Google sinks millions into plush new £1bn London HQ
Plus: Someone tell Choc Factory veep the web was born on Franco-Swiss border
Posted in Management, 18th January 2013 12:47 GMT
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Google's new digs in Blighty's capital - as widely expected - are being built in Kings Cross, London, the company has confirmed.
The world's biggest ad broker is reportedly sinking £650m into its new home.
The company's UK headquarters are currently in Victoria, but the lease for that building runs out in 2016.
It's been speculated that Google's new HQ, which is on a 2.4 acre plot at the Kings Cross Central development, will be worth a cool £1bn by the time work on it is completed.
Construction on the site will begin later this year on a building that will "range in height" from 7 to 11 storeys tall. Google said in a statement that its new London home won't disappoint its UK Oompa-Loompas who will apparently benefit from a "state of the art, flexible working environment".
Google knows how to party like 4-year-olds as this covert snap obtained by El Reg from the firm's Covent Garden office shows
Meanwhile, Google's Northern and Central Europe veep Matt Brittin appeared to get his knickers in a twist about where the worldwide web was first hatched with this comment:
This is a big investment by Google, we’re committing further to the UK - where computing and the web were invented. It’s good news for Google, for London and for the UK.
Pedants will note the error: While a Brit - Sir Tim Berners Lee - did indeed invent the web, the magic didn't happen on Blighty turf.
As pointed out by Reg reader Jonathan: "The precise location at CERN is apparently an office in France with its entrance in Switzerland." ®
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COMMENTS
Look at the bright side, will ya?
These £650m are coming from outside the country and are being used to buy/build stuff inside the country. You'd prefer they do it in Ireland?
The going rate
> worth a cool £1bn
and they'll still only pay a couple of quid in business rates on the building
Re: Why £1bn?
Well, the building cost of your average house is less than the cost of it when completed, otherwise builders would all go bust. Same with office blocks. They spend £630M, and when completed it's worth £1B. Google make the profit, not the builders in this case.
Re: Why £1bn?
Because it's in London - which has this awesome green belt or "appreciation belt" as I like to call it that means buildings can never lose value. It's literally impossible. It's a self-fuelling fire too because as soon as people realise it attracts even more buyers because it's a safe bet, guaranteed profits.
I'd sooner they wasted Google's money rather than mine. They'll only waste it on stupid childish toys when I would spend it on a house extension and other important things.
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