Berryessa, San Jose

The Berryessa District is a neighborhood in the North San Jose region of San Jose, California. The district is named after the Berryessa family, a prominent Californio family of the Bay Area which owned the area. Berryessa is located within the North Valley area of Silicon Valley.[1]

Berryessa
Neighborhood of San Jose
Nickname(s): 
North Valley
Berryessa
Location within San Jose and Silicon Valley
Coordinates: 37.386329°N 121.86051°W / 37.386329; -121.86051
CountryUnited States
StateCalifornia
CountySanta Clara
CitySan Jose

History

In the late 19th century, Berryessa was a small farming community well known across California for its high-quality fruit. Hostetter Road, Capitol Avenue, Piedmont Road, and Lundy Avenue were formerly surrounded by apricot and prune orchards, whereas today this area is distinguished as a fast-growing bedroom community of San Jose, served by VTA light rail and (in 2019[2]), an extension of the Bay Area's BART system.

Geography

The district borders Milpitas along Landess Avenue to the north and the Alum Rock neighborhood of East San Jose along Mabury Road to the south. The residential neighborhood is part of the Fourth City Council District, along with Alviso, and was represented by Chuck Reed prior to his election as Mayor of San Jose. The district representative is now Lan Diep.

The J. F. Flickinger Fruit Packing Company, one of the largest fruit packing companies in the Santa Clara Valley, was located around present-day Hostetter Road. In the 1960s and 1970s, however, the orchards were developed into suburban residential neighborhoods and businesses. Tiny remnants of these lands remain today, including the Orlando Farm till 2013 when it too was developed into housing on Capitol Avenue and the Mattos' apricot orchard off Piedmont Road.[3]

Education
Berryessa library, part of the San José Public Library

Berryessa Union School District operates public schools. Schools in Berryessa include:

High schools

Middle schools
  • Morrill Middle School
  • Piedmont Middle School
  • Sierramont Middle School

Elementary schools
  • Brooktree Elementary School
  • Cherrywood Elementary School
  • Laneview Elementary School
  • Majestic Way Elementary School
  • Noble Elementary School
  • Northwood Elementary School
  • Ruskin Elementary School
  • Summerdale Elementary School
  • Toyon Elementary School
  • Vinci Park Elementary School

Saint Victor Catholic School and Milpitas Christian School[4] (founded in Milpitas but now located in Berryessa) are the only private schools in the area.

San José Public Library operates the Berryessa Branch Library and the Educational Park Branch Library.[5]

Art & Wine festival

The annual Berryessa Art & Wine festival is one of the most well known local events in the area and has been a yearly tradition for over 40 years. The current festival, typically held in May, includes 120-150 artist booths, 14 food booths (all run by non-profit groups from the Berryessa area), a Community Row area with booths from a variety of service groups and non-profits offering information to the festival goers, a Business Row with representatives from the Berryessa community and other local San Jose Businesses, a stage area with entertainment by local amateur entertainers as well as professional entertainment and booths from several local radio stations. The festival is held on the grounds of Penitencia Creek Park.

Notable residents

The following list of people either grew up in Berryessa or are current residents of the area:

See also

References
  1. "San Jose". McCormack's Guides. Retrieved 2008-02-27.
  2. "VTA's BART Silicon Valley Extension". Retrieved 10 April 2019.
  3. "Berryessa". santaclararesearch.net. Retrieved 2008-02-03.
  4. https://www.milpitaschristian.org/ Milpitas Christian School
  5. "Berryessa Branch Library Archived March 16, 2010, at the Wayback Machine." San José Public Library. Retrieved on March 27, 2010.

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