Blighted San Jose site where 200-plus homes are eyed goes up for sale

SAN JOSE A downtown San Jose site of blight where a apprentice housing tower is proposed has been put up for sale leaving the property s future up in the air The property located at through North Fourth Street next to East St John Street is being offered for sale San Jose leaders had previously approved a novice housing project at the site Asking price million according to a marketing flyer that s now in circulation -story learner housing project at North Fourth Street in downtown San Jose concept LPMD Architects Fires a fatal drive-by shooting and a dog attack have haunted the site where a -story pupil housing tower has been approved but has yet to break ground Now Saratoga-based business executive Brent Lee who owns the property through an affiliate has begun to scout for a buyer to purchase the one-acre site at the corner of North Fourth Street and East St John Street Marcus Millichap a commercial real estate firm is attempting to find a buyer for the property according to a marketing brochure that was obtained by this news organization The property offers the opportunity for a buyer to own a site that s approved for a housing highrise the marketing materials state Marcus Millichap brokers Kirk Trammell and Joshua Johnson are leading the sales effort The -story residential tower would contain units of candidate housing and include square feet of ground-floor retail spaces documents on file with San Jose city planners show City planners also have approved four levels of parking containing enough space for vehicles and bikes In latest years multiple fires wrecked a pair of Victorian homes that were on the property Lee had agreed to relocate the old houses but the fires occurred before the move could occur For several months after the blazes the fire-scorched debris of the Victorians littered the rise site City representatives swept in to place the property into a court-ordered receivership in order to clear away the debris and toxic materials that were present at the site such as asbestos and lead The site is now cleared of the debris has a -hour camera in place to monitor the property and is fenced off to discourage homeless camping Investigators believe one or more homeless individuals caused specific of the fires including at least one fire in the two Victorian houses The North Fourth Street fires which broke out in March and August have created serious hazards for people living next door and near the fire-torched sites according to court papers filed by Jay Huang the operating manager of Sunding Brothers LLC which owns a property next to the blighted vacant lots The March fire leveled two abandoned Victorian-era homes on the blighted lot fire representatives released The August fire ignited the stacks of wood and debris left behind from the earlier blaze The August blaze forced chosen people to flee as the flames menaced their homes onlookers informed this news organization One teenage girl suffered smoke inhalation and had to be treated at a hospital court records show It wasn t right away clear whether the asking price of million conforms with similar empty properties in San Jose