GoPro’s HQ now slated for housing in San Mateo

Formerly home to Visa International, the office building and parking is partially leased through 2026 to camera and video company GoPro, which moved there in 2011. The site was originally constructed in 1973.

“We selected this site because our proposed housing plan will integrate seamlessly into the existing neighborhood,” Tyler Issadore, senior director at Harvest Properties, said in a press release. “This is one of the most difficult housing types to replicate due to the significant land requirements. Projects like this are rare, but they’re essential to expanding the for-sale housing supply and creating opportunities for current and future San Mateans.”

The redevelopment plan includes up to 225 townhomes and single-family homes, with 15% designated as affordable. The project is expected to provide homes for up to 700 residents, spanning multiple income levels, and will play a key role in addressing the region’s jobs-housing imbalance and softening office market fundamentals, according to the press release.

The development proposal will keep energy efficiency in mind with drought-tolerant landscaping and both modern and traditional architecture.

Harvest oversaw the Peninsula Heights development, a 290-home community on a nearby repurposed business park site that was re-entitled in 2020 and is currently under construction.

The city has seen a surge in large development proposals, particularly ones that replace office or commercial uses with housing. Plans to demolish the Hillsdale Shopping Center and replace it with a mix of office buildings, retail stores and about 1,400 housing units were submitted in February. The developers of a proposal on South Amphlett Boulevard submitted their formal application in March, which included plans to demolish office buildings and construct about 250 residential units, a mix of townhomes and single-family houses. Updated plans for the 678 Concar Drive redevelopment were also submitted to the city this year, which would create about 869 housing units, as well as commercial spaces.

A preliminary application for 220 W. 20th Ave. was filed and would require the demolition of an existing one-story office building and construction of a seven-story residential development with 230 units, 23 of which would be allocated for low-income households. The development at 1218 Monte Diablo Ave., at an old convenience store on the east side of Highway 101, would consist of 72 residential units, a combination of both townhomes and apartment units.

According to sources familiar with the deal, the purchase price of the property was $102 million, which means a small windfall for the city. Because of Measure CC, passed in 2022, the city now collects 1.5% of the sale price for any property over $10 million, which will mean around $1.5 million for the city’s coffers.