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Mountain View approves Google's massive plan to expand, develop North Bayshore area

The ambitious plan will bring thousands of jobs and houses to the city, which has many longtime residents both excited and worried

NBC Universal, Inc.

Mountain View officials approved Google's plan to expand into 153 acres of adjoining properties, making it the largest development project in the city's history.

The ambitious plan will bring thousands of jobs and houses to the city, which has many longtime residents both excited and worried.

"We already have enough traffic from when Google started coming here," resident Dan said. "And it's really hard."

Dan, who did not provide a last name, lives in the Santiago Villa mobile home park, which also deals with traffic from the Shoreline Amphitheater.

Google has already transformed Mountain View and made it a major player in Silicon Valley, but the company has bigger plans and has been working with the city on an expansion plan for 10 years.

The 30-year Google North Bayshore Master Plan aims to have 7,000 units, including 15% affordable housing and more than 3 million square feet of office space. It will also include 26 acres of public parks, 525 hotel rooms, a new school and new streets.

Mayor Alison Hicks said the project passed unanimously by the council is designed to be "car light," with mass transit and nearby homes.

"We're going to make this a place where people can get in and out without using cars," Hicks said.

Google in a statement to NBC Bay Area thanked the city and said it plans to turn a car-centric area into a vibrant neighborhood with parks, restaurants, services, jobs and much needed housing.

The president of the Santiago Villa Residents Association is confident it will happen, saying Google and Mountain View have kept the park and other stakeholders in the loop with updates, as well as making sure the project has many aspects that benefit the community.

Google's expansion project will be done in eight phases, with housing as well as parks in the first one.

For now, neither the city or Google has set an exact date on when work will begin.

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