It sailed into the tech world's consciousness all of a sudden last October — and now it seems it's about to sail right out again.
The secretive Google-owned barge, moored off Treasure Island in the middle of San Francisco Bay, does not have its paperwork in order, according to the San Francisco Bay Conservation and Development Commission. After investigating a number of complaints, the agency discovered that Google lacks the necessary permits to keep it in its current location.
See also: Google: Mystery Barge Is a Place to Showcase Tech — For Now
The four-story barge was the subject of much debate when a CNET reporter first uncovered it last year. Early speculation focused on the possibility that the barge might be a wave-powered offshore data center in the making, but Google later confirmed that it was designed to be a floating showroom for cutting-edge products such as Google Glass. A similar barge was discovered in Portland, Maine around the same time.
Work has been halted on the barge ever since it began to attract media attention — but if Google didn't even have permits to anchor it in the first place, that suggests that the company's plans were more haphazard than first suspected.
This latest news drives yet another wedge between Google and San Francisco, coming just two weeks after the company was asked to pay the city for using public bus stops to pick up passengers on its controversial employee shuttle bus service.
Google did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
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