Usually, politicians swarm around groundbreakings and grand openings, but it was a “closing” celebration on Post Street in downtown San Jose on Wednesday that brought out nearly half the city council.
The council voted Tuesday to move forward with closing a short stretch of the narrow street between First Street and Lightston Alley — it doesn’t become official until after a second reading March 11 — but the party that ensued Wednesday befitted the long journey to create a pedestrian-friendly zone there.
Pageboy salon owner Blair Carson address the crowd at a celebration to mark the closing of Post Street in downtown San Jose on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. (Sal Pizarro/Bay Area News Group)
“Today is a really big day for us,” said Blair Carson, who owns Pageboy salon on Post Street. “It hasn’t been months, it’s been years that we’ve been planning this.”
Carson, whose hope is have a music festival on the street, said the change “not only reflects our hard work but also embodies the spirit of togetherness, resilience and a shared vision that defines our district.” Working with others like 55 South co-owner Eric Nielsen, Carson said the countless hours spent on meetings with residents, business owners and community leaders were worth it, she said, to realize their common vision “to create a safer, more vibrant and more inclusive space for all.”
Inclusivity is a big part of the modern image of the historic street. In September 2020, Project MORE rebranded Post Street as the Qmunity District, a safe gathering space for the San Jose’s LGBTQ community. The street is home to two LBGTQ-specific businesses — Mac’s Club and Splash — but also has rainbow-themed crosswalk markings, lighting, banners and murals.
San Jose City Councilmember Carl Salas, left, and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan address the crowd at a celebration to mark the closing of Post Street in downtown San Jose on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. (Sal Pizarro/Bay Area News Group)
Nathan Svoboda, president of the Project MORE Foundation, said the group’s looking forward to working with the city and San Jose Downtown Association to make some upgrades, including a street mural and new lighting. “I promise you in the coming years ahead, this will be a delightful, colorful clean place that everyone will want to come to,” Svoboda said.
Post Street, with its hodge-podge of historic and modern structures, is smack in the middle of the city’s Historic District on First and Second streets. Originally called El Dorado Street, the stretch of Post was San Jose’s original red-light district, with saloons and gambling rooms aplenty. In the 20th century, it was part of downtown’s business boom and continued to be home to various businesses like pawn shops, dry cleaners, restaurants, jewelry stores and a recording studio for KLOK radio.
A crowd of people watches the celebration to mark the closing of Post Street in downtown San Jose on Wednesday, Feb. 26, 2025. (Sal Pizarro/Bay Area News Group)
The businesses on the street today include Pageboy, 55 South cocktail lounge, the Club on Post restaurant, Splash and Velvet House boutique, and in the past year, the Downtown Association filled some empty space with a new Moment at Post Street pop-up retail operation with three merchants.
During the pandemic, Post Street was temporarily closed to cars to create more space for bars and restaurants — 55 South famously put a seating area shaped like a pirate ship on the street — but it reopened in 2022. Since then, temporary permits have allowed it to be closed to cars most weekends and for special events like Silicon Valley Pride, but the city had to use the Pedestrian Mall Act to officially close the street, as it did with a section of San Pedro Street last year.
San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan said closing Post Street to vehicular traffic will help it become “a permanent fixture of vibrancy, walkability and togetherness.”
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“We’re closing down a street to open a community,” Mahan said. “Post Street represents momentum. It represents a change in reputation and a change in mindset for the Bay Area’s largest city, which has sometimes been overshadowed by our smaller neighbor to the north when it comes to nightlife and activation. But the era of San Jose being the less cool cousin to the south is over.”
FUN HUNTING: The Los Altos History Museum has teamed up with Hidden Villa on a fun and educational family scavenger hunt on March 1 that explores the century-long history of the educational farm and wilderness preserve. “Rooted in Time: Journey through Hidden Villa,” includes a picture-based version for really young kids and a more challenging version for older kids with questions to answer. The event runs from 11 a.m. to 3 p.m., and visitors can stop by a table in front of the museum at 51 S. San Antonio Road for directions and to meet Hidden Villa camp directors. People that finish the hunt get a “stamp of success” and a one-day parking pass for Hidden Villa.
SKATING ALONG IN CAMPBELL: Campbell is looking for public input as it partners with American Ramp Company to revamp the skatepark at the Campbell Community Center. A meeting is set for Saturday from noon to 2 p.m. at the skatepark, where visitors can learn about potential upgrades and meet pro skaters Cody McEntire and Julia Brueckler.
The skatepark isn’t the only thing getting an upgrade, as renovations on the Campbell Library are shaping up nicely with fingers crossed for a reopening later this year. The Friends of the Campbell Library is working to raise $250,000 to make sure the community room, study spaces and areas for children and teens are ready to go when the doors open. A fundraising sale is set for Saturday at 10 a.m. on the patio next to the Campbell Express Library, with books, puzzles, games, CDs and DVDs available. And next week, on March 5, there’s a vintage jewelry sale planned from 5 to 8 p.m. at the Orchard City Banquet Hall.
