In the commitment to provide affordable housing in the country, Google has filed a new proposal to create two new neighborhoods in northern Mountain View.
Based on the preliminary master plan for North Bayshore submitted by the search engine giant to city officials, the two new neighborhoods would have thousands of new homes alongside office and commercial spaces and a shared public area in the north of US Highway 101.
Google is planning to name the two new community development, "Shoebird" and "Joaquin. The 122-acre development areas are located north of the interchange of Highway 101 and Shoreline Boulevard.
The two new Google neighborhoods could also be beneficial to Silicon Valley and the general Bay Area communities, which economies are highly affected by the coronavirus pandemic.
The tech giant aims to get the city approval by the first quarter of 2022, after which the construction could begin after a year.
Biggest Residential Project
According to Google's development director Michael Tymoff, the new proposal includes creating at least 7,000 residential units in Mountain View. It would be a remarkable increase from the initial 5,760 homes Google proposed in 2019.
"The big changes in our latest proposal are in the residential program," Tymoff said, as reported by Mercury News.
"With the 7,000 homes that we would deliver, that would be the largest residential project in Mountain View's history, and the second-largest residential project in the Bay Area," he added.
The Google officer said this new proposal is an opportunity to fulfill their vision to build 15,000 homes in their land.
"North Bayshore will go a long way to contribute to that goal. The 1,400 affordable homes would more than double the number of affordable homes that exist in Mountain View today," Tymoff explained.
Other Proposal Details
Aside from the 7,000 new homes, Google's preliminary proposal also includes the following:
At least 20 percent or 1,400 of the total 7,000 new homes would have an affordable payment scheme.
The new neighborhood will have a total of 3.1 million square feet of office space. 1.8 million square feet will replace the existing offices, while the other 1.3 million square feet for new office spaces.
Non-profit and non-governmental organizations will be given a community space with a total of 20,000 square feet.
265,000 square feet would be allotted to retail and restaurant spaces. A grocery store is also expected to rise in the neighborhood.
Commercial Space
Tymoff explained that Google included retail spaces to provide the essential goods and services that the community needs on a daily basis. The goal is to reduce vehicle tris and lessen the need to go out of the city for grocery shopping.
While Google will develop the office spaces, Australia-based developer and general contractor Lendlease will be the one to design, develop, and deliver the residential units and retail buildings.
"We look forward to delivering a thoughtfully designed, mixed-use community, including much-needed new residences and abundant greenscape, benefitting anyone who chooses North Bayshore as their home or destination," said Andrew Chappell, Lendlease head of development Mountain View and Sunnyvale.
