MOUNTAIN VIEW — Google (GOOG) finally broke its silence Wednesday about that mysterious barge moored at Treasure Island, acknowledging for the first time that it’s responsible for the vessel and saying it hopes to use the massive structure on board “as an interactive space where people can learn about new technology.”
While that’s pretty vague, it’s consistent with what this newspaper reported last week, when a top official at the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission said Google approached his agency about permission to use the barge as some kind of floating venue for teaching about technology.
But the company didn’t elaborate, and it hasn’t moved any closer to obtaining the permits it would need to park the barge on a long-term basis in the bay, officials said Wednesday. The commission staff has already told Google that the agency will need more information to evaluate a permit request.
Legal experts say the tech giant may face significant hurdles there, since California discourages putting floating structures in the bay for an extended period of time unless they have a clear maritime purpose.
“The bay should never be seen as an opportunity to do something that could otherwise be done on land,” said BCDC Executive Director Larry Goldzband. His agency was created by a state law that aimed to reverse a century-long trend in which landfills, new construction and even sunken ships had reduced the bay’s size by a third.
Google declined to elaborate on its brief written statement, in which the company for the first time publicly acknowledged its ties to the mysterious barge that’s been the focus of intense speculation since the tech news site CNet revealed its existence two weeks ago.
Oddly enough, the statement said nothing about a second barge — currently moored in a harbor at Portland, Maine — that’s carrying a similar, four-story structure and is registered to the same shell company as the Treasure Island vessel. The statement also didn’t mention where Google hopes to deploy the barges when they are ready for use.
But the statement did put to rest an alternate theory that Google might be building a floating computer center, perhaps using seawater for cooling the servers.
“Google Barge … A floating data center? A wild party boat? A barge housing the last remaining dinosaur? Sadly, none of the above,” said the statement from a Google representative.
“Although it’s still early days and things may change, we’re exploring using the barge as an interactive space where people can learn about new technology,” the statement added.
Google also did not specifically address news reports that claimed Google wants to use the floating structures as showrooms for its wearable Internet gadget, Glass, and other products from the company’s closely guarded Google X division.
That’s the arm of Google, overseen by co-founder Sergey Brin, that is responsible for pursuing long-shot ideas like the company’s self-driving car and its plan for beaming Internet service to remote regions from a flotilla of helium balloons.
Google’s statement Wednesday prompted some pundits to recall that CEO Larry Page has spoken frequently about pushing the company to pursue more so-called “moon shot” projects. In a speech last summer, Page mused that it would be nice to create an area, somewhere in the world, where it would be possible to experiment with new technology without running afoul of laws and regulations.
Both Google barges are capable of ocean travel. But how they fit into Page’s goals remains to be seen.
Contact Brandon Bailey at 408-920-5022; follow him at Twitter.com/BrandonBailey.
