University could triple in size without expanding into foothills, study finds

Stanford University could almost triple the density of its campus without expanding into undeveloped land in the foothills, according to a new study.

The study, released Wednesday by Santa Clara County, was conducted to help answer questions from the community such as when will Stanford stop expanding and what will its maximum build-out look like?

It comes as the university seeks county approval to develop 2.3 million square feet of new academic space through 2035. According to the study, Stanford could grow from 15.2 million square feet to 44 million square feet without changing its boundaries by redeveloping parking facilities, redoing buildings to accommodate more people and relocating agricultural lands and athletic fields.

“The University could continue to grow at its historic rate of 200,000 square feet of growth a year for another century without expanding beyond the flats into the Foothills,” a county news release states.

Stanford has expanded its campus by an average of 210,600 square feet a year since 1961.

The study doesn’t reflect any future Stanford plans beyond 2035, but hypothesizes long-term growth based on data from similar research universities, anticipated development in surrounding communities and resource constraints that could limit future campus development.

“It tells us what could happen, it doesn’t tell us what the university’s plans are today, and it certainly doesn’t tell us what the university’s plans are 25, 50 or 100 years from now,” county Supervisor Joe Simitian told this news organization. “I think the study forces us to consider a lot of questions that may have been pushed to the back of the mind before.”

In response to the study, Stanford issued a statement contending it has no way of knowing what its needs will be beyond 2035 and the county has the authority to approve or reject future development plans.

“It is not possible to know what the needs of the university and the community will be in the future,” the statement reads. “While (the study) concludes that more facilities can be accommodated on the campus, the County retains control to decide whether to allow such development through future use permit proceedings.”

One aim of the study was to demonstrate that “there is no reason for not having further commitment of protecting open space,” Simitian said.

Protections for roughly 3,000 square feet of undeveloped foothills land expire in 2025, but Stanford would still require a majority of county supervisors after 2025 to change the land use.