HP to Close Cupertino Campus

CUPERTINO, Calif. (KCBS) Computer giant Hewlett-Packard announced on Thursday that it plans to close its campus in Cupertino, while transferring thousands of workers to its Palo Alto headquarters over the next two years.

The 100-acre campus has been home to some of HP's personal computer division as well as some of the company's commercial software and hardware units.  Click to Listen

Cupertino Mayor Kris Wang tells the San Jose Mercury News that the announcement is a blow to the city, which gets tax revenue from HP's operations in Cupertino.

HP's chief administrative officer Pete Bocian said in a memo to employees that by consolidating operations in Palo Alto, the company will "create a more productive, flexible, ecological and highly energized work environment."

Bocian also said that the Palo Alto and Cupertino campuses are each at 60 percent occupied and that HP hopes to reach 90 percent capacity in Palo Alto after the consolidation is completed over the next two years.

HP declined to say how many employees work at the Cupertino campus, but Cupertino City Councilman Barry Chang estimated the number is 3,000 to 3,500.

"It's bad news, no doubt about it," said Chang.

HP, which has more than 300,000 employees worldwide, has gone through several waves of consolidation and has laid off thousands of employees in recent years.