Fremont has a history of achieving economic success through proactive planning. With development activity well underway in both Downtown and Warm Springs, it’s validating to see that smart planning during the last economic down cycle is now allowing the City to capitalize on today’s strong economy. Both of these development areas will provide significant employment opportunities, new housing options, and additional urban amenities for the community.

So, what’s next? Look north to Ardenwood, where Fremont connects most closely to the peninsula and actually shares a city limit with Menlo Park. (See graphic below.) A variety of dynamics, including the tightest peninsula real estate market on record, Fremont’s growing prominence in high-tech, and worsening commutes have resulted in extremely strong demand for space and development opportunities in Ardenwood over the last few years. A diverse mix of SiliconValley tech tenants has already migrated eastward to Ardenwood, which has expanded the makeup of this historically biotech business park. These companies include EFI, TE Connectivity, and Atieva, just to name a few. And let’s not forget the recent announcement that French coding university, Ecole 42, is launching its U.S. operation within the district, too.

Given the strong market fundamentals, last week, Fremont’s City Council approved the re-zoning of 148 acres in Ardenwood to allow for higher-intensity corporate office operations, while continuing to allow the advanced manufacturing and R&D operations which exist there today. The action sets the stage to transition this 1980s business park into a 21st century employment district that encourages high-image development and leverages the Ardenwood’s gateway location at the base of the Dumbarton Bridge.

Many of Silicon Valley’s largest anchor companies are actively expanding their footprints broadly throughout the region to address employee retention and improve commutes. By priming Ardenwood to be competitive with new, high quality buildings, Fremont is once again positioning itself for success and creating an environment where it can capture a greater share of the region’s high tech employment.