Construction of shopping center on south side of Pacheco Pass
expected to begin in June
Gilroy – The developer of Gilroy’s future hub of advanced industry says the time is ripe to start building a project that has idled five years in the shadow of Silicon Valley.
In 2001, McCarthy Ranch Corporation, of San Jose, purchased 110 acres just west of Gilroy Foods. Not long after the technology market tanked and industrial land became a cheap commodity in San Jose. Now, as the economy shows signs of rebounding, the McCarthy family will begin prepping the site for industrial and corporate tenants.
Plans for the 150,000-square-foot development – roughly half the total McCarthy Ranch site – call for a new commercial shopping center along the south side of Pacheco Pass and for 10 industrial lots. The project is slightly larger than the former Wal-Mart off Arroyo Circle.
Project manager Joey McCarthy said the commercial component will include two restaurants, a fast-food chain, a number of smaller retailers and an “anchor” big box store. On the industrial side, the company will not construct buildings but will install roadways, utility lines and other basic infrastructure needed to get businesses up and running.
“Obviously the retail is a little more of the drive behind the project right now,” McCarthy said. “We do have some industrial interest and we think that having the lots ready to go is going to be a big plus.”
He said no commercial or industrial users had signed up for the spaces yet, declining to name those that have expressed interest.
The list of potential businesses could include financial services, health care providers, nanotechnology companies and a host of “advanced manufacturing” companies, according to Larry Cope, Gilroy’s economic development director.
Cope recognized that such companies have their choice of 830,000 square feet of industrial space in San Jose for 65 cents per square foot – just seven cents more than the average lease price in Gilroy. But Cope said McCarthy Ranch has a powerful competitive advantage.
“Some businesses need a specialized type of building and if the land is already built out with high-tech space it just may not fit their needs,” he said. “There are times that a building needs to be built in a certain way and to be able to have that land available is a positive.”
In recent years, Gilroy has avoided the financial malaise common to cities across California, largely due to millions in tax dollars streaming in from shopping centers east of Highway 101. Those centers are largely built out now and officials are eager to mix up revenue sources by luring higher-paying corporate and industrial jobs.
“If McCarthy can get that going out there, it’s going to attract more people to the area,” Mayor Al Pinheiro said. “And sooner or later the (benefits) are going to flow into the downtown and other parts of the city.”
Construction on the McCarthy project is expected to begin in June. The first stores could appear along Pacheco Pass as early as summer 2007.
Phase 1
– Two restaurants, one fast-food chain
– A big-box anchor and smaller retailers
– 10 industrial lots
– Construction expected to start
in June
