Amidst company-wide layoffs and plans to cut down on office space, Google announced this week that it is reconsidering the timeline for its sweeping downtown San Jose transit village.
The 80-acre Downtown West project located near Diridon Station was approved by the San Jose City Council in 2021 and is expected to include 4,000 homes, 7.3 million square feet of office space, 500,000 square feet of shops and restaurants, a community center, and 15 acres of parks. Google previously projected that the Downtown West project could employ up to 25,000 people.
San Jose’s approval of the Downtown West project also hinged on Google’s agreement to provide a range of community benefits for the city. In May 2022 the Mountain View-based tech company paid $7.5 million towards a community benefits program – a part of a package that is expected to total $200 million.
The company did not give specifics on a new timeline for Downtown West– only that it was still committed to the project. The eventual construction of the project is expected to take many years.
Google is among numerous tech companies that have recently announced global layoffs. Google and its parent company Alphabet said they will cut 12,000 jobs globally – and spend $500 million in costs related to cutting down on its office spaces.