Throckmorton Partners and San Jose State University converted a hotel into a 700-bed student housing project in downtown San Jose in less than a year. The development marks the biggest housing conversion in the Bay Area since the pandemic, according to the San Francisco Chronicle.

The north tower of the Signia by Hilton San Jose hotel, formerly known as the Fairmont hotel, is now the 13-story Spartan Village on the Paseo.

The project at 170 S. Market St. opened after nine months of construction in a pedestrian-only portion of downtown.

LEASES

Couchbase signed a nearly 24K SF lease for office space at One Santana West at Santana Row in San Jose at the corner of Winchester Boulevard and Olin Avenue. The tech company anticipates a first-quarter move-in.

Federal Realty Investment Trust owns the eight-story office building, which is part of the 42-acre mixed-use Santana Row.

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Also in San Jose, biomedical manufacturer Beckman Coulter extended its 60K SF lease at 170 Orchard Way for 10 years.

Drawbridge Realty owns the 18-acre facility, which includes a five-building office and research and development property.

SALES

Public charter school Envision Academy of Arts & Technology acquired Oakland’s historic YWCA building at 1515 Webster St. Highbridge Equity Partners sold the 64K SF building for $22.5M, the San Francisco Business Times reported.

For the last 15 years, the school has operated out of the three lower floors of the Webster Street building.

PERSONNEL

Amy Steadman was named the new chief people officer of MidPen Housing, a nonprofit housing developer. Previously, Steadman was chief human resources officer for See’s Candies.