Apple promotes 'Campus 2' job creation, economic benefits for Cupertino

Apple on Tuesday published a new report detailing the estimated economic impact its new "Campus 2" headquarters would have on the City of Cupertino and surrounding areas, including the creation of thousands of jobs, as well as a windfall of tax revenue for local governments.

The report was prepared by Keyser Marston Associates for the City of Cupertino, and addresses the economic and financial impacts of Apple's presence within the city. It offers the conclusion that the completion of Apple's so-called "spaceship" campus is "vital to the region."

In particular, the report finds that Apple would add an estimated 7,400 new high-quality jobs as a result of its expanded corporate headquarters. As a result, it's projected that Apple's efforts would increase the revenue of local businesses, and also enhance tax revenues for the City of Cupertino, and other surrounding municipalities.

It's currently estimated that Apple will generate an $8 million net fiscal surplus for the City of Cupertino in fiscal year 2012-2013. The addition of its new campus would increase that annual sum to $11.2 million in net tax revenues.

As for property taxes, Apple's Campus 2 would result in $31.7 million in net new property taxes to all local agencies, $1.7 million of which would go to the City of Cupertino.

Construction of Campus 2 would also create a tax windfall for the city, the study finds. It projects total revenues of $38.1 million collected from Cupertino-related construction sales, taxes and assorted fees.

Apple's Campus 2 plans also call for Apple to fund more than $66 million in public improvements around the facility in the form of one-time investments. These would cover roadways, utilities, bicycle and pedestrian facilities, park land, and more.

Apple has also pledged to contribute $35 million per year to a transportation demand management program. Through this, the company plans to implement its alternative commute program for employees.

"With net annual sales in excess of $156 billion, 16,000 employees currently based in the Cupertino area, and annual purchases from local Silicon Valley-based businesses of $4.6 billion, Apple is a cornerstone of the Silicon Valley economy and of the fiscal resources of the City of Cupertino," the report states in its executive summary.

Apple's new corporate headquarters will be located about a mile east of its current location in Cupertino, Calif. The company plans to migrate about 12,000 workers to the site, but also plans to retain its existing office space at 1 Infinite Loop.

The circular four-story main facility will be one of the largest buildings in the world at 2.8 million square feet. The project earned its "spaceship" moniker from Apple co-founder Steve Jobs himself, who said at a Cupertino City Council meeting that the project would look like one had landed in the city.

Jobs had a hands-on role in designing the facility, and he personally revealed the project at a City Council meeting in June 2011, just months before his death. It was there that he noted the project would be costly due in part to its use of curved glass, and recent estimates have pegged its total budget at $5 billion.

Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook announced in February that his company plans to move to its new "Campus 2" by 2016. That's a year later than the company had originally projected.