Redmond's Relationship with Microsoft Presented in New Multimedia Project

The Microsoft communications team is exploring new corporate marketing territory with the recent publication of "88 Acres," a sweeping multimedia project that details the company's energy-saving efforts and the development of its Redmond campus over the years.

A Microsoft representative told local tech blog GeekWire the style of 88 Acres was directly inspired by "Snow Fall," the New York Times story about a deadly avalanche at Stevens Pass that generated a Pulitzer Prize for journalist John Branch on Monday.

WATCH: Microsoft time-lapse video shows original Redmond campus under construction

The first chapter of Microsoft's four-part story, which bears a subtitle of "How Microsoft Quietly Built the City of the Future," begins with a giant aerial photo of the Overlake campus, with Lake Washington and the Seattle skyline in the distance. 

Part two includes a video interview with longtime City of Redmond planning manager Judd Black, who describes a pre-Microsoft Redmond.

Back then, there wasn’t even a store in town to buy underwear, and from city hall you’d have to walk to the grocery store for lunch because the nearest fast food restaurant was too far away, says Judd Black, who has worked for the Redmond planning department for 26 years.

“Redmond and Microsoft, we’ve grown up together, and we’ve learned from each other quite a bit,” Black says. “We’ve both worked to create a great place for people to work and live.”

The name "88 Acres" comes from the size of Microsoft's original campus—built on what was originally intended to become a shopping center. Today, the campus includes 500 acres of office space, labs, recreational space and restaurants. 

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Have you checked out "88 Acres"? What did you think of the project? Tell us in the comments section.