ALAMEDA — Up to 150 jobs are expected to be created as Google expands at the former Alameda Naval Air Station, according to city officials.
The technology giant, which has been at the former military base since it acquired Makani Power in 2013, secured unanimous approval from the City Council on Tuesday to lease the 65,400-square-foot building at 1190 W. Tower Ave.
The four-year lease calls for a monthly base rent between $26,160 and $34,008 and gives Google five extension options for periods of three years each.
Google also has first rights for negotiating to purchase the building at the former Navy base, now known as Alameda Point.
“We think this is a very good deal for the city,” said Nanette Mocanu, the city’s assistant community development director. “This lease brings jobs to Alameda, and it acts as a catalyst for high tech jobs.”
Google and Makani, which develops wind power technology, will use the site for offices, engineering and manufacturing, as well as for research and development.
Nearby companies include Wrightspeed, which was launched by Tesla Motors co-founder Ian Wright and which produces technology to make commercial trucks more energy-efficient.
Makani’s expansion means the city can now market the area around West Tower Avenue as a hub for green businesses, much like the former base’s “Spirits Alley” on Monarch Street, the strip that’s home to Faction Brewing, Hangar 1 Vodka and Rock Wall Wine Company, according to Mocanu.
Makani Power was leasing about 17,000 square feet of a former aircraft hangar in at the former Navy base when Google took it over.
In March 2014, Google renewed Makani’s lease with the city of Alameda for up to 21 years and for an additional 110,000 square feet, as well as for an option to negotiate for an additional 367,000 square feet in nearby hangars when those properties become available.
The lease approved Tuesday follows Google using that option so Makani can move into a third building at the former base.
Between 80 and 150 jobs will be created when Makani takes over the space, Mocanu said.
The Alameda City Council approved the lease during the same meeting it considered a possible rent stabilization ordinance as a way to prevent longtime residents from being squeezed out of the Bay Area’s pricey real estate market, which some say is partly because of well-paid tech workers pushing rents up.
“You are bringing in people who can pay rent that does not compete with the people who have been here for decades with their children,” former City Councilwoman Barbara Thomas told the council.
“If you want someone to pay rental subsidies, ask Google to put aside some money for the renters, not the landlords,” Thomas said.
Resident Brian McGuire said the solution was to build more housing.
“The bigger problem is about housing supply,” McGuire said. “It’s not about pitting one resident against another.”
Makani Power takes its name from a Hawaiian word meaning “wind” or “breeze” and is working to make wind energy costs competitive with fossil fuels. Its technology includes an airborne wind turbine, or tethered wing, that generates power by flying in large circles where wind is powerful and consistent, such as at high altitudes or above deep ocean waters.
Reach Peter Hegarty at 510-748-1654 or follow him on Twitter.com/Peter-Hegarty.
