Way to go, Downtown Willow Glen!

First and foremost, downtown Willow Glen was recognized as “Best Commercial Neighborhood Improvement.”
“While tons of public funds have transformed Mountain View, downtown San Jose, Sunnyvale, and King and Story, with mixed degrees of success, little Willow Glen plugged along with private capital. The result: an authentic business district that’s popping with owner-operated small retail stores and restaurants, including one of the valley’s last independent bookstores. The effort has been so well embraced by the public that the new threats are parking problems and rising rents that endanger smaller boutiques.”

Willow Glen’s Rockin’ Restaurants

Willow Glen did well in the restaurant category, especially the “Best New Restaurant” rankings where Willow Glen swept the top three spots! The corner of Lincoln and Willow has clearly emerged as a culinary hotspot as the home of 2 of the 3 winners: The Table and Lou’s Village. Dry Creek Grill on Hamilton rounded out the recognition.

In other news, Opa! took first place in the “Best Greek Restaurant” rankings, Giorgio’s on Foxworthy was named the second best place for “Moderately Priced Italian Food.” Readers decided Aqui on Lincoln has the area’s “Best Restaurant Patio.” Mojo Burger was recognized as one of the valley’s “Best Burger” spots.

• Our pizza places were well-represented, with Willow Street and Pizza My Heart occupying 2 of the top 3 spots in the “Best Pizza” category and Giorgio’s making another appearance in the sub-category for “Best Pizza (Independent).”
• Another strong suit is our sushi joints, with across-the-street neighbors Yuki and Kazoo both making the podium.
• Willow Glen was tops in the “Best Deli” rankings too, where La Villa and Zanotto’s were 2 of the top 3.
• For those focused on getting their money’s worth when they go out, Willow Glen has two of the Silicon Valley’s “Best Value” winners: Aqui and Bill’s. Bill’s was also recognized as one of the valley’s “Best Family Restaurants.”
• In one of the poll’s bigger “no duh” results, Willow Glen Frozen Yogurt (now known as Willow Glen Creamer in its new Town Square digs) was named the favorite Frozen Yogurt shop.
• Last but not least, The Grapevine was named a reader favorite in the voting for “Best Wine Bar.”

Shopping and Services

Willow Glen also did quite well in the area of shops and service providers:

• Hicklebee’s of course held on to its well-deserved place among the “Best Independent Bookstores.”
• Hyland Family Bicycles and Mike’s Bikes (which obviously has more than just the relatively new Willow Glen location) were named the best bike shops.
• Special congratulations to Curvy Girl lingerie on Meridian for being named by readers as the “Best Lingerie Shop” within a year of opening on Meridian right next to Rookie’s. Curvy Girl caters to plus size women and flaunts the charming tagline “Sexy is Not a Size.”
• Hijinx Comics on Lincoln was named one of the Best Comic Book Stores.
• Willow Glen Dentistry was named one of the top dentists, and Willow Glen Dental Care was recognized as a top place for teeth whitening.
• Ace at Curtner and Lincoln was recognized as a favorite Independent Hardware Store.
• Readers felt Three Sisters is one of the best places to buy a gift for a friend as one of the “Best Gift Shops.”
• Mann’s Jewelers was named, no surprise, one of silicon valley’s best jewelry stores.
• The survey saw Brooke Blecher, a good friend of Willow Glen Charm, named one of the best Family Lawyers.

Nightlife…not so much

As you might expect, Willow Glen didn’t exactly kill it in the nightlife categories. Our lone appearances were Aqui as “Best Margarita” and Rookie’s as one of the best sports bars. We also didn’t appear on the list of favorite Arts & Culture spots, but that’s not surprising given our lack of museums and live music venues.

Last night, a planning meeting was held at the Willow Glen Community Center to discuss the Three Creeks Trail master plan, specifically focusing on the Western Alignment portion of the trail that runs directly through Willow Glen. This was the first of three workshops intended to collect and utilize community feedback in the planning, landscaping, and construction of this trail.

The Three Creeks (formerly Willow Glen Spur) Trail will ultimately connect the Los Gatos Creek, Guadalupe River, Highway 87 Bikeway, and Coyote Creek Trails. The western half of the trail runs roughly a mile long, from Lonus Street (think Don’s Auto Wash just north of downtown Willow Glen), through the intersection of Willow and Bird, and ending at the Guadalupe River alongside Falcon Place, just past Alma.

District 6 City Councilmember Pierluigi Oliverio, Trail Manager Yves Zsutty from the City of San José’s Department of Parks, Recreation, & Neighborhood Services, and Cordy Hill from the RHAA Architectural Firm were on hand to present to the large group and lead the community discussion. During this workshop, attendees were asked to review the master plan in groups and discuss trail improvements and ideas with their fellow neighbors.

Feedback was encouraged and people submitted lots of ideas about where to install benches and rest locations, what types of trees should be planted, how the trail should flow, and how gateways and crosswalks should be designed. Neighbors I spoke with shared excitement and anticipation for the project; many looked forward to taking their families and dogs to the newly improved trail one day in the near future.

The next community meeting will take place on Wednesday, May 29 at 6:30pm at the same location, and a third will be held July 24. To submit your own feedback for this project, email Yves Zsutty at yves.zsutty@sanjoseca.gov.

Chris Roth is a neighborhood and policy contributor to Willow Glen Charm and a South Willow Glen resident. He is a former board member of the Willow Glen Neighborhood Association and currently serves on the San José Public Library Commission.

Discounted pre-registration fees of $30 for adults and $20 for youth (ages 5-17) are available until May 9, 2013. Children four and under are free. All proceeds benefit academic programs at Willow Glen Elementary and other neighborhood schools.

To sign up, sponsor, or for more information about the event, visit www.willowglen5k.org.

• View the Interactive Map
• Download a PDF.

Click here to read the entire application which includes a complete history of the house, and detailed description of the specific architectural attributes and features that make the house historically significant. We’ve cut it down to the good stuff, but the complete application and response are available at the city’s site.

The home was constructed in its present form in the early 1890s following a fire that had destroyed much of a house that had been built in the early 1870s. It is not clear how much of the original house was affected by the fire or left intact, as the interior features many design elements common to the 1870s.

The land is part of what was an original 19th century agricultural site of about 65 acres, until a 9.5 acre plot was sold to William W. Cozzens in 1873. The house was constructed for Cozens, and the land was home to a fruit drying operation known as the Cozzens Fruit Company of San Jose.

As noted in the historical landmark application, the house is an extremely ine example of a Victorian-era rsidence built during San Jose’s period of historical expansion which lasted from 1870-1919.

William Cozzens was born in Sacramento in 1853. He first worked as a miner in the 1870s until the family moved to San Jose in 1873 and settled in the area known as The Willows. Cozzens himself worked as hay and grain dealer with his son, residing on Minnesota Avenue. His sister Kate worked as a teacher at the San Jose Normal School (which eventually became San Jose State University). His older half-brothers Joshua and John were prominent orchardists who established a 500-acre orchard at Dry Creek and Kirk roads.

In case you didn’t know, it’s made from the bits and pieces of an old Volkswagen Beetle, so next time you drive by with a friend call “Slug Bug” and let ‘em have it. ; )