# MOUNTAIN VIEW | Google Headquarters | U/C



## Johannes867 (Oct 29, 2007)

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Didn`t found a thread about it, so discussion might start right here:

http://www.mercurynews.com/ci_18011875?nclick_check=1



> Google to build its own office space
> 
> By Mike Swift
> 
> ...


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## Сталин (Dec 29, 2011)

http://www.latimes.com/business/tec...google-campus-planned-20130222,0,499015.story










Also I think the thread name should be changed to Googleplex because that is the name of the real complex.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Googleplex


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## DaveThompson (Feb 26, 2013)

Think may because they needed their staffs to feel comfortable and wanted to get away from the city.


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## qiensa (Mar 1, 2013)

I was very pleased to find this site.I wanted to thank you for this great read!! I definitely enjoying every little bit of it and I have you bookmarked to check out new stuff you post.


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## Talbot (Jul 13, 2004)

Interesting looking complex. I wish I could work for Google!


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## Сталин (Dec 29, 2011)

Talbot said:


> Interesting looking complex. I wish I could work for Google!


 Same, their HQ is just so far away from me! hno:


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## Atmosphere (Mar 15, 2009)

Final (?) renderings are out :banana:

http://www.mercurynews.com/business...osphere-like-mountain-view-headquarters-plans


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## desertpunk (Oct 12, 2009)

*Here's Google's Plan for Its Futuristic, Robot-Assisted Glassy New Campus*












> Google is proposing a vision for a new campus that completely reinvents the concept of office space. Today the company submitted a master plan for the development of Mountain View's Bayshore District and the construction of its new headquarters to city officials. According to the Silicon Valley Business Journal, which was given an advance look at the plans, Google intends to construct four transformable structures draped in glass canopies on land it already owns in North Bayshore, an office park neighborhood sitting around Highway 101 and the San Francisco Bay. Walls, floors, and ceilings inside the structures would all attach to steel frames but would be movable, allowing workspaces to change size and shape easily and regularly as needed. Starchitects Bjarke Ingels of BIG and Thomas Heatherwick of Heatherwick Studios have joined forces to lead the design of the headquarters.
> 
> In addition to the four innovative structures, Google's master plan imagines a campus filled with nature and open in some sections to the public. Walking trails, plazas, and community gardens would sit among natural wetlands and oak woodlands. At least one Google building would be open to the public to walk through as part of a pedestrian trail. The plan would completely reengineer the area, adding 2.5 million square feet of net new office space, enough for more than 12,000 new workers.
> 
> [...]


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## hateman (May 8, 2013)

Very dubious about this concept, and dubious about their choices. They should just honestly say, "We picked the two hottest names in big money starchitecture today." They're cramming everything under that glass tent: environmental sensitivity and remediation, urban density and liveliness, reconfigurability, etc. But it's still unavoidably reliant on suburban sprawl infrastructure.

If Google wanted urban density, liveliness, community integration, and environmental sensitivity, they'd build in an urban environment, period. I actually think Foster and Apple's project is better, at least it isn't trying to be something it isn't or can't be, but rather refining the suburban office park model to the architecture of the Marin County Civic Center's level.


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## Atmosphere (Mar 15, 2009)

Good point hateman, I agree.


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## Slartibartfas (Aug 15, 2006)

^ I do agree with hatemen, up to some point. I really prefer the open approach of Google over the fortress approach of Apple. I am skeptical about the aim of turning this pedestrian hostile suburbanity into something urban like but if Google makes its campus not a giant barrier but allows various ways for cyclists and pedestrians through this campus, this is a real benefit for the whole neighbourhood. Apple does the opposite. It took a a mega block and fused it with even more blocks to form an even larger barrier for everything and everyone. 

Another thing that seems to be way superior of the google approach is its modularity. There is not one huge building but there are clusters of buildings. That is certainly a much more flexible and better working alternative to one monolithic giant. Of course, also Apple has a phase 2 plan, but while Google could redraw its expansion without damaging the concept much in the case of Apples HQ the Phase 2 buildings look some ill-fitted to the original monolith.

So we will see how these two concepts work out in the end. 

I just imagine what these companies could achieve in terms of HQ campus quality if they looked for some rusty brown site in relatively central urban location. Such a major site could create a company campus in an urban environment. It might be able to make use of some of the old building structure as well, which could improve the overall atmosphere and sense of belonging of the place. ... well, but there is probably a bit of a short supply of this in Silicon valley.


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## HulkRogan (Mar 8, 2015)

Google sure has a budget for these kind of things...


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## blacktrojan3921 (Sep 6, 2010)

Very interesting; considering that the Economist pointed out something foreboding about this project: http://www.economist.com/news/busin...om?fsrc=scn/fb/wl/pe/googledomeortempleofdoom



> MARC ANDREESSEN knows a thing or two about Silicon Valley’s penchant for status symbols and its braggadocio. As a venture capitalist and serial entrepreneur, he has helped turn more than a few minnows into high-tech giants. As an investor, he serves these days on the boards of Facebook and Hewlett-Packard, among others. Along with avoiding such cardinal sins as going public too soon and being too eager to cash out, Mr Andreessen is adamant that his charges must refrain, at all cost, from pouring huge sums into glamorous new headquarters.
> 
> Silicon Valley did not invent the edifice complex. The compulsion to build monuments to a ruler’s power and prestige has existed since history began. But flush with cash and with interest rates near zero, the Valley’s leading lights are now competing with each other over who can build the most lavish digs, to feed their corporate egos as well as to attract and retain talent.
> 
> .....


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## Riley1066 (Mar 7, 2013)

DaveThompson said:


> Think may because they needed their staffs to feel comfortable and wanted to get away from the city.


Google isn't in a city, its in a suburb.


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## towerpower123 (Feb 12, 2013)

Riley1066 said:


> Google isn't in a city, its in a suburb.


I wonder when they are going to learn that very few of their employees want anything at all to do with a suburb. They increasingly want to live in dense cities with good mass transit so they can live without a car (no fuel, repair, or maintanence costs) and walk to local destinations. The major tech firms have to run huge shuttle fleets to make up for it. :bash::bash::bash:


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## Kutsuit (Mar 2, 2011)

Atmosphere said:


> ..


Wow! I love it! Go Google! m))


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## phiss (Jul 30, 2014)

News :
http://www.mountainview.gov/depts/comdev/planning/activeprojects/charleston_east.asp



> In May 2015, Google Inc. submitted an application to construct a 2-level, 595,000 sq. ft. office building and remove 196 heritage trees on an 18.6-acre project site. This project is located in the North Bayshore Precise Plan area.
> 
> On March 7, 2017, the City Council approved the project


Project Plans : https://www.dropbox.com/s/rio79jt8ovv3ccg/Shoreline%20Blvd%20N%202000%20-%20Charleston%20East.pdf


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## DarkLite (Dec 31, 2004)

This is taking forever to go ahead. This surprises me because Google is sitting in a mountain of cash and can't even define what kind of headquarters they want.


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## Christi69 (Jan 1, 2009)

Maybe they should Google the web to get some inspirational designs?!!


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## Oasis-Bangkok (Apr 24, 2009)

Googleplex - Google Campus by Tony Shi, on Flickr










Googleplex - Google Campus by Tony Shi, on Flickr


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## WillBuild (Aug 11, 2010)

*Bay View is open — the first campus built by Google*




  









  








  








  







ArchDaily: Google Bay View / BIG + Heatherwick Studio



> Located on a 42-acre site at the NASA Ames Research Center in Silicon Valley, the Google Bay View Campus, consisting of three buildings, totals 1.1 million sq ft – including 20 acres of open space, two workspace buildings, a 1,000-person event center, and 240 short-term employee accommodation units. All three buildings are constructed as lightweight canopy structures optimized for interior daylight, views, collaboration, experiences, and activities. [..]
> 
> The Bay View Buildings are split across only two floors, with desks and team spaces on the upper level, and the amenity spaces below. A series of indoor “courtyards” throughout the buildings connect the two levels, giving teams easy access to cafes, kitchenettes, conference rooms, and all-hands spaces. [..]
> 
> ...


CNBC: Google opens new ‘Bay View’ campus that was designed for worker flexibility — here’s what it looks like

Washington Post: Google’s campus is trying the hardest, but can perks compete with WFH?


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## WillBuild (Aug 11, 2010)

Not far from the new Bayview Campus in Mountain View, CA, Google's terraced offices in Sunnyvale, CA are also taking shape:




























These are both massive construction projects. Flying somewhat under the radar.

Earlier article on this Sunnyvale campus:

*BIG and Google team up for terraced offices in Sunnyvale*


  






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