There is a certain parcel of land in San Jose that is one of the last remaining orchards in Silicon Valley. It is soon to become home to a big-box retail stores on property with a tainted environmental past.
The strip of land, off Highway 85 and Cottle Road, sits right next to IBM's first home where it built the company's first disc drives.
Valley historian Michael Malone said in the 1970s, the site became a target of lawsuits because of toxic waste.
"Especially toxic pollution to make chips, and clean them, and wash them off," Malone said.
As a result of the toxic leaks, the tech industry has become much cleaner, spending tens of billions of dollars on new ways to clean up the mess.
But no matter its past, its future is clear.
The site will become home to a Target, a Safeway and other retailers in the coming months.
Local
Construction is supposed to begin in early 2013.
