Google has been ordered to stop construction of its floating retail barge and tow the structure 80 miles east, out of the San Francisco Bay Area to the Port of Stockton in Central California after failing to obtain the proper building permits.
The mysterious $35 million barge began rising last summer off Treasure Island next to the Bay Bridge that links San Francisco and the Berkeley and Oakland side of the Bay Area. The project was originally described by Google as being a “temporary technology exhibit space.”
However, an investigation into the construction revealed that Google actually planned to use the barge as a floating retail store that the company’s representatives reportedly described as “an important opportunity for the launching” of Google Glass.
A permit from the Bay Conservation and Development Commission is required to moor a barge in the bay for any period of time, both during construction and were it to be moved to the City’s heavily trafficked Fisherman’s Wharf area to attract attention from tourists. Gaining such a permit requires a legitimate plan involving maritime or recreational use.
