Frequently Asked Questions

Learn about San José State University's new Campus Master Plan here. For questions, comments or other inquiries for matters not addressed here, get in touch with the team by emailing campusmasterplan@sjsu.edu.

• What is a Campus Master Plan?

  • The Campus Master Plan is SJSU's long-term strategic framework designed to guide the physical development and revitalization of the university's properties, including the Main Campus, South Campus, and other associated sites in Santa Clara County.

    The Campus Master Plan aims to accommodate projected enrollment growth, enhance educational programs, and improve administrative services through coordinated planning of land use, buildings, public spaces, mobility, and infrastructure.

• What will the Campus Master Plan address?

  • The Campus Master Plan is written in anticipation of future space needs. It guides a strategy for future growth and applies to campus land use and building placement, the public realm, mobility, and infrastructure. The Campus Master Plan is a framework for future capital funding proposals.

    The plan addresses all owned and long-term lease properties associated with SJSU in Santa Clara County. This includes:

    • Main Campus: The primary academic and administrative hub.
    • South Campus: Facilities related to athletics and additional programs. 
    • Other Sites: Locations hosting university programs within the greater San José
      area.

    SJSU is also located at the Moss Landing Marine Laboratories in Monterey County. A separate Campus Master Plan will be prepared for Moss Landing Marine Laboratories.

• Where does this Campus Master Plan apply?

  • 

    The plan addresses all owned and long-term lease properties associated with SJSU in Santa Clara County. This includes:

    • Main Campus: The primary academic and administrative hub.
    • South Campus: Facilities related to athletics and additional programs.
    • Other Sites: Locations hosting university programs within the greater San José area.

    

    SJSU is also located at the Moss Landing Marine Laboratories in Monterey County. A separate Campus Master Plan will be prepared for Moss Landing Marine Laboratories.

• Why is it important to do a Campus Master Plan?

  • The Campus Master Plan is an essential tool in defining the physical potential future of the SJSU. The information captured in this document align strategy, direction and allocation of resources to strengthen essential functions.

     
    SJSU plays an important role in the City of San Jose and Santa Clara County.  The university functions in a number of ways: as a university to the community, as a hub for vibrant student life, as a nexus for industry-defining faculty scholarship, as a catalyst for change in downtown San José, and to the continued success of Silicon Valley.  

    
    It is important to set goals for its public spaces, its accessibility, its functionality, and flexibility. The Campus Master Plan and the capital funding proposals it will help define opportunities to rebuild and renew the campus physical environment so that it that can succeed on all these fronts.

• When was the last Campus Master Plan done?

  • The last Campus Master Plan was written in 2001 [pdf]. The campus, downtown San José, and Silicon Valley have changed dramatically in the time since and so will the university's strategies to grow and develop in the next twenty years.

    The most recent Facilities Development Plan was written in 2017 [pdf]. The projects that it addresses are in different stages of completion from planning through construction.

• How does this relate to Transformation 2030?

  • The Strategic Plan for SJSU, Transformation 2030, was developed through a comprehensive and collaborative effort with many stakeholders on campus. The Campus Master Plan will build on the vision for the next 20 years and beyond. The goals below are from the latest official iteration of the Strategic Plan and are subject to change following the results of the April 2023 Campus Values Summit hosted by President Cynthia Teniente-Matson.

    Goals and Outcomes

    Engage and Educate: Attract unique and exceptional students, faculty, and staff to actively engage in a teaching, learning, and research environment supporting their interests as creators, innovators, change agents, and champions of the social good in a diverse and changing world.

    Excel and Lead: Be an academic institution recognized for the leadership contributions of its faculty, staff, students, and alumni to addressing important challenges in our fields of study and in the regional and global communities in which all SJSU community members serve.

    Grow and Thrive: Be an inclusive, welcoming, and caring university community that attracts, retains and sustains faculty, staff members, and students.

    Connect and Contribute: Be an impactful and dynamic urban university with strong connections locally and globally.

    Rebuild and Renew: Be a flourishing, downtown campus with modern infrastructure, campus spaces, technology and effective process infrastructure to support a growing university community.

• How does this relate to other campus related planning?

  • 

    A Campus Master Plan is a document that illustrates existing and anticipated facilities necessary to accommodate a specified enrollment at an estimated target date or planning horizon. It is the physical representation of how a campus will implement its Academic and Strategic Plans (Transformation 2030). This Campus Master Plan is focused on those campus facilities in Santa Clara County including the Main Campus and South Campus.

    Related to this work are other studies, including, but not limited to the following:

    • Utilities and Infrastructure Plans
    • Housing Plans
    • Sustainability and Energy Plans
    • Landscape Master Plan
    • Transportation Plans
    • Campus Design Standards
• It looks like my program is being replaced with a new building. Where willexisting programs be moved?

  • SJSU understands the importance of continuity in academic and administrative programs. The Campus Master Plan is a guide for future growth and addresses programming at a high level. It is not a document that makes relocation decisions immediately.

    Programming will not be relocated until after the university commits to capital funding proposals. Once projects are funded, transition plans will be made to ensure minimal disruption to students, faculty, and staff. Careful consideration was given to phasing to minimize the relocation of programs into temporary facilities. Updates regarding relocation plans will be communicated well in advance, and affected departments will receive direct support during the transition process.

• Will there be increased traffic and parking Issues?

  • SJSU is committed to minimizing traffic congestion by working closely with the City of San José’s Department of Transportation to improve traffic and parking for multiple modes of travel in addition to ongoing and current efforts to encourage use of public transportation and alternative and sustainable methods of travel.

    The Campus Master Plan includes multiple supporting strategies for reducing vehicle traffic such as expanding bicycle infrastructure, promoting carpooling and ridesharing, and encouraging the use of public transit. Due to the dense urban context of the campus in downtown San José, the high cost of construction (especially for parking), and the existence of three campus garages, there is not much more space for new parking. There is currently an existing overflow parking and connecting shuttle at South Campus. 

• Will there be tall buildings?

  • The SJSU campus is an urban campus in a neighborhood with existing downtown mid to high-rise character and SJSU is limited to the small footprint of the campus perimeter. While SJSU is state-owned property not under the jurisdiction of local development controls, the surrounding neighborhood is subject to the City of San José's Downtown development plan which calls for greater density, increased housing, and efficient use of limited downtown land through higher buildings. SJSU embraces the downtown nature of the surrounding urban context and new buildings will have to rise to match this evolving urban landscape.

    To accommodate future enrollment and staffing growth, the campus must physically grow by building efficiently and taller given the limited land we have. The design guidelines in the Campus Master Plan are written to encourage new building design to maintain a sense of human scale at the base of buildings and to be designed to be visually appealing.

• Will we lose any open spaces?

  • By building taller buildings and reconfiguring campus grounds to be more efficiently used, the Campus Master Plan will increase the amount of open outdoors space on Main Campus by up to 5 acres. The configuration and design of open spaces is an integral part of the Campus Master Plan and the placement of new buildings and the design of the ground floor will help activate and enhance public open spaces at both Main and South Campuses. This focus on enhancing outdoor spaces supports an equitable approach to developing our future campus grounds and supporting varying student, faculty and staff needs and uses.