Downtown San Jose business / office space is owned by a few agencies who aren't interested in working with the local business to build a better downtown, but instead are interested in kicking them out as much as possible from their leases to renovate and bring in all the other random non-local-built conglomerates into downtown.
I know this as I have a friend who owns a local business in downtown SJ who is being kicked off their lease, as well as every other club, restaurants, and businesses who's buildings were bought last year buy a single agency.
Not everything needs some big company to come in to make everything better, all that actually does is bring in a whole new wave of business to benefit off of what was built by others who were crushed before them.
There's a spot right across the street from Original Joe's. I'm not sure exactly how much of the building has been sitting empty for the past 10+ years, but the only time I've seen the corner retail space occupied was for a [temporary] pop-up store for SuperBowl 50's memorabilia while that was going on. This makes sense for somebody, and at the moment that's not me.
If the property has low prop13 taxes, then there's not much cost to keeping it empty. Lots of older california real estate like that... entire shopping malls are empty and "appreciating in value".
I emphasize with the general sentiment, but this doesn't appear to be applicable to this particular deal, which seems to involve parking lots and disused government buildings.
I know this as I have a friend who owns a local business in downtown SJ who is being kicked off their lease, as well as every other club, restaurants, and businesses who's buildings were bought last year buy a single agency.
Not everything needs some big company to come in to make everything better, all that actually does is bring in a whole new wave of business to benefit off of what was built by others who were crushed before them.