Apple is officially moving into San Jose.
The company received unanimous approval from the San Jose city council this week to develop on property it has leased in North San Jose for the next 15 years. The council approved Apple to build up to 4.15 million square feet of space, but what Apple plans to do with it is still a mystery.
Apple’s senior director of real estate development, Kristina Raspe, told the city council that the company still doesn’t have any firm plans on how the space will be used.
“The opportunity to purchase this site came very quickly to Apple,” said Raspe, according to a report from the Silicon Valley Business Journal. “It was something we jumped on without a firm plan. We’re still studying the site to determine the best use for us. At this point, it looks like it will be office and R&D.”
Photo: Silicon Valley Business Journal
Apple has flirted with moving to San Jose for nearly 30 years. Steve Jobs envisioned building offices in rural San Jose that incorporated the hills and trees with a tram type of connection between the hillside property and the property on the valley floor. The idea was derailed though when Steve was forced out of the company.
Despite not knowing what will ultimately happen on the site, the city of San Jose is viewing it as a big win. If Apple does build the maximum amount of office space, it could house up to 16,000 employees, which would actually be more than the new spaceship campus in Cupertino that will touchdown at the end of the year.
