Facebook is back at it. Just days after the social media giant celebrated the grand opening of their new Frank Gehry designed campus, they submitted a request to the city for approval of two additional office buildings at the 58 acre site they purchased from TE Connectivity last year.
In a letter written to the city last week, Facebook's Director of Campus Facilities, Fergus O'Shea, stated, "We believe our project will positively transform this part of Menlo Park by converting a heavy-industrial site into a vibrant campus that fosters collaboration and innovation". These two new office buildings - also designed by Frank Gehry - would total 985,719 square feet. and according to Facebook officials would have a similar look, feel, and height to their new campus.
Facebook's new campus with rooftop park. The main headquarters can be seen across the street.
The new campus has a nine-acre rooftop park, complete with 400 trees that can be seen in the skyline as you drive by the facility. Another building like that would certainly be an aesthetic improvement from the industrial facade of the TE Connectivity building. Should the new buildings be approved, Facebook will demolish 9 of the existing buildings at the site.
Although this proposal is still awaiting approval, Facebook is already at work transforming the site. In December of last year, they received approval from the city to convert an existing 184,460 square foot warehouse into office space. This building is projected to be completed sometime in 2016.
But wait, there's more! In addition to the two office buildings, Facebook is also proposing to build a new bridge over Bayfront Expressway for pedestrians and bicyclists, green space, and a 200-room "limited service" hotel that covers 120,000 square feet at the corner of Chilco Street and Bayfront Expressway.
These proposals come shortly after Facebook reached out to Menlo Park officials expressing interest in bringing more housing and retail to the neighboring Belle Haven community, as well as activating the Dumbarton rail corridor - all of which are improvements that would benefit not only their employees, but Belle Haven residents as well.
Facebook has been receiving a lot of praise from city officials for being the model "corporate citizen", and going above and beyond the public services mandated as a condition of their continued development. And it's true - Facebook is clearly conscious of the strain their rapid growth is putting on housing market in the surrounding communities. It is part of the reason why they are helping fund the construction of a 394-unit apartment complex near their headquarters, and why they are offering to help bring thousands of additional housing units in the future.
It will be interesting to see what the Belle Haven community looks like a few years from now. If Facebook delivers on even half of what they've suggested to the city, the area will be undergoing a serious transformation.
A graphic of what the Belle Haven community could look like in the future. Areas highlighted in blue are Facebook owned territories. Image provided by City of Menlo Park
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