Housing development is eyed at six-decade-old San Jose recreation site

SAN JOSE — A San Jose housing development could add scores of homes in a project that would bulldoze and replace a long-time recreation site, according to documents on file with city planners.

The residential project is being eyed on the site of the San Jose Swim & Racquet Club in the South Bay city’s Willow Glen district, planning documents show.

The development would create 85 “attached homes” at the project site, which is located at 1170 Pedro Street in San Jose.

The project would also “demolish existing buildings” on the property, which totals roughly 3.3 acres.

The True Life Companies, a residential builder, has proposed the project, the city planning records state.

“Our objective: to create desirable communities in high-need markets” is how the company describes its primary mission, according to the True Life website.

The recreation complex where the housing development is proposed is a long-time fixture in the Willow Glen neighborhood, according to the organization’s website.

“San Jose Swim & Racquet Club is a private, three-and-a-half acre oasis located between the Rose Garden and Willow Glen,” the swim and tennis center states on its site. “Our club features year-round tennis, fitness, swimming pools, bocce ball, and other fun activities for the entire family.”

The recreation complex opened in 1956, according to the company’s site.

At present, a San Jose-based trust that’s headed up by Norman Lariviere owns the recreation center property. Lariviere is also a principal executive with the swim and tennis center.

This news organization reached out to both True Life Cos. and Lariviere to obtain a comment regarding the situation.

True Life Cos. says it was founded in 2008 and seeks innovative ways to create housing.

The real estate firm is active primarily in California and other western states, according to the True Life Cos. online site.

True Life Cos. lists 11 Bay Area projects on its website. The company states that its current Bay Area projects are located in San Jose, Hayward, Milpitas, Morgan Hill, Pleasanton, San Ramon, Sunnyvale and Calistoga.

“We choose cities eager for new housing solutions that serve new generations, cities that are seeking long-lasting solutions and recognize the opportunity The True Life Companies offers to answer their housing needs,” True Life states on its website.