Google is going to have its own private airport in San Jose, California
A company called Signature Flight Support is set to break ground on an $82 million private jet center at Mineta San Jose International Airport next January. The undertaking began back in February, and the new jet center will host Google’s own air force. Signature has already subleased most of the project to Blue City Holdings, the company that handles the private aircraft of Google’s executives. The next step is selecting a general contractor for the massive, multi-million dollar project.
The private site is going to include 270,000 square feet of hangar space and will sit on a total of 29 acres.
Signature’s President and COO, Maria Sastre, says that the development has been getting a lot of interest from several companies, not just Google. “From the get-go, we’ve had incredible interest in the site-development program,” Sastre says. She wouldn’t discuss any details about new potential tenants, but said “It’s incremental business…We’re very excited.”
Google currently houses its jets at a facility called Moffett Field, and they may be interested in leasing that space. The federal government is also looking at leasing that facility. Google is still very interested in the area in San Jose, however. A representative for Blue City Holdings told Silicon Valley Business Journal that Blue City Holdings is “committed to the SJC project and is moving ahead on working drawings and specifications for the San Jose facility.”
Signature Flight Support has already received nine responses for the first round of the contractor bidding. Sastre wants to get things moving. “We really want to get this project done,” she said. “We want to realize the economic impact for San Jose, and move on to the next step.”
There are still several things that have to happen before the project can officially get under way. The terms and conditions of a master ground lease have to be approved by the city of San Jose and Signature. Then the city council has to approve those terms. Both of those things should be approved next month, according to Sastre.
It must be nice to have your own private fleet of jets. Soon Google will have a private place to house them, too.
Google is Almost Ready to Break Ground On Its Own Airport in San Jose, California