Plans Reviewed for Massive Google Middlefield Park, Mountain View, Santa Clara County

Development plans are under review for a mixed-use Google Middlefield Park master plan in Mountain View, Santa Clara County. Google’s proposal brings up to 1,950 apartments, retail, 10.5 acres of parkland, and over a million square feet of offices with transit-oriented planning. The development possible after the city adopted its East Whisman Precise Plan in 2019. Google is working with Lendlease to develop the project and is expecting completion as late as 2040.

Conceptual renderings of the public space and housing for the Middlefield Park Google Masterplan, image courtesy Google

The master planning is being led by SERA Architects, with Hassell Studios in charge of urban design. For housing, there could be between 1,675 and 1,950 apartments. Roughly twenty percent will be sold as affordable below market-rate. Units will range in size from studios to three-bedrooms.

Along with housing, there could be as much as 1.3 million square feet of office space, adding 654,000 square feet more than what exists on site. Google has stated they are exploring the possible use of mass timber in construction, following the industry trend to diversify materials. The offices will be connected to 100% renewable energy and expect to receive the LEED Platinum certification.

Google Middlefield Park proposed phases and plan, image courtesy Google

CMG will be managing the landscape architecture, of which there will be a lot; 10.5 acres of public parkland. The primary recreation space will be Ellis Park and Maude Park. Ellis Park is a narrow greenway connecting the Valley Transit Authority (VTA) Middlefield Station with the core Maude Park plaza. The central 1.3-acre space will be lined with indoor-outdoor dining and community spaces. There will be a total of 30,000 square feet of retail across the master plan, as well as three miles of public pathways for walking and cycling.

The Mountain View city council adopted the East Whisman Precise Plan in late 2019 to achieve housing and commercial land use goals outlined in the 2030 General Plan. The East Whisman area is considered to be among the more transit-connected regions of the city. The common wisdom is that by developing a diversity of uses like housing, retail, and offices in the area with just one vehicle allotted per unit, the existing transit will increase ridership and become more useable to reduce vehicle-dependency.

Google Middlefield Park Ellis Plaza, rendering courtesy Google

Public comments at yesterday’s meeting with the Environmental Planning Commission were widely positive, including a contribution from Mountain View YIMBY, affiliated with the State-wide California YIMBY activist organization. Construction is expected to last over twenty years, though there is a local desire for the project timeline to be shortened.

Subscribe to YIMBY’s daily e-mail

Follow YIMBYgram for real-time photo updates
Like YIMBY on Facebook
Follow YIMBY’s Twitter for the latest in YIMBYnews