endeavors, a school district document shows.<\/p>\n Among the tasks that CBRE is obliged to perform:<\/p>\n The CBRE consultant must craft a fair-market value of the tower, prepare a detailed acquisition timeline, assist the school district in developing an acquisition strategy, recommend a price, and prepare a detailed timeline for the property purchase, the school district document shows.<\/p>\n Funds theoretically exist for these sorts of housing endeavors if they are geared toward the creation of workforce housing.<\/p>\n In November 2024, voters approved Measure R<\/a>, which authorizes the school district to issue $1.15 billion in bonds over a period of 30 years. The revenue would be used for facilities improvements. An estimated $283 million of the overall amount could be used for the creation of residences for school district staffers.<\/p>\n The tower gambit has appeared at a time when the San Jose Unified School District has decided to shutter five schools<\/a> in a quest to remedy ailments unleashed by declining enrollment.<\/p>\n Still, the school district\u2019s efforts to find ways to create more housing for its workers go beyond an attempt to buy a tower of condos in downtown San Jose.<\/p>\n