Patent Office to move into San Jose City Hall
- Greg Baumann
- Editor in Chief- Silicon Valley Business Journal
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The patent office, led by Silicon Valley Director Michelle Lee, will occupy about 40,000 square feet, split evenly on the second floor of the wing building and on the 14th floor of the tower building, according to a press release from the Department of Commerce.
San Jose's city government is offering the patent office free rent for two years. After those two years, the patent office will only pay operational expenses for the space for another four years. The federal agency will be required to pay market rate rent for years six through 10 of the occupancy. The patent office plans to move into the new space by the end of 2014.
The placement of the patent office in city hall represents a win for downtown San Jose, as the patent office will draw about additional workers to its core neighborhood each day in its first year of operation. It will draw some workers south from Menlo Park, where the patent office has its temporary offices.
The second floor operations in City Hall will include public space, the director's office and at least 18 patent judge offices within the first year of operations. The 14th floor offices will include at least 60 patent examiners in the first year of operations, public conference and collaboration spaces and support staff.
Lee said the office will be a destination for patent-seekers across the western U.S., as it will be the only office on the West Coast. It will also allow local startups to attend patent hearings in person, she said on a conference call.
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