Platform 16, a 1,200,000-sf, three-building office campus, has recently broken ground in Downtown San Jose. The Kohn Pedersen Fox-designed project will be located on a 5.4-acre site adjacent to Google's planned transit village and Diridon Station, a major Bay Area transportation hub.
Platform 16 will include a main facade with three module orientations (center, left, and right) to create a sense of depth and texture by breaking down the building's scale and creating a shimmering effect in the sun's reflection. The low, horizontal mass recedes from the street as it steps up to create large terraces at every level. These terraces will provide significant outdoor space for tenants, while also bringing daylight deep into Platform 16's interiors. The bronze terrace facade will contrast with the main wall in materiality and scale.
Courtesy Plompmozes for KPF.
The project's combination of a high-performance facade, passive cooling systems, high efficiency lighting systems, and a solar PV roof covering 20% of the building have the building projected to outperform the AIA 2030 Commitment goal of 80% reduction against its baseline.
See Also: A resort with a giant artificial wave basin is being planned for southern California
Platform 16 will also provide immediate pedestrian access to the neighborhood and transit access to the Bay Area at large. On its south side, San Pedro Square will become a flexible public realm with access to the city's financial center, the SAP Center, and Diridon Station.
Courtesy Plompmozes for KPF.
Other project features include various active pedestrian plazas, expansive floorplates, and 15-foot floor-to-floor heights.
The first phase of construction is slated for completion in 2023.
Courtesy KPF.
Courtesy Byencore for KPF.
Courtesy Byencore for KPF.
Courtesy Byencore for KPF.
Courtesy Byencore for KPF.
Courtesy Byencore for KPF.
Courtesy Plompmozes for KPF.
Related Stories
| May 25, 2011
Developers push Manhattan office construction
Manhattan developers are planning the city's biggest decade of office construction since the 1980s, betting on rising demand for modern space even with tenants unsigned and the availability of financing more limited. More than 25 million sf of projects are under construction or may be built in the next nine years.
| May 18, 2011
Lab personnel find comfort in former Winchester gun factory
The former Winchester Repeating Arms Factory in New Haven, Conn., is the new home of PepsiCo’s Biology Innovation Research Laboratory.
| May 16, 2011
Virtual tour: See U.S. Green Building Council’s new LEED Platinum HQ—and earn CE credits
A virtual tour of the U.S. Green Building Council's LEED Platinum HQ is available. The tour features embedded videos, audio podcasts, and information on building materials and products used throughout the space. By taking the virtual tour, professionals can earn GBCI Continuing Education hours for the LEED AP with specialty and LEED Green Associate credentials.
| May 11, 2011
DOE releases guide for 50% more energy-efficient office buildings
The U.S. Department of Energy today announced the release of the first in a new series of Advanced Energy Design Guides to aid in the design of highly energy efficient office buildings. The 50% AEDG series will provide a practical approach to commercial buildings designed to achieve 50% energy savings compared to the commercial building energy code used in many areas of the country.
| May 10, 2011
Google hires Ingenhoven Architects to design new Mountain View office
The current Googleplex is straining at the seams and yet the company is preparing its biggest hiring surge ever, so Google decided now’s the time to build its own office space—a first for the Internet giant. The company hired Ingenhoven Architects, a German firm that specializes in sustainable architecture, to create plans for what could be a 600,000-sf office.
| Apr 13, 2011
Office interaction was the critical element to Boston buildout
Margulies Perruzzi Architects, Boston, designed the new 11,460-sf offices for consultant Interaction Associates and its nonprofit sister organization, The Interaction Institute for Social Change, inside an old warehouse near Boston’s Seaport Center.
| Apr 13, 2011
Red Bull Canada HQ a mix of fluid spaces and high-energy design
The Toronto architecture firm Johnson Chou likes to put a twist on its pared-down interiors, and its work on the headquarters for Red Bull Canada is no exception. The energy drink maker occupies 12,300 sf on the top two floors of a three-story industrial building in Toronto, and the design strategy for its space called for leaving the base building virtually untouched while attention was turned to the interior architecture.
| Apr 13, 2011
Former department store gets new lease on life as MaineHealth HQ
The long-vacant Sears Roebuck building in Portland, Maine, was redeveloped into the corporate headquarters for MaineHealth. Consigli Construction and local firm Harriman Architects + Engineers handled the 14-month fast-track project, transforming the 89,000-sf, four-story facility for just $100/sf.