London is getting a little greener, courtesy of Google.
Designs for the new Google headquarters in London were unveiled Thursday and it certainly fits the bill for what’s expected for tech campuses these days.
Plans for the one-million-square-foot building show a spacious rooftop garden, landscaped terraces, several cafes, and an elaborate gym with a running track, swimming pool, and basketball court. Dezeen reports that each level of the 11-story office will be connected with a diagonal staircase, stretching from the ground floor to the roof.
Google tapped Heatherwick Studio and Bjarke Ingels Group (BIG) to design the HQ, which will feature a “natural theme.” The two firms are also collaborating on Google’s Mountain View campus in California.
Thomas Heatherwick, one of the lead architects, designed the building to blend into the busy King’s Cross neighborhood where the office is planned. “I can’t help but love this mix of massive railway stations, roads, canals and other infrastructure all layered up into the most connected point in London,” he explained on Heatherwick Studio’s website.
It’s first of three buildings planned for Google’s campus in King’s Cross. Once completed, it will be home to 7,000 employees.
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