Site: Silicon Valley San Jose, CA
Harvard University, Professor: Rodolfo Machado
with Ducksu Seo
Spring 2009

The City of San Jose partnered the Harvard University Graduate School of Design to consider transportation and urban planning surrounding the large-scale transit projected for the site after the construction of a high speed rail line in California.  Historically a mixed industrial and residential area just west of the Guadalupe River, the Diridon Station Study Area is at the western edge of the downtown core of San Jose. The station is served by a plethora of public transportation options including: Caltrain, ACE, VTA light rail, Amtrak, and in the future, BART and a high-speed rail connection to southern California. An airport north of the site heavily restricts the building height of the development, forcing a low, but dense design to overcome the barrier created by the elevated highway.