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Facebook has simply gotten too big for downtown Palo Alto, where it has been headquartered since founder Mark Zuckerberg uprooted the company from dorm rooms at Harvard. With over 600 employees now on its payroll, Facebook will be moving to a bigger facility at the Stanford Research Park outside town–a former HP building.

“This new space is the next step in our growth and positions us well to continue looking for a long term campus solution while also allowing employees to work together as much as possible,” a statement from Facebook read. The company plans to complete the move in the first quarter of 2009. They will, however, probably keep the downtown headquarters around, both for space and nostalgia’s sake.

“Palo Alto has been a great home for many start-ups and we are confident that with our move, other companies will occupy and thrive in the vacated spaces,” the statement read. “We will likely continue to have space in downtown Palo Alto as well. We have loved our time in downtown Palo Alto and consider it part of the DNA here at Facebook. Many of our employees live in the area and will continue to be a part of the downtown community.”

Facebook has, however, gotten rid of a housing subsidy offered to employees who opt to live in Palo Alto.