Facebook, Google, and Amazon will now all have big homes in South Lake Union
You might feel like you just read about Facebook opening a new office in Seattle. And you would be correct as the tech giant officially moved into their Frank Gehry-design space at Dexter Station in May. Even then, rumors about their expansion had already started. Now those rumors are reality as Vulcan announced it has pre-leased its Arbor Blocks project to Facebook.
The project will consist of two six-story midrise office buildings with 384,000 square feet of office space and 4,100 square feet of street-level retail along 8th Avenue North, between Thomas and Harrison Streets.
The buildings, designed by Graphite Design Group, feature increased setbacks to preserve light and air for the existing sweet gum tree canopy along 8th avenue North. The street will be converted into a pedestrian-friendly woonerf with a specialty paving pattern and widened sidewalks. Plantings, seating and artwork will be added to enhance the street-level experience.
The new buildings will provide Facebook with 383,900 new square feet of office space to go with the 335,000 square feet they already have. The current office gives Facebook the ability to have 2,000 employees and given that the new space is even bigger they could eventually top 4,000 in the city.
The lease also solidifies South Lake Union as one of the leading tech neighborhoods in the nation. Amazon already runs the show there but Google is also moving into a four-building complex developed by Vulcan nearby.
Construction on the new buildings will begin by year-end 2016 and Facebook could move in as soon as the third quarter of 2018.
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