Tech companies create healthy Bay Area competition

Tech companies have continued to keep the Bay Area on its toes. After years of competing against one another, Bay Area cities have now decided to team up and offer more incentives to keep tech companies in this cozy corner of Northern California.

Among the incentives, San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee wants to clear out a 30-acre stretch of Interstate 280 along with a Caltrain storage yard by AT&T Park and turn it into a housing, shopping and office space mecca.

Lee has already created tax discounts for tech giants like Twitter who reside in The City’s popular South of Market area along with companies like Zynga and Yelp. His spokeswoman, Chrisine Falvey told the SJ MercNews:

“Mayor Lee wants to see how to promote the Bay Area. There will be widespread benefits if companies relocate or expand to San Francisco, San Jose, Oakland or nearby areas.”

San Jose Mayor Chuck Reed isn’t too concerned about San Francisco winning over all the tech companies considering The City has such limited space available. Reed told the SJ MercNews:

“It’s important that we have options in the Bay Area. North San Jose’s got one kind of development potential. We’ve got Coyote Valley with another kind of development potential. We’re trying to provide lots of different kinds of environments for companies to work in. Those that want to be in a San Francisco high-rise will choose that.”

While Caltrain officials aren’t exceptionally excited about the possibility of getting rid of their rail yard, The City will conduct an eight-month study to see what the impact would be.

Santa Clara County Supervisor Ken Yeager, heads of the Peninsula Corridor Joint Powers Board which operates the commuter line, acknowledges there are still plenty of concerns with the plan but overall it “would be a tremendous boon” for the Bay Area.