The former Glider Elementary School at 511 Cozy Drive has sat empty since 2018, and now it’s at the center of a fight over housing, money, and the future of South San Jose. A proposal to build 80 homes on the 9.5-acre campus cleared the San Jose Planning Commission last Wednesday, setting up a city council decision that could hand the Oak Grove School District a $26.6 million cash infusion while reshaping a quiet residential pocket of the city.
The project, spearheaded by San Ramon-based developer True Life Companies, would replace the shuttered campus with 64 detached single-family homes and 16 attached homes, according to The Mercury News. Detached homes would range from 1,896 to 2,234 square feet, while attached units would start at 1,233 square feet, with proposed lots ranging from 1,980 to 7,603 square feet. The homes would come with three or four bedrooms, 2.5 or three bathrooms, and the attached units would feature two stories, one-car garages, and private backyards. About 13 percent of the units would be designated affordable housing, and the developer has requested a waiver from the city’s standard 5,000-square-foot lot minimums.
True Life filed the proposal as a builder’s remedy project, a designation under California’s Housing Accountability Act that lets developers bypass certain local zoning standards and bureaucratic requirements as long as at least 20 percent of units are reserved for low-income households, according to Hoodline’s prior reporting on similar filings elsewhere in Santa Clara County. Under that provision, the project cannot be turned down over zoning conflicts alone, though it still must navigate the city’s public hearing process before final approval.
A School District Banking on a Sale
Glider Elementary once served between 450 and 600 students before Oak Grove School District closed it along with two other schools in 2018, as declining enrollment eroded the district’s ability to secure state funding tied to average daily attendance. The district now faces projected annual deficits of around $11 million over each of the next three years, and officials say the $26.6 million sale could offer a lifeline. Educators told the Planning Commission the proceeds could fund music and arts electives, libraries, counseling programs, and classroom technology updates…