F5 headquarters in Seattle. Image courtesy of F5.
F5’s current headquarters in Seattle. Image courtesy of F5.

F5 Networks may be feeling a little cramped. The networking technology company headquartered in the Interbay area of Seattle is adding 20,000 square feet of office space this summer, but that may soon be dwarfed by an expansion of up to 600,000 square feet in the coming years.

Real estate industry sources told the Puget Sound Business Journal that F5 has started the process of looking for 500,000–600,000 square feet of new office space in King County. That’s about 90 percent larger than its current Interbay space.

F5 spokesperson Nathan Misner said in a statement that the company is “exploring options” for future locations, but has no immediate plans to move from the Interbay offices.

“Our current lease is not up until 2022, so while we are requesting information for potential properties available throughout King County, we do not have any plans to move our headquarters at this time,” he said.

Misner declined to comment on the exact reason for the new space and why the search is starting now. The company has been adding about 100 people every quarter, so more space will be needed soon. Currently, the company employs about 1,600 people at its Seattle area offices, which include a 15,000 square foot space in Bellevue in addition to the Interbay headquarters.

While F5 has the option to expand from the new office space it announced earlier this year near the existing HQ, Misner said at the time that the company still needs more space. However, it wanted to keep its teams close together in buildings that still felt like they were part of the F5 community.

According to the source the Journal spoke with, the move or expansion wouldn’t come until at least 2020, just a year after Expedia plans to move into its new offices in the old Amgen space down the street from F5.

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