Google St. John's Terminal

Originally the 1934 southern terminus for New York’s High Line, St. John’s Terminal has been reimagined as the New York headquarters for Google’s Global Business Organization. This transformation marks a fundamental shift toward a teams-first environment, setting a new benchmark for how experiential design elevates a workplace into a vibrant center for placemaking and community creation.

With a NYC workforce surpassing 14,000, Google needed to transition from traditional office space to a dynamic headquarters that served as a steward of the building’s history. The challenge was to redefine the sustainable, collaborative office while fostering DEIB (diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging). Following a successful partnership at Pier 57, Google engaged Elevate to lead the experiential design, tasked with creating a space that would accelerate the innovations powering Google’s global business.

Over three years of strategic planning and prototyping, Elevate brought Google’s story to life through 21 unique activations across four floors, merging large-scale technology with human-centric storytelling. The solution features heritage-inspired metal sculptures with programmable lighting alongside a Community Hub and QR-coded story plaques that facilitate interactive connection. This responsive environment is further defined by an artistic Event Wayfinding System, climate-driven visuals with electromechanical wind chimes, and purposeful spaces like the Community Garden and Reflecting Pools that showcase Google’s community and technical innovations.