On Sunday, Oct. 11, a crowd of 49ers fans cheered a touchdown against the Seattle Seahawks on a lot on San Fernando Street that used to be parking, about a block from the Diridon Caltrain station. Nearby, families played the Creekside Greens putt-putt course, and toddlers worked through the sandbox and drum kit in a kids' area called the Clubhouse. A Bay Area News Group photographer covered that afternoon for the Mercury News, on SPARK Social San José's opening weekend.
This land was supposed to hold Google's Downtown West campus. The offices never came. What came instead is a district made of things that can open fast and run lean: a converted parking lot, an outdoor beer garden, a warehouse thrift store, a padel club and artist studios. All of it is leased on land that is still waiting for its original plan. That waiting is why Creekside looks the way it does, and why the blocks west of SAP Center now give downtown a place to spend a day, not just a game night.
The campus that paused, and the lease that didn't
KQED tallied the background in a January 2026 report. The San José City Council agreed to sell Google nearly a dozen acres in 2018, and the company later indicated that some of its first buildings could be finished as soon as 2023 or 2024. The plan for roughly 80 acres near Diridon and SAP Center called for more than 7 million square feet of offices, at least 4,000 homes, and 15 acres of parks and plazas. Between 2022 and 2024, Google cleared older buildings, including Patty's Inn, a bar that had served the neighborhood for nearly 90 years. No new construction followed.
Google spokesperson Ryan Lamont told KQED by email that projects of this size can take decades and "ebb and flow." He also said the company still talks with developers about possible future work. In March, the Mercury News reported that the council-approved agreement includes no penalty if construction never starts.
Leasing on the ground floor went ahead anyway. In 2024, GlobeSt. reported that Google had signed a multi-year lease with the real estate firm Jamestown to turn parts of Barack Obama Boulevard and South Montgomery Street into retail. At that point the program had already run more than 60 community events in a year, which drew an estimated 3,500 visitors. Mercury News columnist Sal Pizarro wrote in October that Jamestown has "kept the focus mostly local." In the same column he called Downtown West "timeline challenged, to put it nicely."
A multi-year lease on land with an open-ended future suits a particular kind of tenant: one that needs open ground, a warehouse shell, or light-industrial space, and can open without a long build-out. That describes nearly everyone in Creekside today.
SPARK fills the hours between games
Before SPARK, the district's anchors mostly ran on afternoon and evening schedules. SPARK fills the rest of the day. The Mercury News describes a 70,000-square-foot outdoor space that is open every day from 8 a.m., with food trucks, fire pits, lawn games and a large stage for Sharks "teal gate" parties and 49ers watch parties. The Clubhouse runs kids' activities every weekday from 10 a.m. to noon. Pizarro suggested mornings may be the best time for parents with small children to have that area mostly to themselves.
The opening came later than first planned. The Silicon Valley Business Journal noted that the venue was originally set to open in the spring. Owner Carlos Muela told the Mercury News what he is aiming for: "In most cities, if you go to the big sporting venues, that's where you'll find things to do even if there's not a game. That's what we want to do in San Jose."
SPARK also runs a Sunday morning fitness event with outdoor yoga, Pilates and meditation. Its full schedule and food truck lineup are posted at visitsparksocial.com.
A district you can plan by the hour
With SPARK open, the neighbors' schedules link into a full day. Here are the hours each tenant lists, roughly in order from morning to night:
| Stop | Address | What it is | Hours as listed |
|---|---|---|---|
| SPARK Social San José | 140 S. Montgomery | Food trucks, putt-putt, kids' Clubhouse, event stage | Daily from 8 a.m. |
| Good Karma Bikes | 82 S. Montgomery St. | Nonprofit shop selling and repairing donated bikes | Tue–Sat 11 a.m.–5 p.m., Sun noon–5 p.m., closed Mon |
| Found SJ | 57 Barack Obama Blvd. | Reuse store run by the Preservation Action Council of San Jose | Thu 4–7 p.m., Sat 11 a.m.–6 p.m. |
| Hapa's Creekside | 59 Barack Obama Blvd. | 8,000-square-foot outdoor beer garden | Tue–Thu 4–9 p.m., Fri 3–9 p.m., Sat–Sun 11 a.m.–9 p.m. |
| Bay Padel | 92 S. Montgomery St. | Six-court padel club | Book through the club |
A few entries need context. Found SJ's website still labels its Thursday and Saturday times "summer hours," so check them before you drive over. Monday afternoons from 12:30 to 3 p.m. are for donation drop-offs. Bay Padel lists 92 S. Montgomery on its own site, but a July report in the East Bay Times gave its official address as 87 Barack Obama Blvd. The club soft-opened July 11. Its program page lists clinics, leagues, tournaments and level-based "Champion of the Court" open play.
Hapa's has been here the longest of the current group. It opened Friday, June 27, 2025, with rotating Hapa's taps, food trucks and games, according to the Mercury News. Its Monday closure lines up with Good Karma's, so a Monday visit means SPARK plus whatever is on the donation dock at Found SJ.
The Creekside directory also lists The Playground by HIIT School and the RFRD Canine Recreation Center. RFRD shows how the tenants share programming. It co-hosted SPARK's dog costume parade in mid-October, and its pumpkin patch runs weekends through Saturday, Oct. 31, from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
The warehouse tenants carry the local character
The district's two quietest tenants say the most about how it was put together. Found SJ held its grand opening on Jan. 31, 2026. San José Spotlight described it as a 5,000-square-foot warehouse of donated vintage goods, furniture and housewares with inventory that keeps changing. Sales fund the Preservation Action Council's historic-preservation work. On land where Patty's Inn was torn down, the shop selling salvaged pieces now raises money for the city's preservation group.
Local Color, a nonprofit for artists, runs studio space at 50 S. Barack Obama Blvd. Its own site describes the space as light-industrial workspace and says it is full. The studios are working spaces for artists, not a storefront, and the Creekside directory lists exhibitions, workshops and community programs for the site. Good Karma Bikes takes the same approach with bicycles: it fixes donated bikes for resale, offers low-cost repairs and training, and gives bikes to people who need them.
Walking east toward San Pedro Square
Creekside is half of a pairing. Pizarro places it alongside "the more seasoned Little Italy district and San Pedro Square to the east of SAP Center." The San Pedro side has had its own turnover this fall. Sushi Confidential closed its San Pedro Square location on Aug. 30, and Ignite, a live-fire skewer and cocktail spot, moved into the space at 26 N. San Pedro St. It was in soft opening by mid-September. NBC Bay Area reported that The Silk Route, an upscale modern Indian restaurant from Jaspir Singh, who also owns The Brit down the block, is taking over the former Olla Cocina space at 17 N. San Pedro St. and was expected this fall.
A few blocks away at the Hotel De Anza, 233 W. Santa Clara St., Srijith Gopinathan and Ayesha Thapar of Cal-India Collective announced three projects. Eater SF reported that the Hedley Club, an Art Deco California bistro and lounge, and Palm Court, a glass-roofed room full of vines, were set to open in September. Tejer, a Cal-Mexican restaurant led by chef Enrique Gonzalez, was scheduled for December. The Hedley Club menu includes a butter chicken hot dog on a housemade bun.
The two areas balance each other. San Pedro Square and the Hotel De Anza offer sit-down dinners in permanent spaces. Creekside offers the open-air, all-ages hours around them.
The calendar after Halloween
The Creekside events page has nothing posted for November or December yet. Its last October listings are a Día de los Muertos ofrenda on Oct. 27–28 and the RFRD pumpkin patch, which closes Oct. 31. For the cooler months, the reliable plan is the standing schedule: SPARK daily from 8 a.m., Hapa's through Sunday evening, and Good Karma six days a week. SPARK posts its event lineup on its own site, separate from the district calendar.
Former San José Downtown Association leader Alan "Gumby" Marques told KQED he had "kind of moved on" from depending on Google's campus. SPARK, open every day from 8 a.m., now gives Creekside a reason to visit whether or not there is a game at SAP Center.
Downtown's west side keeps changing, and much of that change is happening on the ground floor before any tower goes up. If you live near Diridon or SAP Center and want to know how a new district like Creekside could affect your home's value, Rajiv Kohli can walk you through it. Request your free home valuation or schedule a consultation.
