Tall & Urban News

On 3 Nov 2023, it was announced that plans were canceled for a project of 15 million square feet (1.4 million square meters) of residential, retail, hospitality, and other projects in the San Francisco Bay Area, including Mountain View.  Multinational construction and real estate company, Lendlease announced the cancellation of the $15 billion (USD) San Francisco Bay Project, a joint venture between Lendlease Group and Alphabet's Google. Originally conceptualized in 2019, the project had been scheduled to start construction in 2026. 

The original plan for the project included the development of four master-planned districts with residential, retail, hospitality, and office spaces across San Jose (Downtown West), Sunnyvale (Moffett Park), and Mountain View (Middlefield Park and North Bayshore). In the statement issued by Lendlease, it was explained that the decision to terminate the agreements was made after a careful review of its real estate investments by Google. Both organizations concluded that the existing agreements were no longer beneficial considering the current market conditions. 

The changes in the real estate market, particularly in Silicon Valley, can be attributed to the significant impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on working habits, such as the rise in remote work. Additionally, inflation has played a major role in driving up the cost of construction materials. 

Read more about this story at Reuters