ST. LEO'S
TRANSITION, TOLERANCE MARK A 'HIDDEN TREASURE' OF DIVERSITY IN AGES
AND ETHNIC BACKGROUNDS
Published: Saturday, June 15, 1996
Section: Real Estate
Page: 1F
BY KATHERINE THORNBERRY, Special to the Mercury News
DIVERSITY IS the hallmark of the little-known enclave near the San
Jose Arena that gets its name from the 73-year-old parish church,
St. Leo the Great. And diversity is the trait that residents most
value about the St. Leo's neighborhood.
There are middle-class families in their late 20s and early 30s.
There are older residents - even a few original owners approaching
the 100 mark. There are many gay couples and a mix of ethnic
backgrounds.
''It makes it a wonderful neighborhood,'' said Laura Winter, who
has lived here since 1989 with her husband, Dan, and 5-year-old
son, Brian.
The Winters live on Atlas Avenue in the neighborhood's only Dutch
colonial style home. She said that the area has definitely seen a
transition from its working class, Italian-American roots in the
1920s. Back then, most of the residents worked at the once thriving
Del Monte Cannery on the outskirts of the neighborhood. Today the
cannery's brick building stands abandoned and the neighborhood has
become a melting pot.
Violet Monahan still lives here in the home she and her husband
built in 1924. Now 98, she raised five children, all of whom
attended St. Leo's parish school. She remembers the area as rural,
with orchards and a lot of open space.
An old photograph that hangs in her dining room shows The Alameda
lined with trees, large farmhouses, horse and buggies and no
shops.
''I like s homes are small and that is reflected in the prices of
the half-dozen active real estate listings in the neighborhood as
of early June. The minimum price is $160,000; the average,
$196,633; the median, $187,450, according to Realtor Wanda Buck,
whose business is located along The Alameda. The homes average
1,105 square feet and are typically two-bedroom, one-bath
layouts.
A sampling of 10 sales since January shows that prices are creeping
up, which is good for the market, Buck said. Selling prices ranged
from a low of $124,950 to a high of $226,000. The average price was
$160,911; the median, $155,750. The average days on the market was
104.
According to Winter, there's very little turnover. She has noted no
more than three or four new listings each year, and those are
typically families moving to a larger home.
Today's St. Leo's buyers are drawn by the neighborhood's character
and some of the valley's lowest prices. That's much of what drew
Rankin here nearly 10 years ago.
Newly divorced with little money, she looked at a house on Atlas
Avenue at the suggestion of a real estate agent. She had lived in
San Jose 25 years and had never heard of ''Atlas.''
''I didn't know anything about this funny little neighborhood, but
I knew the minute I walked into the house and drove on the street
that this was for me. The love affair took place from the moment I
stepped in,'' Rankin said.
Arena battles
Rankin has been active in the neighborhood association since first
moving in. Around that time, residents were literally in the
trenches fighting the San Jose Arena. (St. Leo's is part of the
Shasta-Hanchett Park Neighborhood Association). And though the
Arena now stands just a few blocks away, Rankin says that the
association's involvement in the process, along with the city's
efforts, has made evenings when the likes of Pavarotti and
Streisand are in town come off without a hitch.
''Even on those nights, there wasn't anyone driving up and down the
street looking for a place to park,'' said Rankin, who represents
the St. Leo's area on the association board.
''It's a strong neighborhood association and the city listens to us
. . . there's been prostitution; high-density housing is coming in
the next 10 years; and there's the arena, but despite all of that,
this small neighborhood will survive and retain its character,''
said Rankin.
Councilman Frank Fiscalini, whose District 6 includes the St. Leo's
area, said that this is a ''beautiful example of neighbors coming
together to preserve the integrity of their neighborhood.''
The St. Leo neighborhood's proximity to downtown San Jose and two
neighborhood business districts, The Alameda and San Carlos Street
is also appreciated by residents.
''The Towne Theatre is a neighborhood draw and with Cafe Leviticus
next door makes for a nice evening . . . If it's summer and the
weather's nice, we'll walk,'' said Knowles, describing the places
he and his neighbors frequent. ''And, we always hit all of the
antique stores along San Carlos.''
St. Leo's residents have benefited from the improvements along The
Alameda and West San Carlos Street, which include $2.75 million in
streetscaping and $860,000 in facade improvements.
Fiscalini said the business districts bring a ''vibrancy'' to the
neighborhood from the developing antique row along San Carlos to
the many established businesses along The Alameda such as Schurra's
Candy Factory, Greenlee's Bakery and Andy's Pet Shop to the
non-profit Billy DeFrank Lesbian and Gay Community Center on
Stockton Avenue.
St. Leo's neighborhood falls within San Jose Police Department's
District S, which is bounded by the San Jose city limits to the
north, Hamilton Avenue, Meridian Avenue and Willow Street to the
south, east to the Guadalupe River and west to Highway 17 and
Stevens Creek Boulevard. St. Leo's is the third of five district
beats and the second lowest in total number of crimes, according to
the 1996 first quarter report, accounting for about 18 percent of
the district's crimes.
Eyes on the future
St. Leo's residents are looking ahead to further redevelopment
efforts called for by San Jose's Midtown Specific Plan with both
hope and skepticism. St. Leo's falls within the plan's boundaries
that cover one of San Jose's oldest industrial areas.
The most visible evidence that the plan is moving ahead, albeit
slowly, was the opening last year of the new Safeway and McDonald's
on San Carlos Street. Construction is under way across the street
for a Walgreen's.
''I think there's a really good opportunity here and as long as the
community is involved, it will go well. It's about respecting the
community that is already there,'' said Crispin.
The ambitious Midtown Specific Plan was adopted by the San Jose
City Council in December 1992 and calls for creating nearly 3,000
new residential units including a mix of rental, affordable and
market-rate condo/townhouses, single-room units, senior facilities
and live/work studios. In addition, the plan looks to preserve and
intensify industrial/commercial uses in the Midtown area as well as
additional commercial development along San Carlos and The
Alameda.
Midtown assurances
During the plan's creation, St. Leo's residents strongly pushed for
and got assurances from the city that new residential development
would be complementary in scale and character to adjacent
single-family homes within their neighborhood.
The city's vision for Midtown is one of a ''livable and walkable
community,'' where residents take advantage of nearby mass transit.
The plan provides for 13.5 acres of parks and emphasizes the need
for San Jose city and school district officials to work together to
create an urban school that would be developed in conjunction with
a community center and other neighborhood services, such as child
care.
Fiscalini expects to see new residential development under way on
one or more Midtown sites within a year; any new neighborhood parks
will be an outgrowth of such development. San Jose Unified School
District's site selection committee has been studying sites for a
new urban school, but their sights are currently set outside of the
Midtown area to respond to greater demand elsewhere.
While a new school isn't in the immediate future, residents don't
seem to mind. Many of the area's kids go to St. Leo's parish school
(kindergarten through eighth grades).
Rankin's son attends Lincoln High School and went to Trace and
Hoover for elementary and middle schools. These schools are part of
the San Jose Unified School District and represent a unique
performing-arts magnet trio. ''The schools are top-notch if you
take advantage of what's there,'' said Rankin.
''It's a mini-Juilliard . . . quality of musicianship and
performances is amazing. When I look at the socioeconomic cross
section and the performances, I say, 'Wow, this is incredible,' ''
she said. ''My son plays the drums and wasn't a musical child. He
couldn't sing his way out of a paper bag, but this year he's been
involved in concert choir.''