With San Jose leaning into the expertise economic system to drive its downtown revival and main sporting occasions like Tremendous Bowl LX and the FIFA World Cup on the horizon, metropolis officers need to create at the least seven new leisure zones to assist make the realm extra vibrant.
The proposed downtown leisure zones embrace San Pedro Road, Publish Road, South First Road, St. John Road, Sharks Manner, Fountain Alley, and Paseo de San Antonio — many of those have seen foot visitors improve as a result of metropolis’s push to create extra pedestrian malls in recent times. District 5 Metropolis Councilmember Peter Ortiz additionally desires to create an leisure zone alongside Alum Rock Avenue, stretching from North thirty first Road to South Capitol Avenue.
Underneath the proposed ordinance, which might go into impact in July, the town would streamline approval for stay music, out of doors eating and particular occasions, a transfer that metropolis officers hope will entice extra upper-echelon headlining acts.
“We’re building on that momentum and allowing all of the bars and restaurants here to take advantage of planned events in the future,” San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan stated. “This year alone, headline acts like Steve Aoki and Fisher brought over 25,000 people into downtown San Jose. Global conferences like Nvidia’s GTC brought in over $270 million in estimated economic impact for the city.”
The creation of the leisure zones was made doable by SB 969, a invoice launched by Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) — and supported by Mahan — that aimed to activate public areas with leisure and community-driven occasions.
With a number of massive employers decamping from downtown and workplace emptiness charges nonetheless excessive, San Jose’s foot visitors has rebounded largely as a consequence of arts and leisure exercise on nights and weekends. The town’s downtown has the excellence of getting the second-fastest restoration behind solely Las Vegas post-pandemic.
Indicating the facility of the occasions, the newest Arts & Financial Prosperity 6 research confirmed that nonprofit arts and tradition organizations generated lots of of thousands and thousands of {dollars} in financial exercise.
Whereas Santa Clara’s Levi’s Stadium will host the 2 most consequential occasions in Silicon Valley — Tremendous Bowl LX and World Cup video games — metropolis officers anticipate San Jose to reap a number of the rewards from the marquee sights.
For instance, officers have conservatively estimated that Tremendous Bowl LX — slated for Feb. 8, 2026 — will create a $100 million to $160 million financial impression within the area over the week.
The stadium can also be one of many 16 venues internet hosting World Cup matches, together with 11 within the U.S. The stadium will host six video games between June 13 and July 1. Over the six weeks the match lasts, the town estimated an financial enhance of between $270 million and $360 million.
In 2024, when Levi’s Stadium hosted Copa America soccer matches, metropolis officers caught a glimpse of how watch events in San Pedro Sq. boosted vibrancy and financial exercise.
With the creation of the leisure zones, San Jose will make it simpler to shut down streets for particular occasions and permit for the sale of “to-go” containers of alcohol that may be consumed outdoor inside a geographic space.
“We’re doing a lot of different things to try to bring back that vibrancy and diversity of small, locally owned businesses and give them the support and flexibility they need to create great experiences and draw consumers back,” Mahan stated.
The proposed creation of leisure zones acquired widespread assist from the enterprise neighborhood, together with the San Jose Downtown Affiliation and the San Jose Chamber of Commerce.
“We are especially encouraged by the timeliness of this proposal and the ordinance’s ability to support large-scale activations, such as FIFA World Cup and Super Bowl watch parties in 2026,” San Jose Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Leah Toeniskoetter wrote in a letter to the Metropolis Council. “These massive, dynamic sporting occasions will draw guests from everywhere in the world and will translate into important financial returns for our metropolis’s hospitality, retail, and cultural sectors.”
In response to questions raised about staffing for allowing the occasions, Mahan stated the town wanted to change into extra environment friendly in dealing with permits however added that it shouldn’t be an excuse for not capitalizing on the advantages from Wiener’s invoice.
He additionally stated that the town wanted to proceed growing staffing on the police division, whether or not via sworn police or neighborhood service officers, to make sure security across the occasions.
District 3 Councilmember Carl Salas, who represents the downtown space, stated it was time San Jose created the kind of leisure zones he has seen all through the nation.
“We’ve got this incredible weather all year long (and) we have restaurants and bars just as good,” Salas stated. “To have this entertainment zone working in as many as eight spots is so exciting.”
