After thirteen years as the world's premier Internet Search Engine, Google has finally decided to get its own address. The company has hired a German architecture firm to undertake construction of its own office. With plans to add over 6,000 new employees just in 2011 alone, Google is in massive need of some new space. For over a decade, Google has leased its offices in Northern California, spread out between 65 different buildings in the Mountain View area. That number is more than double what it was in 2005, and the company expects to grow even more in the coming years as it makes dramatic staff increases. According to Mercury News, Google announced this week it plans to build its brand new headquarters on a property in Mountain View, California south of Palo Alto near the Moffett Federal Airfield. The Mountain View City Council approved the deal in late March, and Google is expected to make the $30 million upfront payment in June for a lease that will run for 53 years on half of the 18.6-acre city-owned site. Mountain View and Google had reached an agreement in 2007 to lease the other 9.2 acres, with Google paying an initial rent of $1.1 million a year. The two deals collectively allow Google to develop up to 595,000 square feet of office and research and development space. German firm Ingenhoven Architects, renowned for their large-scale environmentally-friendly projects and unique aesthetics, will reportedly design Google's new structure. Ingenhoven has designed buildings in Europe, Asia and Australia, including a tubular glass and steel structure for the new European Investment Bank headquarters in Luxembourg and a new zero-emission railway station in Stuttgart, Germany, that will require no heating, cooling or mechanical ventilation. "We've asked them to build the most green, sustainable building possible," a spokesman for Google told Mercury News. Google is not sharing any details, but city officials said preliminary plans could be filed later this month, with construction starting as early as 2012.

The Netherlands is famously flat—but a massive green mountain is rising up in the Dutch city of Veldhoven. The Dutch Mountains project will be the world’s largest wooden building, combining natural materials with high-tech design to create a state-of-the-art, self-sustaining development. The ambitious project will include several offices and work spaces, as well as various conference centers. It will also feature a hotel located on site and short-stay facilities for out-of-town visitors. The main building will be constructed of solid wood and, once completed, will be the largest wooden building in the world. The Dutch Mountains master plan envisions an entirely self-sufficient complex, with closed cycles for energy, water, waste and materials. The architects chose timber as the principal building material in order to create system that reduces CO2 emissions. Additionally, they plan to integrate the building’s facade with a smart technology that reduces energy usage. The project envisions a future where the building can be updated with greener materials that help improve the building’s sustainability. For example, the building’s temperature-regulating facade will be one of the most innovative on the market, but if a smarter facade is created in the future that produces more energy, it can easily replace the old version, which will be recycled or repurposed. The complex will not only use sustainable building materials, but also provide an abundance of green space to create a vibrant, healthy atmosphere. From green roofs and a large park to an artificial marshland, the complex will be virtually covered in vegetation.

Japanese builder and developer Sumitomo Forestry has unveiled designs for the world’s tallest timber skyscraper in the heart of Tokyo. Designed by Nikken Sekkei, the 350 meter tall wooden tower will form part of the W350 Project, a mixed-use environmentally friendly development that the firms aim to complete in 2041 to mark Sumitomo’s 350th anniversary. The company says these steel-and-timber structures will help “transform the city into a forest.” Early renderings of the W350 project show the timber buildings covered in greenery and filled with natural light as part of Sumitomo’s message of promoting a healthier living environment. The buildings will be built to withstand earthquakes and be constructed with a 9:1 ratio of wood to steel. The development’s skyscraper centerpiece with 450 thousand square meters total area will house a hotel, offices, retail and residences. When complete, it will not only be the tallest timber tower in the world but also the tallest building in Japan. W350 is estimated to need over 185 thousand cubic meters of wood and cost approximately US$ 5.6 billion. This would be enough for 8000 of the company’s built-to-order homes. While the building framework will be made of a hybrid timber-steel structure, the interior will feature exposed wood in an attempt to bring people closer to nature. Sumitomo Forestry will research wood-based materials that can withstand flames for three hours. The plans also include waterfalls and such fire-resistant plants on the exterior of the building. The company hopes that the project will popularize timber architecture and help jumpstart a revitalization of the forestry industry in rural areas and interest in reforestation.