By the end of 2012,
Plans to
demolish the Willow Glen Frozen Yogurt and Ice Cream Co. building, the liquor
store and the No Limit Logo Wear building are in the works to make way for a
40,000-square-foot building with office and retail space. Willow Street Pizza
will also be included in the project. Byer is set to
unveil his plans to the community during a meeting held by Councilman Pierluigi Oliverio on Dec. 17 at 7 p.m. at Willows
Senior Center, 2175 Lincoln Ave. Byer has not yet
formally submitted the plans to the planning department.
The three-story
"companion building," as the project is being described, is designed
for mixed-use with ground-floor retail, similar to the Jamba
Juice building. Three stories will face
Byer said the frozen yogurt store, which
has occupied the location since 2002, will not close during construction. Owner
Jeff Mullen plans to move the store to the first floor of the new building
after it is completed. The owners of No Limit Logo Wear have not determined whether
they will open in the new building. Owners of the liquor
store say they plan to search for a new location and will not be
a part of the new addition.
According to Byer, the second and third stories will offer office space
for those who would "rather set up shop in Willow Glen than Santana Row or
"Hopefully
we will get some local residents who want to keep their business close by their
home, that is the idea," Byer said.
The parking lot
will also be reconstructed as part of the project and will include a
second-level.
The focal point
of the new addition is a courtyard with outdoor seating and fountain on the
corner that Byer hopes will serve as a "public
gathering spot." Willow Street Pizza will gain a second story.
"We would
just be building above them and their existing restaurant would stay exactly as
is," Byer said.
Byer, whose firm is based in
Byer hopes to start construction in 2010 and open the new building and
courtyard plaza in spring 2012. This isn't the first time Byer proposed plans for that area.