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san jose neighborhood guide · property nerds® at compass
Willow Glen West, San Jose Homes for sale, recent sales and a Property Nerd’s guide
The residential blocks between Minnesota and Hamilton avenues, from Meridian Ave east to Lupton and Pine: bigger lots than the older core, a school-district line through the middle, and Bramhall Park next door.
Willow Glen West by the numbers
willow glen west by the numbers · live from the mls
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Calculated in your browser from MLS data for Willow Glen West: Minnesota Ave to Hamilton Ave, Meridian Ave to Lupton Ave (approximate). Sales are single-family homes, townhomes and condos.
homes in willow glen west · live from the mls
Homes for sale, for rent and recently sold in Willow Glen West
Every active listing, rental and closed sale in Willow Glen West 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 (Willow Glen West: Minnesota Ave to Hamilton Ave, Meridian Ave to Lupton Ave (approximate)); it may not match every local definition.
the story
How Willow Glen West came to be
This one is a name of convenience. The City's neighborhood map labels the blocks between Minnesota Ave and Hamilton Ave, from Meridian Ave east to Lupton and Pine avenues, as Willow Glen West, and its own data marks that label as a fill-in. Nobody needs to learn it: Minnesota to Hamilton, Meridian to Lupton describes the place better.
Like the rest of The Willows, this was orchard land before it was house lots. A c1910 photo in the Sourisseau Academy's archive shows cherries being sorted and packed at a fruit farm on Cherry Ave, the street that still runs north-south through these blocks. A few houses from that period survive: the City's Historic Resources Inventory lists Craftsman houses on Lupton Ave from about 1910 and 1920 and on Pine Ave from 1914, and a c1906 house on Hicks Ave that the City designated a landmark in 1992.
What comes next is on the edges. The General Plan marks the Hamilton Ave and Meridian Ave corner as a neighborhood urban village, with room for about 150 homes and 500 jobs and no adopted village plan yet, and the far side of Meridian Ave as the Southwest Expressway urban village, sized for about 3,000 homes. Inside the outline the zoning stays single-family on the bulk of the land.
streets and homes
The streets and the houses
Meridian Ave is the west edge and Hamilton Ave the south edge, both with bike lanes. Inside, Cherry Ave and Hicks Ave run north-south through the middle, crossed by short streets such as Brookdale Dr, Cherry Valley Dr, Richards Ave, Mercer Ave, Glenwood Ave, Collingwood Ave and Dale Ave. Weaver Dr and Cherry Glen Way sit to the west, and Willowbrae Ave, Willow Oaks Dr, De Anza Way, Santa Maria Ave, Keesling Ave and Alta Glen Dr run toward Meridian. East of Lupton Ave, a wedge between Mildred Ave and Pine Ave takes in Everett Ave and the north end of Cottle Ave.
Lots run larger here than in the older blocks near Lincoln Ave. County parcel data counts about 750 parcels with a median lot of about 8,250 sq ft and the middle half between about 6,500 and 10,800 sq ft, against medians near 6,500 sq ft in Downtown Willow Glen and Palm Haven. Richards Ave, Cherry Ave, Lupton Ave and Hicks Ave have about 45 lots over 15,000 sq ft.
Zoning is single-family R-1-8 on the bulk of the land. Near Meridian Ave the pattern changes: multifamily R-M zoning on Alta Glen Dr and part of Keesling Ave, two-family R-2 on Willowbrae Ave, commercial frontage on Meridian, and small-lot planned developments on Artisan Way, Legacy Way and Impression Way, where about 20 parcels are under 2,500 sq ft.
streets in willow glen west
- Minnesota Ave
- Meridian Ave
- Hamilton Ave
- Lupton Ave
- Cherry Ave
- Hicks Ave
- Richards Ave
- Brookdale Dr
- Cherry Valley Dr
- Mercer Ave
- Glenwood Ave
- Collingwood Ave
- Dale Ave
- Weaver Dr
- Cherry Glen Way
- Cherrydale Dr
- Willowbrae Ave
- Willow Oaks Dr
- De Anza Way
- Santa Maria Ave
- Keesling Ave
- Alta Glen Dr
- Mildred Ave
- Pine Ave
- Everett Ave
parks and places
Parks, shops and landmarks near Willow Glen West
- park
Willow Street Frank Bramhall Park
Just north across Minnesota Ave, about 0.4 mile straight-line from the middle of the area: 14.8 acres with tennis and pickleball courts, bocce, ballfields, basketball, an amphitheater, playgrounds and picnic areas.
- park
Wilcox Park
A 2.2-acre City park at Wilcox Way and Winona Dr, just south across Pine Ave.
- shopping
Hamilton and Meridian corner
A supermarket sits on the south side of Hamilton Ave at Meridian Ave, and the Willow Glen post office is a short way south on Meridian.
- shopping
Lincoln Ave business district
Downtown Willow Glen's shops start at Lincoln and Minnesota avenues, about 0.7 mile straight-line east of the middle of the area.
- library
Willow Glen Branch Library
The San Jose Public Library branch at 1157 Minnesota Ave is about half a mile straight-line northeast.
schools and commute
School districts and getting around
School districts
This is a split area, so check carefully. Census school-district maps put roughly the eastern two-thirds, from Lupton Ave west to about Weaver Dr and Cherry Glen Way, in San Jose Unified School District. The western third, including Willowbrae Ave, Willow Oaks Dr, De Anza Way, Santa Maria Ave, Keesling Ave, Alta Glen Dr, Artisan, Legacy and Impression ways and the Meridian and Hamilton frontage, is in Campbell Union School District and Campbell Union High School District. No public school sits inside the outline; within about a mile straight-line are Willow Glen Elementary, Booksin Elementary, Willow Glen Middle and Willow Glen High (San Jose Unified) and Blackford Elementary on Willow St west of Meridian Ave (Campbell Union). Attendance boundaries change, so check the exact address with the district.
Campbell Union guide · Campbell Union High guide · Silicon Valley school districts
Getting around
- VTA light rail Green Line: Fruitdale station is about 1.1 miles straight-line north and Race station about 1.4 miles.
- Caltrain: Tamien station is about 1.6 miles straight-line east and Diridon station about 2.2 miles north.
- I-280 has ramps at Meridian Ave about 1.3 miles north, and Highway 17 meets Hamilton Ave about 1.7 miles west (approximate straight-line distances).
- The City's bikeway map shows bike lanes on Meridian Ave, Hamilton Ave and Minnesota Ave, and shared-lane markings on Pine Ave.
nerd notes
Buying or selling in Willow Glen West: what we check
Buying here
- Confirm the school district for the exact parcel: the line between San Jose Unified and Campbell Union runs through these blocks, and the high school district changes with it.
- On a big lot, ask the City how ADU and lot-split (SB 9) rules apply before you price in a second unit; planned-development parcels on Artisan, Legacy and Impression ways follow their own permits and HOA rules.
- Check what the City plans at Hamilton and Meridian (a future neighborhood urban village) and across Meridian (the Southwest Expressway urban village), and listen for traffic on lots along Meridian and Hamilton.
- Look up the address in the City's Historic Resources Inventory; a handful of older houses here are listed, including a City Landmark on Hicks Ave.
- FEMA maps the whole outline as Zone D, where flood hazard is undetermined; ask an insurance agent, and on older houses budget for sewer-lateral, foundation and electrical inspections.
Selling here
- Lot size sells here: have a plot plan or survey ready and state the square footage from county records.
- State the school districts from the districts' own address lookups and tell buyers to confirm them.
- Give walking and biking times to Bramhall Park, the Hamilton and Meridian shops and Lincoln Ave.
- Order pre-listing inspections on older houses so foundation and sewer questions are answered before offers.
nerd noteCommissions are always negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what's included.
faq
Willow Glen West questions, answered
Is Willow Glen West an official neighborhood name?
Not really. It is the label on the City's neighborhood map, which marks it as a fill-in name. In practice people describe these blocks by their streets, Minnesota to Hamilton and Meridian to Lupton.
Which school districts serve these blocks?
Two sets. The eastern blocks are in San Jose Unified; the western blocks near Meridian Ave are in Campbell Union School District and Campbell Union High School District. Check the exact address with the district.
How big are the lots?
County parcel data gives a median of about 8,250 sq ft, with the middle half between about 6,500 and 10,800 sq ft. Some lots on Richards, Cherry, Lupton and Hicks avenues exceed 15,000 sq ft.
What is planned at Hamilton and Meridian?
The General Plan marks the corner as a neighborhood urban village with room for about 150 homes and 500 jobs; no village plan has been adopted yet.
How far is it to Lincoln Ave?
About 0.7 mile straight-line from the middle of the area to Lincoln and Minnesota avenues, with bike lanes along Minnesota Ave.
next door
More San Jose neighborhood guides
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