California High Speed Rail Studies
Diridon Station, San Jose and Gilroy Station (Gilroy, CA)
BAE has worked on two key high speed rail stations, including the ULI Advisory Panel for the Diridon Station in San Jose, and the Gilroy Station in Santa Clara County.
The Diridon Station currently serves as the major transit hub for San Jose. Building on numerous engagements for the City of San Jose for this same district (Midtown Specific Plan, Ballpark Neighborhood Impacts Assessment, and San Jose Housing Initiative), BAE was a Panel Member of a ULI TOD Marketplace advisory panel to contribute visionary concepts to the City’s Specific Plan team. Work by BAE included assessing high speed rail’s additional drawing power for urban mixed-use projects, with a special emphasis on balancing uses to ensure phased, strategic development that would not suffer from short-term market cycles. The findings of the panel have been presented at RailVolution, as well as to numerous stakeholder groups and the San Jose City Council.
In Gilroy, BAE served as the economist for a team led by The Planning Center/DC&E, to assess the locational benefits and disadvantages to two different proposed sites for the future high speed rail station. Gilroy is seeking to maximize both the station’s development potential, as well as its ability to stimulate fiscal revenues and foster downtown revitalization. Two locations were assessed, including market analysis prepared by BAE, along with site studies and preliminary urban design concepts.