Google’s new futuristic campus hits roadblock with LinkedIn awarded key Mountain View real estate

In a move that could reportedly threaten Google’s campus expansion plans on its home turf in Mountain View, California, BizJournals reports that LinkedIn has won a bid for valuable real estate that Google was hoping it to use for a previously announced futuristic campus:

LinkedIn Corp. came away the clear victor late Tuesday in a pitched battle with neighbor Google Inc. and real estate developers for building rights in Mountain View’s North Bayshore district.. The city council handed LinkedIn about 1.4 million square feet, the lion’s share of roughly 2.2 million square feet of available commercial square footage for the area. Google came away with 515,000 square feet — enough for just one piece of its futuristic four-part campus expansion.

Back in February, Google shared plans for a new Mountain View campus using lightweight, moveable structures. But the project might be in jeopardy due to the decision to award LinkedIn much of the land to be used for the new buildings.

Google’s VP of real estate David Radcliffe reportedly described the decision as a “significant blow,” adding that he doesn’t know how the company will make “any of this economically viable with one building.”

Google does have a few other options, but it remains to be seen how expanding into other surrounding areas might change its plans for the new futuristic campus it announced plans for in February:

But Google also has a few chips to play, including its Charleston East development site (good for 600,000 square feet) next to Shoreline Park and its 1.1 million-square-foot “Bay View” development site at Moffett Field.