Mac maker rends 215,000 square feet in the Sunnyvale Research Center

Jan 13, 2012 11:00 GMT  ·  By

Apple is leasing a research and office complex in Sunnyvale, California, as well as additional space, just miles away from its iconic campus in Cupertino.

MercuryNews reports that Apple is conducting a major expansion outside of its hometown, and that thousands of Apple employees could end up working in buildings leased in Sunnyvale.

"Having Apple in Sunnyvale would be great," said John Pilger, a spokesman for the city. "They are a fantastic company."

According to realty agents from Colliers International, Apple has rented no less than 215,000 square feet in the Sunnyvale Research Center.

It is a four-building complex, according to the report. Located on the south side of East Arques Avenue between Lawrence Expressway and Commercial Street, the venue is about seven miles away from Apple's flagship HQ near Interstate 280 and North De Anza Boulevard.

It’s a twelve minute drive from 1 Infinite Loop to the Sunnyvale Research Center, Colliers International estimated.

"Apple is going to start moving into the buildings by the end of the first quarter," said Donald Reimann, a senior vice president with Colliers. "This is really a good fit for Apple because it's close to their headquarters."

Chad Leiker, a vice president with Kidder Mathews, a realty firm, remarked: "Apple seems to be gobbling up everything they can. They are taking a ton of space."

Apple is also in the process of establishing a second campus in Cupertino, California. The spaceship building, as it is generally referred to, will be completed sometime in 2015, if everything goes according to plan.

The report reveals that some developers have been buying buildings in Sunnyvale knowing that hot shot tech firms like Apple might lease them in the future.

One such developer is Irvine. Phil Mahoney, an executive vice president with Cornish & Carey Newmark Knight Frank, a realty firm, said: “Apple is rumored to be looking at leasing the buildings that Irvine now owns.”