Cupertino City Council Vallco Development Agreement Approval 2025: What Actually Happened?

There was no new Cupertino City Council Vallco Development Agreement approval in 2025. The formal Vallco Development Agreement was approved in 2018 and repealed in 2019; the major 2025 action involving The Rise was a separate SB 35 modification application.

Several major actions involving the former Vallco Mall site have occurred over the years, and they are easy to confuse. In addition to the original Development Agreement, Cupertino and Vallco Property Owner reached a separate impact-fee settlement in 2024, and Sand Hill Property Company submitted a major SB 35 modification for The Rise in 2025.

This page explains what Cupertino actually approved, what was later repealed, and how the 2024 settlement and 2025 Rise modification relate to the current redevelopment.

Did Cupertino City Council Approve a Vallco Development Agreement?

Yes — in 2018.

In September 2018, the Cupertino City Council considered a package of legislative actions connected with the proposed Vallco Town Center Specific Plan.

Those actions included:

A General Plan amendment
The Vallco Town Center Specific Plan
Zoning changes
Municipal Code changes
A Development Agreement between the City of Cupertino and Vallco Property Owner LLC

The City Council approved the Development Agreement ordinance on a 3-2 vote as part of the broader Vallco Specific Plan process.

A second reading of the ordinance followed in October 2018.

What Was the Vallco Development Agreement?

A development agreement is a contractual agreement between a local government and a property owner that can establish development rights, responsibilities, public benefits and other terms governing a major project over a specified period.

The Vallco agreement was connected to the approximately 50-acre former shopping mall property near Stevens Creek Boulevard and Wolfe Road.

The Development Agreement was associated with the Vallco Town Center Specific Plan rather than the separate SB 35 project that ultimately became The Rise.

That distinction is important because the Vallco property had multiple development processes moving through Cupertino at roughly the same time.

Was the 2018 Vallco Development Agreement Ever Implemented?

No. The City Council repealed it in 2019.

After the 2018 approvals, referendum petitions were filed challenging several of the Council’s actions involving the Vallco Specific Plan.

The petitions gathered sufficient signatures to qualify.

On May 7, 2019, the Cupertino City Council repealed:

The Vallco General Plan Amendment
The Vallco Town Center Specific Plan
The associated Development Agreement

The repeal meant that version of the Vallco Specific Plan and its Development Agreement would not move forward.

The 2018 Development Agreement therefore should not be confused with the approval framework governing The Rise Cupertino and Town Square West today.

How Is The Rise Different from the 2018 Vallco Specific Plan?

The current The Rise redevelopment traces its entitlement path primarily through California’s SB 35 streamlined housing process.

The Vallco SB 35 project was approved ministerially in September 2018, separately from the legislative Vallco Specific Plan and Development Agreement process.

That distinction continues to matter because The Rise has subsequently gone through a series of SB 35 modifications rather than relying on the repealed 2018 Development Agreement.

The current approved Rise project includes approximately 2,669 homes, including affordable housing, along with office space, retail and public open space.

What Happened Between Cupertino and Vallco in 2024?

Another agreement was reached in July 2024, but it was not the same type of agreement as the repealed 2018 Development Agreement.

The City of Cupertino and Vallco Property Owner reached a Settlement Agreement regarding development impact fees associated with The Rise.

The agreement addressed development-impact-fee issues involving the project and became another important part of the more recent Rise approval history.

It is important to distinguish that settlement from the original Vallco Development Agreement. They were separate agreements involving different issues and different stages of the project.

What Happened With Vallco and The Rise in 2025?

The major 2025 event was not a new City Council Development Agreement approval.

On November 22, 2025, Sand Hill Property Company submitted a third modification application for The Rise under SB 35.

The modification maintained the overall project at approximately 2,669 homes while changing several parts of the project program, including office space, retail space, affordable housing and site-planning details.

The revised project included approximately:

2,669 total homes
356 affordable homes
Approximately 1.475 million square feet of office space
Approximately 226,600 square feet of retail space

The 2025 modification also incorporated changes associated with the project's evolving implementation and previously approved agreements.

This was an SB 35 modification application, not a traditional discretionary Development Agreement considered and approved by the City Council.

Did Cupertino City Council Approve The Rise in 2025?

Not in the sense suggested by the search phrase “Cupertino City Council Vallco development agreement approval 2025.”

The Rise is being processed primarily as an SB 35 project, and the City identifies the project as proceeding through a ministerial approval process.

Ministerial approvals differ from discretionary development approvals because qualifying projects are evaluated against applicable statutory requirements and objective standards rather than being approved or denied through a conventional City Council discretionary vote.

The 2025 third modification was reviewed through that SB 35 framework.

What Happened After the 2025 Modification Application?

The third major Rise modification was approved by the City on February 27, 2026.

The project then continued moving through additional implementation stages during 2026.

Those milestones have included subdivision and infrastructure work, the Phase 1 Final Map process and a subsequent Partial Plan Modification involving Blocks 1 and 2.

On August 24, 2026, Cupertino approved Modification Application #4 for Blocks 1 and 2. That approval focused primarily on parking, access, loading and building implementation details while leaving the residential unit counts unchanged at 235 homes in Block 1 and 258 homes in Block 2.

For the latest chronology, visit my The Rise Cupertino LIVE Updates page.

What Is the Difference Between a Development Agreement and an SB 35 Approval?

This is one of the reasons Vallco’s history can be confusing.

A traditional Development Agreement is a negotiated contractual arrangement between a city and a property owner. It can establish development rights, obligations and public benefits and generally requires legislative action.

SB 35 provides a separate streamlined approval process for qualifying housing developments that meet applicable statutory requirements and objective standards.

The 2018 Vallco Specific Plan Development Agreement belonged to the first category.

The current Rise project proceeds primarily through the second.

That is why statements such as “City Council approved The Rise Development Agreement in 2025” combine several different parts of Vallco’s history into one event that did not actually occur.

Vallco and The Rise Approval Timeline

September 2018: Cupertino City Council approves the Vallco Town Center Specific Plan and associated Development Agreement.
September 21, 2018: The separate Vallco SB 35 housing project receives ministerial approval.
May 7, 2019: City Council repeals the Vallco Specific Plan, related General Plan amendment and Development Agreement following voter referendum petitions.
June 2022: Cupertino approves a major SB 35 modification to the project that became The Rise.
February 2024: Cupertino approves another major SB 35 modification.
July 2024: Cupertino and Vallco Property Owner reach a separate Settlement Agreement concerning development impact fees.
November 22, 2025: Sand Hill Property Company submits the third SB 35 modification application for The Rise.
February 27, 2026: Cupertino approves the third major modification.
July 2026: Phase 1 subdivision and Final Map work continue through the City process.
August 24, 2026: Cupertino approves Modification Application #4, a Partial Plan Modification affecting Blocks 1 and 2.

Why Does This History Matter to Cupertino Homeowners and Buyers?

The distinction may sound technical, but it matters when evaluating what is actually approved at the former Vallco Mall site.

A City Council vote, a Development Agreement, an SB 35 approval, a settlement agreement, a subdivision map, a planning modification and a building permit all represent different steps in the development process.

For buyers interested in future homes at The Rise, the milestones that increasingly matter are implementation-related: building permits, vertical construction, identification of specific ownership buildings, floor plans, parking, HOA structures, pricing and the eventual public sales release.

The 2018 political and planning history explains how the project arrived here, but it should not be mistaken for the current approval structure governing The Rise.

What Is Town Square West?

Town Square West is the first major phase of The Rise.

It is currently planned for 1,369 homes, including:

393 planned for-sale homes
744 market-rate rental homes
232 affordable family rental homes

Town Square West is only part of the larger 2,669-home Rise redevelopment.

For a complete buyer-oriented explanation, visit my The Rise Cupertino and Town Square West guide.

Frequently Asked Questions

Did Cupertino approve a Vallco Development Agreement?

Yes. Cupertino City Council approved a Development Agreement associated with the Vallco Town Center Specific Plan in 2018. The Council later repealed that agreement in May 2019 following successful voter referendum petitions.

Was there a new Vallco Development Agreement approved in 2025?

No. The major 2025 action was the submission of the third SB 35 modification application for The Rise. It was not a new City Council Development Agreement approval.

What was the 2024 Vallco agreement?

In July 2024, the City of Cupertino and Vallco Property Owner reached a Settlement Agreement concerning development impact fees for The Rise. That agreement was separate from the repealed 2018 Vallco Development Agreement.

Did the 2019 repeal stop development of the Vallco site?

No. The repeal stopped the 2018 Vallco Specific Plan and its associated Development Agreement from moving forward, but a separate SB 35 project had already been approved. That project subsequently evolved into The Rise.

How many homes are currently planned at The Rise?

The current project includes approximately 2,669 homes overall. Town Square West, the first major phase, is planned for 1,369 homes.

Is The Rise approved by City Council?

The Rise primarily proceeds through California’s SB 35 ministerial approval process rather than a conventional discretionary City Council approval process.

Official Sources and Continuing Coverage

This history is based on City of Cupertino records covering the Vallco Town Center Specific Plan, the 2018 Development Agreement and referendum process, the 2024 Vallco impact-fee Settlement Agreement and the current Rise SB 35 project record.

For my continuing buyer-oriented coverage, see:

Updated September 9, 2026. Development approvals, permits and project plans can change. This article distinguishes the historical Vallco Specific Plan Development Agreement from the separate SB 35 approvals governing The Rise.