San Mateo’s newest mixed-use development recently opened its doors at the former Trag’s site, which owner Prometheus Real Estate Group hopes will emerge as a new downtown destination for office, retail and rental use.
San Mateo political officials and others interested in the newest downtown development got a tour last week of the new property at 301 Baldwin Ave. that features 65,000 square feet of office, 19,000 square feet for retail, and 64 units located at 20 N. Ellsworth Ave. as part of the Brickline Flats property. The 131,636-square-foot building downtown also fronts Baldwin Avenue and North B Street. Its east side overlooks the downtown San Mateo Caltrain station, aimed at providing artisan shops and restaurants for retail and housing for young professionals looking to be close to an urban area with nearby amenities.
Outdoor space is plentiful, with a communal rooftop vegetable garden, lounge seating, fire pits, and rooftop decks with amenities like a pizza oven. Lounge areas offer people an overlook view of downtown San Mateo, with numerous glass windows offering natural light throughout the building. Around 255 stalls in four levels of an underground parking garage are available for residents and retail shoppers.
Mayor Amourence Lee, who attended the opening, said the site had a lot of history near one former City Hall site and as a place that housed the popular grocery store but now had a new purpose in addressing housing needs close to the Caltrain station. San Mateo has prioritized building more housing along the transit corridor to address its housing shortage, with mixed-use options often used to help ensure financial feasibility.
“It’s a real triumph to bring such a high-quality mixed-use project to a transit-oriented area,” Lee said at the opening.
Of the 64 units, around 13 are leased so far. The studio and one-bedroom units range in size from 408 square feet to 934 square feet. Pricing ranges from around $3,000 to $5,000. Though the developer preferred to include two- and three-bedroom units on the 0.93-acre site, constraints of the lot and the maximum height of the project limited the number of larger units the developer would have been able to build. The building also houses the corporate headquarters of Prometheus Real Estate Group, with around 150 people working at the location.
According to Prometheus officials, the architecture features lighter color tones in a modern-style aimed at bridging the urban growth with the suburban feel of San Mateo. Part of the building’s architecture aims to create a classic Northern California sea ranch residential home.
Other nearby buildings include La Cumbre Taqueria, Sushi Maruyama, Wursthall and St. Vincent de Paul Thrift Shop.
