Building permits have been filed for the first 232 homes at The Rise at Town Square West, the redevelopment of the former Vallco Mall site in Cupertino. It is the first concrete construction milestone on a project that has been in planning since 2014, and it matters to anyone tracking Cupertino condos for sale or watching new construction in the 95014 zip code. Here is what has actually been approved, what is being built first, and what it means if you are buying or selling nearby.
What Is The Rise at Town Square West?
The Rise is the redevelopment of the former Vallco Mall site in Cupertino, with Town Square West representing the first major phase of the project. The development is being led by Sand Hill Property Company, with Eden Housing involved in the affordable-housing component. Located off North Wolfe Road between Interstate 280 and Stevens Creek Boulevard, the former Vallco site sits roughly a mile from Apple Park and represents one of the most significant redevelopment projects underway in Cupertino.
The Town Square West program includes:
- Approximately 200,000 square feet of retail and dining
- More than three acres of public parks and gathering space
- Integrated residential buildings rather than a separated housing block
- A street-level layout built around walking, not the mall parking apron it replaces
Vallco Mall opened in the 1970s, declined through the 2000s, and was demolished after Sand Hill acquired the property. A 2018 approval under California's SB 35 streamlining law cleared a substantially larger program on the site — roughly 2,400 homes, half of them deed-restricted affordable, alongside office and retail. The project has since been modified, and Town Square West is now moving forward as the first major phase within The Rise.
The First 232 Homes Are Rental, Not For Sale
This is the detail most coverage skips, and it is the one that matters most if you came here searching for a condo to buy. The initial 232 homes are affordable rental units developed with Eden Housing, restricted to low-income and very low-income households, with roughly half designed as family-sized two- and three-bedroom residences. The City of Cupertino will oversee the rental application process. None of these units will appear on the MLS, and none of them can be purchased.
That does not make the milestone irrelevant to buyers — it makes it a leading indicator. Affordable housing construction is moving ahead first, while Town Square West is planned to include 393 for-sale homes in addition to its rental housing. Those ownership homes are not currently available for purchase, and pricing, floor plans and a public sales timeline have not been announced. Buyers interested in them can follow the latest milestones in my The Rise Cupertino Live Updates.
What It Means for Cupertino Property Values Nearby
Mixed-use development with retail, dining, and public open space is generally associated with stronger buyer demand in the surrounding blocks, and Cupertino has very little walkable commercial density outside of Main Street and the Stevens Creek corridor. Homes within walking distance of Town Square West stand to gain an amenity base they currently lack.
The honest counterweight: multi-year construction on a site this size means years of truck traffic, road work, and noise for the nearest streets, and added housing supply is added supply. Sellers within a few blocks may find the story sells well before the construction does. If you are weighing a sale near the site, the timing question is worth a specific conversation rather than a general assumption.
Why Cupertino Stays Competitive Regardless
The fundamentals that drive this market are unchanged by any single project. Cupertino Union and Fremont Union High School District ratings continue to anchor family demand — see the Cupertino school district guide for boundary details. Apple Park and the surrounding campuses concentrate high-income employment within a short commute. Buildable land is effectively exhausted, which is precisely why a 50-acre former mall site became the city's central planning question in the first place.
What The Rise changes is the shape of future supply, not the scarcity underneath it. For a market where the 95014 median has run well above $3 million with single-digit days on market, several hundred future units spread across a decade is a meaningful addition without being a correction.
What Cupertino Condo Buyers Should Do Now
If attached product in Cupertino is the goal, the inventory that exists today is the inventory to work with. City Center Cupertino offers the closest thing to the walkable, amenity-adjacent living that Town Square West is promising, already built and trading. Rancho Rinconada remains the most accessible entry point into the city for buyers priced out of the detached market. For the full picture on the zip code, including how the development pipeline fits together, see the 95014 real estate and development guide.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is The Rise at Town Square West in Cupertino?
The Rise is the redevelopment of the former Vallco Mall site in Cupertino, and Town Square West is its first major phase. The project combines housing, retail, public open space and other uses on the former Vallco property, with Sand Hill Property Company leading the redevelopment and Eden Housing involved in the affordable-housing component.
Are the 232 homes at The Rise condos for sale?
No. The first 232 homes are affordable rental units developed with Eden Housing and restricted to low-income and very low-income households, with the City of Cupertino overseeing the application process. They will not be listed on the MLS. Town Square West is planned to include 393 for-sale homes, but those ownership units are not currently available for purchase and no public pricing or sales timeline has been announced.
When will construction start at The Rise?
Building permits for the first 232 homes have been filed, and construction is expected to begin by the end of 2026. Timelines on a project of this size shift, and this one has already moved several times since the site was acquired in 2014, so treat any start date as provisional until vertical construction is visible.
What happened to Vallco Mall in Cupertino?
Vallco opened in the 1970s, lost its anchor tenants through the 2000s and 2010s, and was demolished after Sand Hill Property Company assembled the property. The roughly 50-acre site off North Wolfe Road is now being redeveloped as The Rise, with Town Square West moving forward as its first major phase.
Will The Rise affect Cupertino home values?
Walkable retail, dining, and public open space are generally associated with stronger demand in surrounding blocks, and Cupertino currently has little of that density outside Main Street and Stevens Creek Boulevard. The offsetting factors are years of construction disruption for the closest streets and the eventual addition of housing supply. The effect depends heavily on how close a specific property sits to the site.
Where should Cupertino condo buyers look right now?
City Center Cupertino is the closest existing equivalent to what Town Square West is promising, and Rancho Rinconada remains the most accessible entry point for buyers priced out of detached homes. Because Cupertino attached inventory is thin and moves quickly, buyers generally do better working a standing search than waiting for a future phase with no announced date.
Work With a Local Cupertino Real Estate Expert
Bruce Wagg, DRE #01760054 with Keller Williams Elevate, brings 20 years of Bay Area experience to buyers and sellers across Cupertino and the South Bay. Development timelines move, phases get reordered, and the difference between a project that breaks ground and one that gets re-entitled is worth knowing before you time a purchase or a sale around it.
Call (669) 202-7777 to talk through what The Rise means for a specific address, or to set up a search for Cupertino condos and homes as they come to market. Learn more about Bruce Wagg.
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