Regency Centers Sells Section of Silicon Valley Shopping Center Slated for Transit-Oriented Overhaul

A portion of a Silicon Valley shopping center has been sold ahead of sweeping redevelopment plans for new housing, infrastructure and re-imagined retail.

National mall landlord Regency Centers finalized a deal with buyer and developer Lowe to sell a roughly 103,000-square-foot, five-property section of the Sequoia Station Shopping Center in Redwood City, California. The acquisition closed Dec. 17, and according to Santa Clara County property records, the property traded for $73 million, or about $708 per square foot. Retail sales in the San Jose market, which includes Redwood City, typically average about $550 per square foot, according to CoStar data.

Lowe is aiming to leverage its latest purchase, which spans more than 6.5 acres and is surrounded by offices of some of the world’s largest tech companies, with plans to redevelop the 1990s-era retail complex into a mixed-use hub that can feed off some of the infrastructure developments planned nearby.

According to city filings, the Lowe proposal would ultimately include more than 630 multifamily units — at least 250 of which are designated affordable — as well as 1.23 million square feet of office, more than 166,000 square feet of retail, an on-site child care facility, about 86,000 square feet of public open space, and thoroughfares to connect it all to nearby transit systems.

Alan Chamorro, Lowe’s senior vice president and Northern California regional leader, said the Los Angeles-based developer is planning to partner with affordable housing agency Eden Housing to reboot the neighborhood’s retail by creating a more walkable environment and “to provide much-needed housing” to the Silicon Valley suburb.

The proposal fits in Redwood City’s Transit District plan, which would add more train tracks and redevelop the nearby Sequoia Station in a bid to create a more active downtown area.