san jose neighborhood guide · property nerds® at compass
Starbird, San Jose Homes for sale, recent sales and a Property Nerd’s guide
The San Jose blocks between Saratoga Ave and San Tomas Expwy from Williams Rd south to Payne Ave, around Starbird Park, the West Valley Branch Library and the Moreland School landmark corner.
Starbird by the numbers
starbird by the numbers · live from the mls
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Calculated in your browser from MLS data for Starbird (approximate outline traced from the boundary streets). Sales are single-family homes, townhomes and condos.
homes in starbird · live from the mls
Homes for sale, for rent and recently sold in Starbird
Every active listing, rental and closed sale in Starbird from the MLS, updated automatically, with a map of the neighborhood outline.
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Listings come from MLSListings and other MLSs through IDX and show their listing brokerage; confirm details with the listing agent. The map outline is the neighborhood boundary used by our listing search (Starbird (approximate outline traced from the boundary streets)); it may not match every local definition.
the story
How Starbird came to be
Starbird is the label on the City of San Jose's neighborhood map for the blocks between Williams Rd and Payne Ave, and it is the name of the city park on Boynton Ave and of Starbird Cir. The guide runs from Saratoga Ave on the west to San Tomas Expwy on the east.
Its southwest corner holds a state landmark. California's state landmark listing for Moreland School puts the site at Payne Ave and Saratoga Ave and tells the district's early history: a subscription school meeting in private homes in 1851, a public school building in 1852, organization as Santa Clara Township School District No. 2 in 1853, and the Moreland name from 1862. The state registered the landmark in 1951.
San Jose's annexations came about a century later. City annexation records show San Jose taking in this land in about 15 annexations between February 1956 and August 1980, with about a third arriving in a single annexation ('Moreland No. 6-A') in July 1957. The city's tract map shows about two dozen recorded tracts with about 735 lots. The West Valley Branch Library opened at the Saratoga Ave corner on March 8, 1964, according to the San Jose Public Library's history timeline, and an expanded branch opened there in 2003.
streets and homes
The streets and the houses
The streets fill in between the main roads tract by tract. North of the park and school are Keltner Ave, Freed Ave, Welch Ave, Teale Ave, Caravella Dr, Rhoda Dr and Woodcreek Ln; toward Saratoga Ave are Will Rogers Dr, De Mille Dr, Barrymore Dr, Mitzi Dr, Piper Dr and Leslie Dr, which the MLS groups as Hollywood Park and Anderson West; Topaz Ave, Roewill Dr, Oakmont Dr, Ranchero Way, Starbird Cir and Flora Ave fill the middle and south.
Lot sizes split in two. About 465 parcels are zoned R-1, with a median lot of about 6,700 sq ft, but the middle half runs from about 6,100 to 9,400 sq ft because of the R-1-5 blocks: on Will Rogers Dr, De Mille Dr, Mitzi Dr, Piper Dr, Leslie Dr and Barrymore Dr, about 95 parcels have a median of about 10,400 sq ft. About 100 R-1 parcels in the guide reach 10,000 sq ft or more. Nottingham Pl is zoned R-2 (two-family).
Zoning is mixed. The city's zoning layer puts about a fifth of the guide's area, including blocks on San Tomas Aquino Rd, Roewill Dr, Flora Ave, Oakmont Dr, Starbird Cir and parts of Williams Rd, in the UR (Urban Residential) district rather than R-1, and the Saratoga Ave frontage is commercial and inside the General Plan's 'Saratoga Av' urban village (no approved village plan yet, per the city's growth-area layer). Check the zoning of the exact parcel before planning a remodel or second unit.
streets in starbird
- Williams Rd
- Payne Ave
- San Tomas Aquino Rd
- Boynton Ave
- Will Rogers Dr
- De Mille Dr
- Barrymore Dr
- Mitzi Dr
- Piper Dr
- Leslie Dr
- Topaz Ave
- Roewill Dr
- Oakmont Dr
- Ranchero Way
- Starbird Cir
- Flora Ave
- Rosalia Ave
- Keltner Ave
- Freed Ave
- Welch Ave
- Teale Ave
- Caravella Dr
- Rhoda Dr
- Woodcreek Ln
- Nottingham Pl
- Hayden Dr
parks and places
Parks, shops and landmarks near Starbird
- park
Starbird Park
A 9.4-acre city park at 1050 Boynton Ave. The city's amenity layer lists two soccer fields, a softball field, basketball, a playground, picnic areas, game tables and parking.
- community
Starbird Youth Center
A one-story neighborhood center in Starbird Park, run through the city's partner program and listed as open on the city's community-center layer.
- library
West Valley Branch Library
At 1243 San Tomas Aquino Rd, on a 2.45-acre city site at the Saratoga Ave corner. The San Jose Public Library dates the branch to 1964 and its expanded building to 2003.
- landmark
Moreland School landmark site
The state landmark listing places Moreland School at Payne Ave and Saratoga Ave, this guide's southwest corner.
- park
Hathaway Park
About 0.7 mile straight-line south across Payne Ave, with sports fields, basketball and playgrounds (city amenity layer).
- shopping
Saratoga Ave frontage and Westgate Center
Commercial zoning lines Saratoga Ave on the west edge; Westgate Center is about 1.2 miles straight-line south at Saratoga Ave and Campbell Ave.
schools and commute
School districts and getting around
School districts
Census school-district maps put the whole guide in the Moreland School District for elementary and middle school and the Campbell Union High School District for high school. Leroy Anderson Elementary (K-5, Moreland School District) is inside the guide on Rhoda Dr; the federal school directory lists it as a district school. Attendance boundaries change, so check the exact address with the district.
Getting around
- VTA route 25 runs on Williams Rd, with stops at Williams & Saratoga, Ranchero, Oakmont and Boynton; route 57 runs on Saratoga Ave, with stops at Saratoga & Payne, Mitzi and Williams (VTA route pages).
- I-280 is reached via Saratoga Ave, about 0.9 mile straight-line north of the center; San Tomas Expwy on the east edge runs north into Santa Clara and south toward Campbell.
- Caltrain: Santa Clara station is about 3.8 miles straight-line from the center (county rail-station layer). VTA light rail's Winchester station in Campbell is about 2.2 miles straight-line.
- Bikes: buffered bike lanes on Williams Rd and San Tomas Aquino Rd, bike lanes on Payne Ave, shared-lane markings on Boynton Ave, and a separated (Class 4) bikeway on part of Saratoga Ave (city bikeway map).
- From the middle of the guide, Starbird Park and the West Valley Branch Library are each about 0.4 mile straight-line.
nerd notes
Buying or selling in Starbird: what we check
Buying here
- Flood zone: FEMA's map puts about 93% of this guide in Zone D (flood hazard not studied). A small area by San Tomas Expwy is Zone AO (shallow flooding, 1-foot depth), which takes in some addresses on Williams Rd, Hayden Dr and Boynton Ave, and a narrow Zone A strip runs along the expressway edge. Check the current FEMA map for the exact address and ask your lender and insurer.
- Zoning varies: R-1-8, R-1-5, R-2 and UR (Urban Residential) all appear. Check the parcel's zoning and the city's current ADU and SB 9 rules before you count on a second unit or a lot split.
- Big lots: the R-1-5 blocks have lots near 10,000 sq ft. Confirm the county parcel area and any easements before planning a rebuild or a detached ADU.
- Seismic: about 2% of the guide, along the San Tomas Expwy edge, is in a state liquefaction zone (CGS San Jose West quad). Read the natural hazard disclosure for the exact parcel.
- Planned-development homes: some homes on Williams Rd, Will Rogers Dr and Oakmont Pl are in planned-development (PD) zoning, including about 40 small attached-home parcels; ask whether an HOA applies, read its documents and check current dues.
Selling here
- MLS naming: sales here appear under Anderson West, Starbird and Hollywood Park, or the umbrella 'West San Jose'. Use the name that matches the street.
- Lot size: on the R-1-5 blocks, lead with the county parcel area; lots near 10,000 sq ft are a fact buyers search for.
- Disclosures: be ready with the FEMA zone for the address (Zone D, or AO near San Tomas Expwy) and the natural hazard disclosure, plus permits for additions and ADUs.
- Address and schools: county address records list San Jose 95117 for nearly every address. State the district and send buyers to it to confirm the school for the address.
nerd noteCommissions are always negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what's included.
faq
Starbird questions, answered
Where is Starbird in San Jose?
Between Williams Rd and Payne Ave, from Saratoga Ave east to San Tomas Expwy, around Starbird Park on Boynton Ave.
What is at Payne Ave and Saratoga Ave?
The state landmark listing for Moreland School places the site at that corner. The district began in 1851 and took Zechariah Moreland's name in 1862.
Which school district serves Starbird?
Census maps put it in the Moreland School District and the Campbell Union High School District. Boundaries change, so check the exact address with the district.
Are there larger lots?
Yes. On the R-1-5 blocks of Will Rogers Dr, De Mille Dr, Mitzi Dr, Piper Dr, Leslie Dr and Barrymore Dr, county parcel data shows a median lot of about 10,400 sq ft.
Is Starbird in a flood zone?
About 93% of it is FEMA Zone D, where the flood hazard has not been studied. A small area by San Tomas Expwy is Zone AO. Check the FEMA map for the exact address.
next door
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