California Governor Brown fast-tracks Apple’s ‘Mothership’ HQ

“In a move that should make it easier for Apple to land its new spaceship-shaped headquarters in Cupertino by 2015, Gov. Jerry Brown on Friday announced that the project has been approved for a streamlined treatment as it moves through the environmental review process,” Patrick May reports for The Mercury News.

“Fast-tracking the project, however, doesn’t mean construction will begin any sooner than the early-2013 time period Apple had previously announced. But by qualifying as a ‘leadership project’ under legislation signed into law last year, Apple will enjoy a smoother judicial review process if legal action is brought against the project,” May reports. “Apple’s circular building, designed by legendary architect Sir Norman Foster, was first unveiled publicly by co-founder Steve Jobs in his final public appearance before he died from complications of pancreatic cancer last year.”

Apple Campus 2 project - "Mothership" - Cupertino, CA

 

Apple Campus 2 project - "Mothership" - Cupertino, CA
Apple's "Mothership" Campus 2 - Street view from East Homestead Road

 
Apple Campus 2 project - "Mothership" - Cupertino, CA

Read more in the full article here.

53 Comments

  1. The sooner this is built the better. Just imagine Apple already became the most valuable and profitable company on the planet without this building. What are they going to be capable of now that they will have a massive building allowing them to more effectively collaborate across so many thousands of employees.

    1. The collaborative business model made flesh…er, concrete? Rebar?Liquid metal?

      Here is an ideal structure to enfold and nurture Apple’s special gathering of excited minds pressing forward in the co-evolution of men (and women) and machines.

      Still no jet packs, but we’re getting there.

        1. WTF is dribbling from your mind? You didn’t RTFA did you?
          Jerry Brown (ultimate liberal) has just “fast tracked” the development using a law passed by the Democrats to aid business.
          What about that leads to your moronic reply?
          feeding trolls, meh

        2. Liberals and Democrats are rarely business friendly yet how do they expect to fund such socialistic things as Healthcare? California needs to be much more business friendly as businesses leave here in droves thanks to excessive state government regulations. Anyway our “Browndoggle” of a governor has finally done something worthwhile helping Apple. Now if he will finally give up the foolishness of that Central California high speed rail system to essentially nowhere and no one wants.

        3. Those who call themselves “liberals” today are not actually liberal. The word “liberal” comes from Latin meaning “free from restraint” and “liberalism” used to mean advocating political liberty or freedom. Today’s phony “liberals” — who have hijacked the once noble term “liberalism” and inverted its meaning — are anti-individual rights, anti-freedom collectivists, statists, and socialists who advocate government oppression. And they have turned Americans into serfs of the oppressive national (Federal), regional (state), and local governments. When a person needs to get permission from political officials to build a structure, what you have is not freedom, but semi-enslavement. If you want to know one key reason why America is not as free and as great as it once was, the erosion of individual rights and freedom by socialist government is the reason. America has been transformed from the “land of the free” to the “land of the serfs” by the political cancer known as socialism, which has been advocated, enacted, and implemented both by the phony, socialist “liberals” and the anti-American, socialist “conservatives” for the last 100 years.

        4. You know, it’ seems like something has been going on in your life. And whatever is, you pick things to talk about like feeling enslaved, being a serf, having cancer, and not being as free as you used to be. America and the world can be described in many, many different ways, yet you pick these ideas. Why?

        5. Describing things in different ways does not make them real. Some of us prefer objective reality. Some of us are old enough (and not all that ancient) to remember what it was like to live in a (relatively) free country.

          Government is not your friend. A government is not a sentient entity. It is an institution (a human social fiction like a corporation) that is composed of people. To believe that government is your friend is to believe that people you do not really know are your friends.

          That is naivete… in the extreme.

        6. You have absolutely NO clue whatsoever what the “socialism” means. Obamacare is almost the opposite of socialism. It will boost the private healthcare businesses.

          Get some education, redneck.

        7. Geekjen: Obamacare is socialism and control of the We the People. If the government can tell you what you must buy then it can tell you to do anything. We have now become no better than North Korea or Cuba.

        8. Not to split hairs, but actually it’s fascism, not socialism.

          Same result in the long run though.

          Less freedom of choice right off the bat, and more government bureaucracy longterm… with all that implies.

        9. Do really think the US is equivalent to north Korea wow well at least imagination is free and healthy in America. As for socialism I doubt nt other ou try in the world would identify American politics as remotely socialist indeed most consider it moderately right wing to extreme right wing as the only choices

        10. @Spyinthesky,

          Yeah, right. U.S. politics are sooo right-wing that they elected Obama… and enacted Obamacare.

          What does that say about how accurately the rest of the world and the its media can assess U.S. politics?

          Such assessments just indicate how far to the left the rest of the world has drifted.

        11. Just exactly what you mean by ‘business friendly’? What do you want us to do? Drop all taxes? End all regulations and oversight assuming that only good things will happen? Build facilities and other infrastructure for them? Actually, in some cases we already do that…

          There has been a movement in the past decade to elevate corporations over people and cast the worker as an evil parasite that is destroying the American economy.. For example this ‘corporations are people’ BS that facilitates even more corruption in the U.S. political process. Whatever happened to ‘Our workers are our most important asset’?

          I am a firm believer in balance and moderation. The U.S. is bouncing around the extremes far too much. The ‘Great Experiment’ is reaching the end of its viability, it seems. Corruption, greed, idiocy, and ignorance have proven to be the stronger elements.

  2. The great thing about this fast-track process is that it applies so equally to companies big and small, so that there’s no way large companies can remain entrenched and compete unfairly against smaller companies.

    It’s great that Apple can avoid this red tape, but it’s sad that the answer isn’t to end the red tape, such that all businesses can compete on a level playing field rather than granting the big ones exceptions and leaving the little ones to go out of business trying to comply with all the state and federal regulations, taxes, and paperwork.

      1. Well hello, douche. I was simply noting how brief a time it’s been since the man passed away. My life certainly didn’t stop when he died, but I think it’s a decent thing to do to remember people who mean something to you once in a while. Clearly you feel different. Now go on about your likely lonely life.

        1. Well cry baby, grow up. Stop acting like such a pussy. Speaking of douche bag. Yeah, I think we all have a pretty good idea when he died. Why would you think it necessary to tell e eryone? Sounds like you have a pretty lonely life. Meant something to you? You knew him? C’mon fucking get a life. Move on.

  3. It’s a different looking building that’s for certain. I’m not sure why anyone would need “fast tracking”? Unless it is something involved with national defense it seems that everyone should be treated the same. If the system ran properly there wouldn’t be any reason to “fast-track” anyone. But out here in California nothing works as it should. And politics rule more than any other state in the union. California rarely does anything pro-business so this is a bit of a surprise. They have already lost a lot of Apple business to other states so maybe they are waking up a little bit? Brown is a left wing knucklehead. Between Gray Davis and Jerry Brown and almost buried this state. Pray for us.

      1. Pprobably the same reason the Obama administration is coming down against medical marijuana. Because right wing crazies would hang him in effigy if he did legalize it or decriminalize it.

        1. If that was the case, Pres. Obama would just resign.

          Of course, he flopped on immigration to get votes, and gay marriage, so we might be smoking doobs on the street by November just to buy a few extra votes.

          He’ll need them…..

          Signed
          Right Wing Crazy (and former dope smoker…)

        2. The only thing Obama has done that is progressive was offer Obamacare, which everyone likes except for the mandate. WHICH was introduced by republicans. I’m sure you remember Mr. Romney passing almost the exact same bill in his home state, and then he has the audacity to complain about it when Obama does it. I’m not defending Obama in any shape or form. I hate him, he fell through for the country, he offered more tax cuts to the rich, increased them on the poor. But Romney, in fact most republicans are complete liars and two faced snobs. I heard Fox News complaining the other day that we’d have a shortage of doctors because of Obamacare then they go and preach about wanting more jobs. The fact is Obamacare could potentially create over 1.5 million jobs. Where as republicans have been running on the basis of tax cuts for years and deregulation and that collapsed your economy. It’s been proven by your economy that tax cuts do not create jobs. They destroy them. When taxes are increased on businesses they want to pay as little as possible (as always, who doesn’t) so what do they do? They cannot be taxed on money they put back into their companies so they hire workers they build more locations and inevitably it helps the economy. Not to mention you are helping the people that cannot afford to provide for their families with welfare (which needs to change), healthcare, etc. I know this seems crazy to you but the facts don’t lie. And now you are going to say I am a commie, brainwashed by the media, lemming, etc, etc, etc. I have heard it a million times over on this forum. You can save the speech. But majority of the country is progressive, not liberal, but progressive. The exact opposite of the people on this forum. Oh and you are going to complain about how Obamacare is stealing. It will only take a maximum of 2.5% from 3% of the population. That slice out of anyones income is insignificant. I wish they would increase taxes on the rich because hell no they wouldn’t be hurt by a 2 or even 5% income tax increase they still have millions or billions of dollars that they are stockpiling. Don’t get mad let’s actually have a logical conversation about this.

        3. What does the crap you just said have to do with this building be fast tracked? Socialized medicine fails everywhere. Why do people come from Canada here to get treatment?

        4. The idea that public health care is a failure in Canada is a fiction propogated by its opponents. It works fine and is far superior to the alternative, which is why every developed country in the Western World except the US has some version of it. America spends more on health care than any other country and yet leaves its most needy citizens to fend for themselves. Not something to be proud of, I should think.

          Canadians who come to the US for treatment usually do so for elective surgeries that they can get in Canada but not as fast as they would like. There are challenges, including backlogs, and we are working to adapt the system to an aging population and increasing costs of care, including introduction of some private alternatives that do not undermine the basic premises, but to suggest that public health care is a failure in Canada is a lie.

        5. Bruce: I’m sure you don’t live in Canada or you wouldn’t spout that nonsense. Canadian health care is a fiction, and most Canadians who have need find that out quickly. I guess by your misunderstanding, prostrate cancer or heart by-pass is ‘elective’ surgery.
          But, if Obama-scare persists, you’ll find out. Too late!

        6. I love how the horrors of Canada’s health care system is brought up by people who have never lived in the country. It It’s not perfect but it DOES work and has saved myself and others countless $$$ over the years.

        7. Thank you, and @tgarbutt /@madmaggie69 the only reason people come to the USA to get certain treatments is because of the waits. In Canada it is not first come first serve it’s who’s gonna die if they do not get this treatment Vs who’s gonna have to wait there turn and deal with a little pain. There is proof that Canada’s political system works, it’s that the people are happy, *except in Quebec with tuition hikes, I’d be protesting two, WHICH is apparently illegal in the USA. We also do not have trillions upon TRILLIONS in debt. We also have far less people dying, especially from violent crimes.

        8. Let’s get this straight: Whether a person earns $1 or $100,000 or $1 million or $1 billion dollars, it is his money — and not your property, nor the property of his neighbors, nor the property of political officials. And if you, his neighbor, or political officials touch even $1 of his money without his voluntary consent, you are violating his right of property and are a moral criminal. Stop the nonsense about the “rich” or the “poor” or the whatever. Only individuals exist. Stop corralling individuals into castes or classes so you can favor one and damn the other. I don’t hear anyone consistently upholding individual rights in this bastion of serfdom that America has become.

        9. “and not your property, nor the property of his neighbors, nor the property of political officials. And if you, his neighbor, or political officials touch even $1 of his money without his voluntary consent, you are violating his right of property and are a moral criminal,” nobody is stealing money in the USA or anywhere in the world for that matter. The only people that are, are bank robbers and people that break into your homes. You are part of a democracy and want things from your government whether it be new laws to stop abortion (Hello republicans, this is against your rights!) or whether it is to build roads, everyone has a part in making sure that these things happen successfully (no matter how stupid). What the people want will be running points for either candidate and in order to come through with these points it costs money. Now where do they get this money. Well let’s go back. Everyone has a part. Your/everyone else’s, part is to provide the financials in order to have a working government. That’s what taxes are for. Taking a tax is not being a “moral criminal”, it’s collecting everyones part in society. If you don’t like it make your own government and republic, you can, but the USA might not like it. There are some that still actually exist in the USA. You create your own government you create the laws/taxes. But anything you earn in the USA i.e. not your country you will be taxed on. The “nonsense” about the rich in the poor is not nonsense it is a reality, you strike the poor with a 20% income tax guess who’s going bankrupt? You increase the taxes by 5% on the rich, it’s like throwing a pebble at a bunker. The rich have so much money that they don’t even know what to do with it. They are stockpiling money. The only ones favoured in this country is the rich who get all the tax breaks and all the bought politicians they want. You republicans have been destroying peoples rights from day one. And I can assure you Obama is in no way a liberal, he’s just left of the republicans. And not by much.

        10. You clearly don’t understand the very basics of insurance.

          It’s the exact opposite of mentality of “this is your money, this my money, you’re on your own if if something goes wrong and you can’t afford health.” With insurance, everyone pays into a pool, and that whole pool of money is there if and when someone needs it.

          And guess what? Without the mandate, healthy and rich people wouldn’t pay into it, health insurance becomes an unbalanced, financially unstable, and unsustainable system (i.e, what health insurance is right now). The mandate is what makes it financially stable and sustainable system. Everyone is covered, costs are reduced because healthy people are paying into it too, and no one is left outside to fend themselves against the wolves, and there’s money to pay for all of it.

    1. You left out Arnold Schwarzenegger and George Deukmejian. Republicans have done their share of screwing up the state, too. Ineptitude is not the province of only one political party.

      1. Amen Mike. Republicans and Democrats alike can be and often are disingenuous fools who motives are always suspect being knee deep in the politics and worried about things like re-election. Anyway who toe’s either party line extremes is an idiot in my book. Think for yourself based on individual issues! You don’t need a political party for that. Same with organized religion for those with faith.

        1. Why do you say it is devolution to discuss politics? We should discuss more and debate more because people like you trying to shut down free speech is what is the problem today.

      2. So true. Unfortunately for CA, the stranglehold the democrats have on the state has moved beyond ideology. What goes on there is flat out corruption, which one would expect when a bunch of politicians are allowed to gerrymander voting districts so they’ll never lose power.

  4. This really SHOULDN’T be a politically charged news site at all. I pity you all (including macdailynews) for making it so. All you’re doing is pissing and moaning. Pathetic

  5. Sedona T,

    Right on! Many forget that it’s OUR money and the government TAXES us for their “revenue.”

    And to others who imply that, in the US, having no insurance = no health care, they are completely erroneous. Any individual can walk into an ER in this country and receive the same quality health care as someone with insurance.

    1. Yes but they have to pay out their asses to do so. Try walking in with no bank or credit card and see what kind of service you get. Paying that much is not healthcare, it’s a privatized product just like Obamacare is but with this care the people that need healthcare will get it. FREE. And it most likely will not cost you a dime. You probably have healthcare and therefor won’t have to pay anything. And if you don’t thats 2.5% MAX increase on your taxes. This tax will effect about 3% of the country. To show you how stupid you are Rush Limbaugh said that this is the “Biggest tax increase in the history of the world…” No it’s really not.

  6. Anyway back on topic I am happy for the folks in cuppertino this should help the local economy and cant hurt california’s depressed economy either. Its good that a governor no matter what his politcal affiliation is can actually do something right for the local economy.

Reader Feedback

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.