Google wins over critics to build a megacampus in San Jose

The San Jose City Council approved Google’s plan for a mixed-use megacampus that spans 80 acres and 7.3 million square feet of office space in the heart of California’s third-largest city. To win over critics, Google designated more than half of its campus to public use and offered up a $200 million community benefits package that includes displacement funds, job placement training, and power for community leaders to influence how it’s spent. The successful partnership comes as tech giants like Google, Facebook and Amazon seek to expand their real estate footprint around the country while residents complain of displacement and labor groups and employees are growing more vocal about the influence big tech companies exercise. While Google's "Downtown West" proposal initially got off to a rocky start, the turning point came when the company embedded employees in the community to not just explain the planning process but invite them into it. Some local organizers said this is a model other tech companies may adopt in the future, and that their success with Google is paving a path for future organizing with tech.