flexiblefullpage
billboard
interstitial1
catfish1
Currently Reading

Facebook’s new Frank Gehry-designed Menlo Park HQ extension includes a massive green roof

Office Buildings

Facebook’s new Frank Gehry-designed Menlo Park HQ extension includes a massive green roof

Level 10 Construction was the general contractor for the project.


By David Malone, Associate Editor | September 5, 2018
Aerial view of MPK 21 green roof
Aerial view of MPK 21 green roof

Facebook’s MPK 20 Menlo Park HQ campus is a 433,000-sf building topped with an expansive nine-acre green roof. Completed in 2015, the build team of Facebook, Gehry Partners, and Level 10 Construction didn’t rest for long before beginning MPK 21, a 524,000-sf expansion.

Much like MPK 20, MPK 21 includes a giant level of single-floor, open-plan office space with break-away spaces and service amenities. A single pathway runs the entire length of the building and leads to five unique dining options, 15 art installations, and  a 2,000-seat event and meeting space.

MPK 21’s 3.6-acre green roof (MPK 20 provides an additional 9 acres of green roof space) includes walking trails that weave around hundreds of trees, grasses, and shrubs. Nature doesn't just exist on the roof, however, as 40-foot-tall Redwoods are included in the Town Square, a sheltered green space. MPK 21 connects to MPK 20 via The Bowl, an amphitheater-style courtyard, and also features a bridge that leads over a highway and connects to hiking trails along the neighboring wetlands.

 

See Also: Apple’s new $5 billion headquarters has a glass problem

 

MPK 21 at nightCourtesy Facebook.

 

Among the new building’s sustainability features are a reclaimed water system designed to save 17 million gallons per year and a 1.4-megawatt PV system that creates 2 million kWh of electricity annually. The new building is targeting Leed Platinum certification.

MPK 20 was built in 21 months and, despite being almost 100,000 sf larger, MPK 21 was built in just 17 months. Both buildings include signature Frank Gehry elements such as exterior metal paneling.

 

MPK 21 exterior surrounded by treesThe Town Square. Courtesy Facebook.

 

The BowlThe Bowl. Courtesy Facebook.

 

 

For a more in depth look at MPK 21, click here.

Related Stories

| Jun 2, 2014

Parking structures group launches LEED-type program for parking garages

The Green Parking Council, an affiliate of the International Parking Institute, has launched the Green Garage Certification program, the parking industry equivalent of LEED certification.

| May 29, 2014

7 cost-effective ways to make U.S. infrastructure more resilient

Moving critical elements to higher ground and designing for longer lifespans are just some of the ways cities and governments can make infrastructure more resilient to natural disasters and climate change, writes Richard Cavallaro, President of Skanska USA Civil.

| May 28, 2014

KPF's dual towers in Turkey will incorporate motifs, symbols of Ottoman Empire

The two-building headquarters for Turkey’s largest and oldest financial institution, Ziraat Bank, is inspired by the country’s cultural heritage. 

| May 27, 2014

One World Trade Center cuts rents due to sluggish activity

Sluggish economy and lackluster leasing force developer The Durst Organization and the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey to reduce asking rents by nearly 10% to $69/sf.

| May 23, 2014

Big design, small package: AIA Chicago names 2014 Small Project Awards winners

Winning projects include an events center for Mies van der Rohe's landmark Farnsworth House and a new boathouse along the Chicago river.

| May 23, 2014

Top interior design trends: Gensler, HOK, FXFOWLE, Mancini Duffy weigh in

Tech-friendly furniture, “live walls,” sit-stand desks, and circadian lighting are among the emerging trends identified by leading interior designers. 

| May 22, 2014

Big Data meets data centers – What the coming DCIM boom means to owners and Building Teams

The demand for sophisticated facility monitoring solutions has spurred a new market segment—data center infrastructure management (DCIM)—that is likely to impact the way data center projects are planned, designed, built, and operated. 

| May 22, 2014

No time for a trip to Dubai? Team BlackSheep's drone flyover gives a bird's eye view [video]

Team BlackSheep—devotees of filmmaking with drones—has posted a fun video that takes viewers high over the city for spectacular vistas of a modern architectural showcase.

| May 21, 2014

Check out Pandora's posh NYC offices [slideshow]

The new East Coast office for the Internet radio provider is housed on two interconnected floors of the classic 125 Park Avenue building, and features multiple spaces for music performances, large gatherings, and “all hands” meetings.

| May 20, 2014

Kinetic Architecture: New book explores innovations in active façades

The book, co-authored by Arup's Russell Fortmeyer, illustrates the various ways architects, consultants, and engineers approach energy and comfort by manipulating air, water, and light through the layers of passive and active building envelope systems.

boombox1
boombox2
native1

More In Category



Sustainable Design and Construction

Northglenn, a Denver suburb, opens a net zero, all-electric city hall with a mass timber structure

Northglenn, Colo., a Denver suburb, has opened the new Northglenn City Hall—a net zero, fully electric building with a mass timber structure. The 32,600-sf, $33.7 million building houses 60 city staffers. Designed by Anderson Mason Dale Architects, Northglenn City Hall is set to become the first municipal building in Colorado, and one of the first in the country, to achieve the Core certification: a green building rating system overseen by the International Living Future Institute.


MFPRO+ News

San Francisco unveils guidelines to streamline office-to-residential conversions

The San Francisco Department of Building Inspection announced a series of new building code guidelines clarifying adaptive reuse code provisions and exceptions for converting office-to-residential buildings. Developed in response to the Commercial to Residential Adaptive Reuse program established in July 2023, the guidelines aim to increase the viability of converting underutilized office buildings into housing by reducing regulatory barriers in specific zoning districts downtown. 

halfpage1

Most Popular Content

  1. 2021 Giants 400 Report
  2. Top 150 Architecture Firms for 2019
  3. 13 projects that represent the future of affordable housing
  4. Sagrada Familia completion date pushed back due to coronavirus
  5. Top 160 Architecture Firms 2021