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mountain view neighborhood guide · property nerds® at compass
Willowgate, Mountain View Homes for sale, recent sales and a Property Nerd’s guide
The wedge of townhouses, condos, apartments and single-family houses between Moffett Boulevard and Highway 85, across Central Expressway from Castro Street, with the Stevens Creek Trail on its east edge.
Willowgate by the numbers
willowgate by the numbers · live from the mls
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Calculated in your browser from MLS data for Willowgate: Moffett Blvd to Hwy 85, north of Central Expwy (approximate). Sales are single-family homes, townhomes and condos.
homes in willowgate · live from the mls
Homes for sale, for rent and recently sold in Willowgate
Every active listing, rental and closed sale in Willowgate 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 (Willowgate: Moffett Blvd to Hwy 85, north of Central Expwy (approximate)); it may not match every local definition.
the story
How Willowgate came to be
Willowgate takes its name from Willowgate Street, the frontage road that runs along the north side of Central Expressway at the bottom of the neighborhood, and the city's community garden on Andsbury Avenue carries the same name. Where the street name itself came from is not documented in any source we found.
The city's own annexation map tells the land story. The western blocks, from Moffett Boulevard across to Santa Rosa, Corto, Horizon and Andsbury, sit inside Mountain View's original 1902 town boundary. Most of the land to the east joined the city in annexations between 1951 and 1954, and smaller pieces trickled in for decades after: six separate "Orchard" annexations between 1963 and 1985 brought in the lots around Orchard Avenue, Promethean Way, Jason Way and Plum Court, a sign of how long small county parcels lingered here. The oldest landmark is the Mountain View Adobe at 157 Moffett Boulevard, built in 1934 as a New Deal work-relief project, used as a club for servicemen during World War II, closed in 1987 under seismic rules, restored and reopened in 2001, and listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.
The big building blocks arrived around 1970. City staff reports date the 402-unit garden apartment complex at 555 West Middlefield Road, on a 14.5-acre site between Moffett Boulevard and Highway 85, to about 1969, and listing records date the Cypress Point Lakes condominiums to 1971 and the Cypress Point Villas townhomes on Horizon Avenue to 1973. Change is coming again: in 2022 the City Council approved 323 more apartments on that complex's parking lots, with a 1.34-acre public park to be dedicated along Cypress Point Drive, and the city's Moffett Boulevard Precise Plan, in environmental review since 2025, studies taller mixed-use buildings along the boulevard and on the block bounded by Santa Rosa Avenue, Willowgate Street, Horizon Avenue and Central Avenue.
streets and homes
The streets and the houses
Willowgate is less a single tract than a patchwork, and the street pattern shows it. Willowgate Street and Central Avenue run east-west, parallel to Central Expressway, while short streets and courts fill the blocks in between: Santa Rosa Avenue, Santa Clara Avenue, Corto Street, Horizon Avenue and Andsbury Avenue on the west side, and Orchard Avenue, Jason Way, Promethean Way, Plum Court and Orchard Glen Court toward the creek. Cypress Point Drive loops through the north half between the large complexes. Tall redwoods and magnolias shade much of it, and many of the bigger trees fall under the city's heritage tree rules.
Housing types change block by block. On Willowgate Street, listing records describe townhouses built as attached pairs that share one wall, with detached two-car garages. Horizon Avenue holds the 1973 Cypress Point Villas townhomes, with carports and a shared pool. Cypress Point Lakes at 505 Cypress Point Drive is a 1971 condominium complex whose amenities include ponds (the "lakes"), two pools, a spa and a tennis court. Toward the east end, Jason Way and Promethean Way are single-family streets, with houses of roughly 1,400 to 2,000 sq ft on lots of about 5,500 to 7,400 sq ft in sales records.
Zoning is just as mixed: the city map shows R1, R2 (one- and two-family), several R3 multifamily districts, Planned Community (P) zoning on the large apartment sites and CRA commercial zoning along Moffett Boulevard. Several blocks carry an "sd" (Special Design) overlay suffix, which requires a special design permit for new structures and modifications, and the city is rewriting its R3 standards, so check the current rules for a specific parcel before planning an addition, ADU or rebuild.
streets in willowgate
- Willowgate Street
- Central Avenue
- Cypress Point Drive
- Santa Rosa Avenue
- Santa Clara Avenue
- Corto Street
- Horizon Avenue
- Andsbury Avenue
- Orchard Avenue
- Jason Way
- Promethean Way
- Plum Court
- Orchard Glen Court
- Moffett Boulevard
- West Middlefield Road
parks and places
Parks, shops and landmarks near Willowgate
- park
Willowgate Community Garden
A city-run community garden of roughly an acre at the end of Andsbury Avenue, with individual plots rented to Mountain View residents. Local papers counted 84 plots in 2005 and 92 by 2017, with a waitlist measured in years.
- park
Stevens Creek Trail
The paved creek trail runs the full east edge of the neighborhood, between the homes and Highway 85, with a short connector at the east end of Central Avenue. Head north toward Shoreline or south toward Sunnyvale.
- park
Jackson Park
A 0.82-acre city mini park just west of Moffett Boulevard near Stierlin Road. A 1.34-acre city park is planned on Cypress Point Drive as part of the 555 West Middlefield project.
- landmark
Mountain View Adobe
The 1934 adobe hall at 157 Moffett Boulevard, on the National Register since 2002. The city restored it in 2001 and rents it out as an event space.
- shopping
Moffett Boulevard
A small center at 327 Moffett Boulevard, at the Central Avenue corner, has a taqueria, a cleaner and offices, with Moffett Plaza across the street. Moffett Boulevard turns into Castro Street at Central Expressway, so downtown starts a few minutes' walk away.
- landmark
Adult Education Center
The Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District runs its adult education center at 333 Moffett Boulevard, inside the neighborhood's west edge.
schools and commute
School districts and getting around
School districts
Willowgate is in the Mountain View Whisman School District for TK-8 and the Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District for grades 9-12. There is no K-12 campus inside the neighborhood; the high school district's adult education center is at 333 Moffett Boulevard, and Landels Elementary is roughly half a mile south, across Central Expressway and the tracks. Attendance boundaries change, so confirm the assigned schools for any address with each district before you buy.
Mountain View Whisman guide · Mountain View-Los Altos high schools · Silicon Valley school districts
Getting around
- Caltrain and VTA Orange Line light rail: the Downtown Mountain View Transit Center is just across Central Expressway from the Moffett Boulevard corner, roughly a quarter mile from the west blocks and about two-thirds of a mile on foot from the Promethean Way end (approximate). City staff describe the 555 West Middlefield site as within half a mile of downtown and the Transit Center.
- Highway 85 runs along the east edge, with ramps at Central Expressway/Evelyn Avenue (exit 23) and at Moffett Boulevard north of Middlefield (exit 24A).
- US 101 is about a mile north via Moffett Boulevard (approximate), and Central Expressway runs along the south edge toward Palo Alto and Sunnyvale.
- Stevens Creek Trail: the car-free creek trail runs the length of the east side, with access from the end of Central Avenue; the city lists a future access point from the north side of Middlefield Road as an unscheduled project.
- Bikes: the city's capital plan includes complete-streets projects with protected and buffered bike lanes on Middlefield Road (Moffett to Bernardo) and on Moffett Boulevard north of Middlefield, both in design as of the city's latest parks plan.
nerd notes
Buying or selling in Willowgate: what we check
Buying here
- Know which kind of ownership you are buying: condos and many townhomes here come with an HOA (Cypress Point Lakes, Cypress Point Villas and others), so read the CC&Rs, budget, reserve study and minutes; the paired townhouses and single-family homes may have no HOA at all.
- Check zoning for the exact parcel. The city map mixes R1, R2, R3, P and CRA here, some blocks carry the "sd" Special Design overlay, and the R3 standards are being rewritten, all of which affects additions, ADUs and SB 9 ideas.
- Watch the planning pipeline: the 555 West Middlefield expansion (323 apartments plus a park) and the Moffett Boulevard Precise Plan could bring several years of construction and taller buildings near the west and north edges.
- Heritage trees: the big redwoods and magnolias are protected under the city's heritage tree ordinance, so removing or heavily pruning one takes a city permit; factor that into any remodel or foundation plan.
- Most of the area is FEMA Zone X with reduced flood risk due to a levee, with a thin Zone A strip along the creek on the east edge; check the parcel on the FEMA map and visit lots near Highway 85 or Central Expressway at commute hours to judge road noise.
Selling here
- Lead with the walk: a simple map from your door to Castro Street, the Transit Center and the Stevens Creek Trail does more than adjectives.
- For HOA homes, have the full HOA package, recent budgets and any special assessment history ready before you list.
- Pull permits and records for past work, especially on 1970s condos and townhomes (plumbing, electrical panels, windows, roofs), and consider a pre-inspection.
- Note any known nearby projects (555 West Middlefield, the Moffett Boulevard Precise Plan) in a short factual summary, since buyers will ask and planned parks are part of the story.
nerd noteCommissions are always negotiable, and we offer bundled services, so ask us what's included.
faq
Willowgate questions, answered
Where does the name Willowgate come from?
From Willowgate Street, the frontage road along the north side of Central Expressway; the community garden on Andsbury Avenue shares the name. How the street got its name is not documented in any source we found.
What kinds of homes are in Willowgate?
A mix: garden apartments from about 1969, the 1971 Cypress Point Lakes condominiums, 1973 townhomes on Horizon Avenue, paired townhouses on Willowgate Street, and single-family houses on Jason Way and Promethean Way.
How far is Caltrain?
The Downtown Mountain View Transit Center, with Caltrain and VTA light rail, is across Central Expressway from the Moffett Boulevard corner. Most homes are roughly a quarter mile to two-thirds of a mile away on foot (approximate).
Can I get a plot at the Willowgate Community Garden?
The garden is run by the City of Mountain View and plots go to Mountain View residents. Local reporting has described a waitlist of several years, so ask the city's recreation division for the current list and fees.
Is new development planned nearby?
Yes. The city approved 323 more apartments at 555 West Middlefield Road in 2022, with a 1.34-acre public park on Cypress Point Drive, and the Moffett Boulevard Precise Plan is studying mixed-use buildings along the boulevard.
Which school districts serve Willowgate?
Mountain View Whisman School District for TK-8 and Mountain View-Los Altos Union High School District for grades 9-12. Confirm the assigned schools for any address with the districts, since boundaries change.
talk to a property nerd
Thinking about Willowgate? Let's run your numbers.
Eric, Janelle and the Boyenga Team have sold more than 2,520 Silicon Valley homes, $2.6+ billion in all, since 1996. Get a value, a plan, or a straight answer about a street.
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