Planning Commission approves design to keep Broadcom in Irvine
The Irvine City Planning Commission approved the master plan for a 2-million square foot research and development campus bordering the Orange County Great Park that city officials believe will be a hub of Irvine’s high tech industry for decades to come.
The proposal passed in a 4-1 vote at commission’s meeting July 3rd.
Approval pushes forward the development expected to be the future headquarters Broadcom, the tech industry heavyweight founded in Irvine in 1991. While Broadcom is not named specifically in any official releases, negotiations have been ongoing for a year to retain the semiconductor company in Irvine.
Broadcom has operated out of a complex near UC Irvine under an expiring lease agreement with The Irvine Company. With projected company expansion and a desire to own its headquarters Broadcom quietly began exploring options. When Irvine Mayor Steven Choi learned a Broadcom executive was talking with officials in Tustin, he knew action was needed.
“That ticked me off,” said Choi of the rumor he heard about a year ago. “I was very concerned. I wanted to keep the company in Irvine and so many of the employees I wanted them to stay in Irvine.”
City officials worked quickly with FivePoints Properties to propose a new home for Broadcom that the company could own outright.
“This was an important action,” said planning commission chair Anthony Kuo, “because it wasn’t a matter of attracting new jobs, it keeping thousands of high-paying jobs that are already in the city.”
About 3,000 of Broadcom’s more than 12,000 employees worldwide are based in Irvine. The new campus, expected to open in 2017, will ultimately accommodate about 8,000 employees.
The 78.5-acre site will have eight buildings from two to six stories in height, housing office space, laboratories and meeting facilities. The plan calls for three parking structures and amenities that include a cafeteria and fitness center.
The complex covers two divided properties controlled by FivePoints currently used for agriculture. The land is bordered by Barranca Parkway and Alton Parkway just east of the I-5 and I-405 connector.
The plan calls for a 300-foot by 100-foot landscaped plaza bridging the two parcels over an extension of Marine Way. The tunnel section serving as an entryway in to the Great Park sparked debate among commission members.
“Beauty is in the eye of the beholder,” stated commissioner Mary Ann Gaido explaining her lone dissenting vote.
“Particularly the bridge across Marine Way is not aesthetic,” she added. “The bridge that’s the size of a football field over the public right of way does not seem to be an appropriate giveaway from the city of Irvine, in my opinion.”
Commission Chair Pro Tem Greg Smith remarked that the commission isn’t really in the business of design, apparently reflecting the opinion of the majority vote.
“This greenlights their purchase,” said Kuo. “As far as I’m aware, I mean this moves forward.”
“I feel Broadcom will work as an anchor store,” said Mayor Choi, “initiating a movement that Irvine will be become the Irvine Tech Valley.”