The Alameda

I began photographing The Alameda soon after moving to San José in 2002, and over time it became one of the places I returned to most often. The corridor between Mission Santa Clara and downtown is more than a route through the city: historic buildings, old businesses, homes, transportation, and small neighborhood details all sit alongside one another, constantly changing while still retaining a recognizable character.

During the pandemic I began looking at The Alameda even more closely. With the streets quieter, familiar places felt different, and ordinary moments—holiday decorations, an empty street, a storefront, a neighborhood tradition—became part of a larger record of an unusual period. Earlier photographs from 2002 and later visits now sit together, allowing changes that once seemed gradual to become much easier to see.

This collection brings those photographs together as a portrait of a neighborhood over time. The galleries move between architecture and everyday life, from the old salvage yard and Diridon area to Halloween, Christmas morning, and other scenes encountered while walking the corridor. Taken together, they are less about documenting every building than about noticing the details that give The Alameda its identity and recording what happens to them as the neighborhood continues to change.