Community group presents demands to Google for San Jose mega campus

MOUNTAIN VIEW, Calif. (KGO) -- A coalition of faith, community and labor groups called Silicon Valley Rising presented a list of demands Thursday to Google.

Silicon Valley Rising said as planning gets underway for Google's mega-campus near the SAP Center and Diridon Caltrain station in San Jose, its members worry about displacement of low-income residents in the project area and the need for affordable housing.

RELATED: San Jose mayor to discuss talks with Google on Diridion station development

Their list of demands included:

• An affordable housing fund with 25 percent of units set aside for the lowest-income residents


• A labor agreement that gives local residents first consideration for jobs


• Support for local schools and housing access for teachers



• Funding for public bus services and traffic mitigation

RELATED: New Google San Jose complex could displace small businesses

Silicon Valley Rising campaign director Maria Noel Fernandez said the list was developed after soliciting input from 1,500 San Jose residents at town hall meetings and from surveys.

Javier Gonzalez, Google's public affairs manager, was on hand to receive the demands when Silicon Valley Rising held a news conference at Google's Mountain View headquarters Thursday morning.

A total of 38 community groups is involved in on-going meetings to discuss the project and what the groups would like to see. Three meetings of the Station Area Advisory Group have been held, the most recent this past Monday, with at least four more meetings scheduled. A Google spokesperson said the company welcomes these conversations.

Silicon Valley Rising's Fernandez hopes Google will eventually sign a community benefits agreement that spells out what the company will do. Such an agreement was signed by Facebook with a coalition of East Palo Alto-area community groups in 2016 to address housing needs, protection for tenants and displacement concerns.

Click here for a look at the Station Area Advisory Group agendas.

Click here to read the letter from Silicon Valley Rising Google's CEO.

And click here to read more stories about Google.