Google plans to build an office and research center, and employ some 1,000 workers, in Ann Arbor, home to the University of Michigan, where Google cofounder and Michigan native Larry Page received his undergrad degree in engineering, reports the New York Times.

The U of M library is among those Google is digitizing. That project will take up some 40,000 of the 240,000 square feet of office space Google will be moving into. Most of the space would be used for a technology and call center.

Michigan has lost nearly 300,000 jobs since 2000, many of those in southeast Michigan, where many auto plants have been shut down. Google is spending $1.5 billion this year on on custom technology as well as operations centers, including one in The Dalles, Ore.