Neighborhood Meeting to Discuss Draper University

The city of San Mateo will hold a neighborhood meeting Tuesday night to discuss the transformation of the Ben Franklin Hotel into a school for entrepreneurs.

The site, a downtown landmark, is set to become the Draper University after prominent Silicon Valley venture capitalist Tim Draper purchased the property in April and sketched out his plans for the long-vacant hotel.

At the university, student ages are projected to be 21-24 years of age, with four 10-week sessions to take place during the year, according to the city of San Mateo's website.

Students will live on site. The upper floors will be used as boarding rooms for students, school offices and boarding rooms on the second floor, and the ground floor used a tenant space and meeting and classroom facilitites. The penthouse will be used as a meeting room.

The neighborhood meeding is scheduled for Tuesday, Feb. 7 at 7 p.m. at the project site, located at 36 East Third Ave. In addition, a Planning Commission Study Session is scheduled for Feb. 28. No action will be taken at the study session.

According to a recent article in the San Jose Mercury News, the rejuvenation of the hotel, which opened in the 1920s but has been vacant since 2003, will be a "boon" for downtown San Mateo.

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