SEATTLE — Expedia employees are moving into the company's new headquarters in Seattle this week.
The move from Bellevue to Seattle's Interbay neighborhood has been in the works for years.
The 40-acre campus features open views of the Seattle skyline, Elliot Bay, and the Olympic mountains. About 1.6 acres along the waterfront will be open to the public.
It sits in the old Amgen property along Elliott Avenue along the waterfront.
Though some tech companies across the country are opting to try out smaller tech cities to save on costs, Expedia Group saw the move to Seattle as an advantage.
"As you see companies moving back and forth across Lake Washington between Bellevue and Seattle, it really is more indicative of the really wealth of tech talent Puget Sound wide, we're confident whether we're in Seattle or Bellevue, we'll be able to attract the same type of talent," said Josh deBerge, a spokesperson for Expedia Group.
Approximately 4,500 employees will gradually move over to the new campus between now and February 2020.
Expedia has room to expand in Interbay in the long-term and could nearly double its workforce to 8,000.
Expedia and the city say they have been working together for years to prepare for the big move and to ease anticipated road congestion. The goal, the company says, is to discourage employees from driving to work solo. They plan to do that by giving out free ORCA transit cards, subsidizing carpools and ride sharing, opening a 400-stall bike storage facility, offering shuttles, and charging market-rate parking for anyone who decides to drive alone to work - that can run as much as $16 a day. Employees will get a $5 bonus for every day they take public transit, bike, or walk.
