14 DAY TRIAL // The spaceship-style Apple Campus 2 proposed by Steve Jobs himself in 2011 is taking longer than expected to actually become reality. Apple wanted to break ground this year, but an environmental impact report evaluating some architectural changes is delaying the process.
Cupertino officials say Apple has submitted an updated proposal to move an auditorium farther away from one of the surrounding roads, as well as to erect an additional building for utility equipment.
Apple’s updated plan also includes more parking spots and almost triple the amount of landscaped area mentioned in the original blueprints.
Finally, the new plans no longer include a footbridge over a creek that runs through the 176-acre campus.
However, all these changes require evaluation by Cupertino’s city council complete with an environmental impact report which is said to postpone work until 2014.
David Brandt, Cupertino’s city manager, said “They could conceivably break ground in 2013, but only if everything goes smoothly. The project is running a little bit slow.”
Brandt said none of the changes were required by the city, adding “I think they are just constantly trying to improve the project.”
Aarti Shrivastava, Cupertino’s director of community development, said the city would post the updated plans after Thanksgiving, but not until they beef up on their servers. The reason – “to handle the torrent of traffic it expects from Apple fans,” reports Bloomberg.
Apple’s Campus 2 will be one of the biggest buildings in the world. The project is considered to be one of the boldest yet, as the structure will require huge slabs of bent glass for its windows.
The new campus will also be mostly self-powered, according to Apple. The Mac maker will employ several types of renewable energy technologies to light up the offices and keep appliances running.