Facebook Finds New Digs in Vintage Silicon Valley Office

Text and photos by Chris Preimesberger

Facebook CEO and founder Mark Zuckerberg welcomes invitees to the open house on June 15.

Facebook staff members and visitors socialize during the open house on the roof garden of the new headquarters, which is located in the Palo Alto foothills and has a view of downtown and San Francisco Bay to the east.

Looking to the west, the roof garden/eating area bumps up against the Palo Alto foothills. The building had not been in use since about 2001, when Agilent moved to new quarters across town.

The building is roomy enough inside for staff members to use skateboards to get around, should they choose to do so.

The entire interior of the two-story building is designed for face-to-face collaboration among staff people. These “mini-cubes” offer some privacy for groups but don’t wall off people from each other. It’s an unwritten rule that if a person is wearing headphones, that means he or she is concentrating on a project and should not be interrupted.

The open offices take advantage of the high ceilings and numerous skylights on the second floor. There are no conventional “cubes” in the building; there are a few small, private meeting rooms, but not many.

A Facebook tour guide answers questions at the rear entrance to the new headquarters. This photo offers a hint at the conventional design of the building and how it is nestled into the foothills.