Highlights

•   Completed the project on schedule and on budget even while working through the Santa Clara Valley winter

•    Formed and poured 43 concrete panels in stacks in the highly confined parking area behind the existing Club Auto Sport facility

•    Relied on an oversized crane and innovative lifting techniques to safely and efficiently hoist the panels into their vertical positions in the building

Club Auto Sport is a high-end club for auto and motor sports enthusiasts, as well as a unique business community and event center that attracts thousands of upscale guests annually. After a slow start caused by the Great Recession of 2008, Club Auto Sport shifted into high gear. Today, the approximately 87,000 square foot facility is home to a growing roster of more than 40 businesses operating within the unique club. With the main building approaching 90% occupancy, Club Auto Sport-Silicon Valley gave the green light to begin building Club Auto Sport-Phase II. SiliconX Construction was selected as the general contractor.

Challenge

While the winter of 2011–2012 will be remembered as one of San Jose’s mildest and driest, it was still winter. Days were short. And when the rain fell, as it did from time to time — it negatively impacted schedules and created difficult working conditions for the construction personnel. This presented challenges in keeping the project on track for a spring completion.

In addition, the club’s second phase was built in a highly confined area behind the initial building — an area that had provided overflow club parking. This necessitated some creative solutions for casting the tilt-up panels used in the phase II structure.

Solution

SiliconX Construction broke ground on the 33,000 square foot Club Auto Sport-Phase II in mid-December. Club Auto Sport had the foresight to prepare a building pad for the second building when the first building was built in 2007–2008. Because of this, the construction on Club Auto Sport-Phase II got off to a fast start, even in the dead of winter.

To allow for the casting of the 43 panels required for the concrete tilt-up structure, SiliconX placed casting slabs in the club’s parking lot. The general contractor also formed and poured a number of the panels in a stack. This was the only way all of the concrete panels could be cast in such a small area.

Finally, to safely and efficiently lift the panels into their final vertical position with so little clearance on the site, SiliconX had to arrange for a crane with an extended height to be brought in — and relied on innovative sliding and rotating lifting techniques to get the job done properly.  Other than some minor redesigning of ADA parking adjacent to the new facility, the rest of the design and construction was relatively straight-forward.

Results

SiliconX completed construction of Club Auto Sport-Phase II by the end of April, 2012 — only 4 1/2 months after groundbreaking. Staying on schedule and on budget through the winter months, even with a minimum of weather issues, was a credit to the entire SiliconX team — from the project superintendent to the individual craftsmen and laborers.

“Club Auto Sport was very pleased with the teamwork that SiliconX Construction brought to our Phase II building — in bringing the project in on time and on budget,” said Ralph N. Borelli, co-founder and co-managing partner of Club Auto Sport-Silicon Valley.

The Phase II facility includes 16 individual condos, with five contiguous units leased prior to the start of construction to anchor tenant, Goodies Speed Shop. Goodies is a well-known, highly respected name in the Santa Clara Valley, having provided speed and performance parts and services to hobbyist-owners of American “muscle” cars and other high-performance vehicles, including hot rodders and drag racers, since 1962. Goodies moved its entire retail operation, signature service center, and a fabrication area for many of the custom parts it sells into the new space at Club Auto Sport shortly after the Phase II building opened.

Tony Gonzalez, Director of Construction Operations for SiliconX, oversaw the construction at Club Auto Sport-Phase II.

SiliconX is proud to report that the Club Auto Sport Phase II Expansion project is moving along ahead of schedule.

Here’s a picture of the walls being raised.  Many current and prospective tenants and buyers were present to watch the action.

Project Highlights

•   Updated the exterior of a vacant 20,000 sq. ft. commercial building in a prime business location on Los Gatos Blvd. in Los Gatos

•    Completed all exterior improvements on schedule and on budget

•    Provided construction management services for 10,000 sq. ft. of ground floor tenant improvements for YogaSource Los Gatos

•    Are designing and building five of up to ten spaces for the 9,800 sq. ft. of space on the building’s second floor

In 2008, a 20,150 sq. ft., two-story commercial building was constructed on a parcel of just less than one acre on Los Gatos Blvd. in a prime business area in Los Gatos. The expectation was that the building would quickly be leased. But that was before the Great Recession changed everything for a lot of people and businesses throughout Silicon Valley.

Challenge

Since its completion in 2008, the building at 16185 Los Gatos Blvd. had sat vacant. In 2009, the Town of Los Gatos issued a use permit for a bakery and café, but the business never moved in. Finally, in mid-2011, new owners purchased the building and signed a lease with YogaSource Los Gatos to occupy the entire 10,350 sq. ft. ground floor.

To ready the building for the new tenants and prepare the 9,800 sq. ft. of space on the second floor for leasing, the new owners called upon SiliconX Construction to give the building a thorough facelift.

Solution

Working with Kelly Simcox of Studio G Architects in Campbell, SiliconX updated the exterior design for the building. The fresh new look involved the addition of a stonewall feature to the front of the building facing busy Los Gatos Blvd., as well as repainting the entire exterior. SiliconX also installed a sophisticated new electronic irrigation system and landscaping to improve the overall presentation of the building. In addition, the system includes advanced water metering capabilities that will enable the landlord to accurately track and bill water usage by the building’s tenants.

Further, SiliconX provided construction management services to the building owners for the ground floor tenant improvements for YogaSource Los Gatos — ensuring that all work was completed in a timely manner and within budget.

Results

With YogaSource Los Gatos open for business hosting classes, workshops, teacher training, private retreats, and more, the building is finally seeing the use for which it was built.

The building owners have been very satisfied with the work that SiliconX Construction has completed on the building to-date, and the owners have engaged SiliconX to design and build the first five of up to ten units that will be available for lease on the building’s top floor.

Project Highlights

•   Transformed a vacant, aging Rite Aid store into a state-of-the-art fitness facility

•    Relied on a well-managed design-build process to complete all tenant improvements on budget and on schedule in just over 3 months

•    Seamlessly handled specialized requirements such as electrical and data connections for more than 200 exercise machines with digital displays

•    Demoed and constructed large men’s and women’s locker rooms with showers and spa/Whirlpool area

Bay Area Family Fitness, owned by long-time trainer Dave Morrison, is not your typical fitness club. Unlike some of the larger fitness chains, the club takes good care of its facilities as well as its members and highly professional staff. More importantly, it is results-driven — focused on designing individualized training programs and teaching people how to get the workouts they need, even if it ultimately means the members may no longer need the services of a personal trainer.

Challenge

Timing is everything. In September 2011, when Bay Area Family Fitness had the opportunity to open its second club in an old 38,000 sq. ft. Rite Aid pharmacy on Capitol Expressway in San Jose, Morrison knew he needed to move fast. For starters, January is the month when a fitness facility must be open for business — to cater to the hundreds of well-intentioned people who flock to fitness facilities as part of New Year’s resolutions. In addition, Morrison had negotiated favorable lease terms, and the sooner he opened his doors, the more he could capitalize on the lease’s financial benefits.

Solution

SiliconX Construction took advantage of the City of San Jose’s Special Tenant Improvement (STI) program, designed to streamline the permit process for companies locating in vacant buildings — receiving the construction permit on September 13, 2011. Construction started the same week, managed under a design-build approach working closely with Michael Zucker & Associates, AIA, of San Francisco.

After finishing demolition of the remaining interior improvements, SiliconX began to transform the former Rite Aid into a state-of-the-art fitness facility. SiliconX handled construction of an entirely new mechanical, electrical and plumbing infrastructure to meet the club’s requirements. This included electrical and data connections for approximately 200 pieces of cardio and other machines equipped with fitness displays and TV screens in the 13,000 sq. ft. main exercise room.

SiliconX also demoed and constructed 2,400 sq. ft. for men’s and women’s locker rooms — with 12 showers, granite countertops and tile floors throughout. In addition, the project included a spa area with sauna and Whirlpool, a 4,200 sq. ft. free weight area, and a 1,500 sq. ft. group exercise area for yoga, Pilates, Zumba, kids fitness classes, and more.

Results

Moving quickly — but building to the highest standards throughout the facility — SiliconX Construction was able to complete its work two days before Christmas, 2011. That gave Morrison and the staff of the new facility ample time to have the club ready for the New Year’s rush of new members. Morrison commented, “I was extremely pleased with both the speed and attention to detail that SiliconX demonstrated in completing the new facility for us in such a tight timeframe.”

Morrison recently acquired a majority interest in Express Fitness Center in Pleasanton, which he helped found a number of years ago, and he plans to use SiliconX to upgrade those facilities as the location becomes part of the Bay Area Family Fitness brand. More club locations may be added to the family as Morrison seeks to serve the Bay Area market.

Borelli Investment Company has an almost unmatched history of providing top-quality service to customers in commercial real estate in the Santa Clara Valley. Founded in 1955, the company knows the Valley better than anyone and has long provided truly personalized attention on a variety of services such as property and asset management, brokerage, sophisticated land sales and repositioning, investment syndication, and court-appointed receiverships.

Borelli has also been an innovator in property renovation and conversion to commercial or office condos as well as ground-up construction and development.

While the third-party contractors Borelli has used in the past have worked hard, conflicting priorities for these general contractors have sometimes impacted schedules and other aspects of the process.

Building a New Construction Company

As Borelli enters 2012, that has all changed with the introduction of Borelli’s affiliated contractor, SiliconX Construction. SiliconX will provide extensive services in four key areas:

•   Tenant improvements, ranging from micro-offices of 300 sq. ft. or less to 500,000 sq. ft. or more.

•   Major renovations, like those Borelli managed at Junction Office Center and Fremont Business Park.

•   Ground-up construction for any type of facility or construction method.

•   Facilities maintenance, carrying on the Borelli tradition of being highly responsive and delivering excellent value for the money.

Great People Working Side-by-Side

SiliconX Construction is led by Tony Gonzalez, a Borelli employee who brings more than 30 years in construction and general contracting to his new position — including over 15 years as a superintendent with a major contractor based in Silicon Valley.

Tony’s experience is amazingly diverse — he’s worked on chip manufacturing facilities, aerospace plants, multiplex movie theaters, and all kinds of office, commercial and retail space — including Club Auto Sport, the specialty office and event center and club for car enthusiasts. He has experience with clean rooms and processing piping as well as standard tenant improvements, and has built multi-million dollar, multi-story office and commercial buildings.

SiliconX project managers work in the same offices as Borelli’s property managers. This allows for unique partnerships in addressing the needs of tenants for prompt, efficient facilities maintenance with minimal business disruptions. SiliconX’s dedicated facilities technicians can do it all—from repairing a door or window or addressing a plumbing issue to handling grounds maintenance or even upgrading exterior lighting to energy-efficient LCD lights. The team will even assist with furniture moves, if desired.

For new construction, SiliconX has a broad array of skills — in site selection, land acquisition and design; in budgeting, bidding, planning, and permits; and in zoning, entitlements and regulatory approvals — not to mention construction services.

Get to Know SiliconX Construction Better

Because many of the people at SiliconX are people you may have known through Borelli Investment Company, SiliconX is like an old friend with a lot of new capabilities. The bottom line is even better service for customers.

Want to know more about SiliconX? Contact Tom Purell at tom@borelli.com or call 408.418.0099.