Almaden Valley

Almaden is located in South San Jose, with the zip code of 95120.  It is situated between Santa Teresa and Los Gatos, at the base of the Santa Cruz Mountains.  Mount Umunhum is situated high upon the Santa Cruz Mountains.  Almaden is a beautiful area, with rolling hills, lush landscaping, and beautiful tree lined streets. 

The name "Almaden Valley" comes from the New Almaden Quicksilver Mines, that, in turn, was named after Mercury Mines.  The mine produced mercury during the Gold Rush.  The Almaden Quicksilver Mine was later turned into Quicksilver County Park.
 
Almaden is considered a middle to upper middle class neighborhood.  It is a multi-cultural area and approximately 37,000 people call Almaden home.  The American Cancer Society has hosted their Relay for Life event at Leland High School and there is an annual Almaden Valley Art and Wine Festival held at the Lake Almaden park.  Almaden Expressway is popular with cyclists and the Las Alamitos and Calero Creek trails are very popular trails for walking, running, and biking.  The Almaden Quicksilver Park also provides many miles of hiking, biking, and equestrian trails to explore.  Residents also get involved by picking up litter in parks and along the roadside to keep it clean.
 
Almaden Valley schools are high performing schools and over 90% of the students graduate high school and go on to college.  The schools in Almaden have consistently produced strong test scores on standardized tests year after year, with many being recognized as National Blue Ribbon and California Distinguished Schools.
 
The city of San Jose has grown and expanded over the last 20 years.  There are many more transportation opportunities available.  Almaden Valley is serviced by Santa Clara VTA bus, paratransit, and light rail systems.  A light rail station is located at the northern border of Almaden Valley, near Coleman Rd. and Winfield Blvd., across from Almaden Lake Park.  Local freeways nearby include Interstates 280, 680, 880, U.S. Route 101, State Routes 17, 82, 85, 87, 130, and 237.  Local airports include the San Jose International Airport, San Francisco International Airport, and Oakland International Airport.
 
Homes in Almaden include condominiums, townhomes, single family home, and custom built homes.  The prices generally range from $500,000 - $5,000,000.

The climate in most of the San Jose Bay Area has a Subtropical Mediterranean climate. San Jose typically has over 300 days of sunshine annually. The annual rain totals are approx 14.4” per year in the city itself. The Evergreen area gets considerably more. The city is located inland and is surrounded by mountains on 3 sides. The local mountains (list) do get a dusting of snow during the winter months but it is rare.

While San Jose has a large concentration of high-technology engineering, computer, and microprocessor companies the Almaden Valley has no major companies located within the immediate area. Some of the major employers in San Jose include County of Santa Clara, Cisco Systems, City of San Jose, San Jose State University, Brocade Communications Systems, eBay, Hitachi, Kaiser Permanente, and Adobe Systems.