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SAN JOSE – The developers of San Jose's Santana Row residential and retail complex have announced a new grand opening date for the mixed-use development that was devastated by fire earlier this month. 

Retailers in seven of Santana Row's buildings plan to be open for business on Nov. 7.  

Santana Row was originally slated to open on Sept. 19, one month to the day after the 11-alarm fire destroyed a number of residential units, a few retail shops and parking lots. 

Developers say they are working through the issues associated with the impact of the fire and have a goal to open as much of the retail space in the damaged building as soon as possible. 

“In light of last week's fire, the November 7 opening demonstrates our steadfast commitment to making Santana Row rewarding and successful for the community, our tenants and our shareholders,” said Steven Guttman, chairman and CEO of Federal Realty,  

“Words cannot express our appreciation for the outpouring of support from the city of San Jose, surrounding neighborhoods, merchants and future residents during the past week.” 

The damaged building contained 18 percent of the retail space and 940 retail parking spaces. 

Developers said all of the residential units in the building, which were still under construction and scheduled to be completed beginning in January 2003 were destroyed. 

One thing firefighters, law enforcement, city officials and Federal Realty representatives are all grateful for is that no one was killed or injured in the fire that was one of the largest in San Jose's history. 

“We are grateful that this fire didn't result in any loss of life and that it was contained to one building,'' Guttman said. 

The Maryland-based Federal Realty Investment Trust specializes in the ownership, management, development and redevelopment of shopping centers and street retail properties. The trust currently owns and operates about 15 million square feet of retail space in major metropolitan areas across the country. 

Santana Row was designed as a groundbreaking facility combining a vibrant and diverse mix of shopping, dining, entertainment and living. The completed complex was slated to include a state-of-the-art movie theater, a 213-room hotel, three-level executive villas, a farmer's market, landscaped parks and plazas, 36 retail shops, several restaurants and 246 townhomes, flats and lofts. 

So far officials have not determined the cause and have not tallied a damage estimate. A $5,000 reward has been offered for information about the cause of the fire.