Hoping to be a “good neighbor” to its surrounding community, Facebook submitted plans for a mixed-use village at its Menlo Park campus just west of the Newbridge Park neighborhood, reports East Bay Times. 

The plans submitted earlier this month include a staggering 1.75 million square feet of office space, 1,500 units of housing, and 125,000 square feet of retail space. The retail offerings include pharmacy and grocery store, and a cultural/visitor center. 

Rendering Courtesy of OMA

Facebook’s vice president of global facilities and real estate, John Tenanes, revealed construction would begin sometime in 2019 and the project would be occupancy-ready just a couple of years after that, pending approval. Appreciated by local residents is the fact that construction would be completed in phases. The first stage would be the grocery store, a highlight for some residents.

Facebook sees offerings like the grocery store as adding essentials to a neighborhood that has long gone without them. For some time now, residents in that area of Menlo Park have gone without the convenience of a nearby grocery retailer, having to travel up to 30 minutes to the nearest Safeway.

Along with the expansion, which is being designed by architectural firm Oma New York, Facebook also hopes to initiate upgrades within transit and transportation. Tenanes hopes that progress will advance for regional transit to support rapid growth and the new east-west connections. Facebook already plans on investing tens of millions of dollars to improve major commuter highway U.S. 101.