Mark Zuckerberg's plans to overhaul his luxury residence have suffered a setback, The San Jose Mercury News reported last week, after a city advisory board issued a recommendation to reject his proposal on the basis it would reduce housing stock in the Facebook founder's Palo Alto neighborhood.
In May, a public document filed with the city of Palo Alto, California, showed detailed plans to reduce the size of the four houses that surround Zuckerberg's home. In October 2013, the Facebook chief bought the four extra houses on his street in order to take their backyards for his own and use the houses as a buffer.
Nonetheless, the local Architectural Review Board voted 3-1 on Thursday to recommend that the city planning director not approve the plans, the publication reported. An agenda for the meeting posted online said that a number of residents in the Crescent Park neighborhood had provided comments on the project.
The majority focused on the potential construction impacts associated with building four new residences concurrently, as well as concerns regarding the basements and potential groundwater pumping.
The board said that the idea would violate zoning codes, and some members stated the new homes were not "credible" single-family dwellings. They reasoned it would be hard to sell if marketed individually in the future.
Local media state that the plans are due to privacy concerns from Zuckerberg after a developer had originally planned to build a house next door that would have been tall enough to have a view of his master bedroom.
The project will now return to the city's planning director, who will decide whether to advance the project, according to theMercury News.
Walker Warner Architects had mocked up the designs, with the goal being to ensure the homes and surrounding gardens "blend seamlessly with the neighborhood and feel as if they have always been there."
Kathy Scott, of Walker-Warner Architects, said the project seeks to expand her client's space for "residential functions," according to the newspaper.
Facebook did not immediately respond when contacted by CNBC for comment.