Apple's 'Spaceship' Campus Approved by Cupertino Planning Commission, Headed to City Council for Final Vote

The Planning Commission of Apple's hometown of Cupertino, California approved Apple’s plans for the company's new "Spaceship" campus Wednesday night, a day after the company made a presentation to the community at a public discussion, reports CNET. The next steps in the process will be a vote by the Cupertino city council on October 15 along with a final vote on November 19, and the company remains on track for a 2016 opening of the new campus.

apple_campus_2_rendering

Just like any other Apple presentation, this one came with a slickly-produced video. Dan Whisenhunt, the company's director of real estate and facilities, introduced a video featuring lead architect Norman Foster and others in charge of the site's development. One gem from the film is that the site's now infamous O-shaped structure was not the original vision. "It really grew into that born out of an intensive process," said Foster in the video. The plans were also inspired by Stanford's campus.

Steve Jobs originally pitched the idea of a new Apple campus to the city of Cupertino in June 2011, his final public appearance four months before his death. The company submitted revised plans campus in December 2011, but by April of this year was said to be one year behind schedule on construction and roughly $2 billion over budget. Among the unique details contributing to the project costs were characteristics such as 6 square kilometers of curved glass, strict requirements on gaps between surfaces, and polished concrete ceilings cast in molds as opposed to being cast in place.

Apple again submitted revised plans for the campus with a new phased construction plan in late April 2013, and released an economic impact report on the future campus this past June detailing both main construction phases, which included guidelines for employees capacity, estimates of tax revenue for the city, and public improvements.

Top Rated Comments

Mr Fusion Avatar
130 months ago
It's a nice building, but I have a hard time being excited about something I'll never be allowed to set foot in. :(
Score: 11 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sharpycl Avatar
130 months ago
They should shape the building like a giant apple. Something you can recognize from space. Apple has the funds. They could so pull that off ;)
Score: 8 Votes (Like | Disagree)
spb3 Avatar
130 months ago
They should plant apple trees in the middle. And let people sit under them.
You know, for good ideas.
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
musika Avatar
130 months ago
They should make the metal of the building in the "Space Gray" color. Then it would be really spacey. :cool:
Score: 7 Votes (Like | Disagree)
sransari Avatar
130 months ago
looks amazing! but wouldn't it be kind of a pain to walk half the circumference to get to the exact other side? I guess you could walk outside and cut across since the weather is always perfect.
Score: 6 Votes (Like | Disagree)
Four oF NINE Avatar
130 months ago
it's like the pentagon for tech..but it's a sphere.

The building is not a sphere. Planet Earth is a sphere. A baseball is a sphere.
This is a ring, or toroid, if you prefer.
Score: 5 Votes (Like | Disagree)

Popular Stories

iPhone 16 Mock Header With Dynamic Island

Skipping the iPhone 15 Pro? Here's What's Rumored for iPhone 16 Pro

Friday September 22, 2023 9:29 am PDT by
Are you skipping the iPhone 15 Pro and waiting another year to upgrade? If so, we already have some iPhone 16 Pro rumors for you. Below, we recap new features rumored for the iPhone 16 Pro models so far:Larger displays: The iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max will be equipped with larger 6.3-inch and 6.9-inch displays, respectively, according to Ross Young, CEO of Display Supply Chain...
Apple WWDC23 macOS Sonoma hero

macOS Sonoma Launching This Week With These New Features

Sunday September 24, 2023 12:45 pm PDT by
Apple previously announced that macOS Sonoma will be released this Tuesday, September 26. The free software update includes many new features and changes for the Mac, including the five that we have highlighted below. In addition to these five features, we have shared the full release notes for macOS Sonoma below for a complete overview of everything new. Desktop Widgets macOS Sonoma...
Apple Watch Ultra 2 double tap gesture 230912

watchOS 10.1 to Enable Apple Watch's New 'Double Tap' Gesture

Thursday September 21, 2023 12:52 pm PDT by
The new Double Tap gesture for the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Apple Watch Ultra 2 will be enabled starting with watchOS 10.1, according to Marques Brownlee, host of the popular tech-focused YouTube channel MKBHD. The first beta of watchOS 10.1 will likely be available by next week, and Apple announced that the software update will be released next month. Brownlee shared his impressions...