Microsoft in Wisconsin; Mount Pleasant may become data center hub
Mount Pleasant may become Microsoft data center hub
Microsoft is asking Mount Pleasant officials to approve 15 new data centers on the former Foxconn site, a major expansion that could reshape the area into a large data center hub.
MOUNT PLEASANT, Wis. - Mount Pleasant could soon become home to a massive concentration of data centers if Microsoft moves forward with new expansion plans.
What we know:
The tech giant is set to go before the village’s Plan Commission on Wednesday, Jan. 21, asking for approval to build 15 additional data centers on the former Foxconn site. Microsoft already owns the land, having purchased it from Foxconn several years ago.
Each proposed building would cover roughly the area of 10 football fields, transforming farmland once promised for a sprawling LCD screen factory into what would effectively be a data center campus.
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Documents uploaded ahead of the Wednesday meeting outline the scale of Microsoft’s plans. East of Interstate 94 and south of State Highway 11, the company wants to construct nine data centers, each measuring nearly 580,000 square feet.
"Think of it as a hotel for computers. It has everything they need to thrive," said Steven Goodman, senior director of technology at Marquette University.
Microsoft has already received approval to flatten the land at the site.
Directly north of that area, plans call for a second site with six data centers, each just over 568,000 square feet.
What they're saying:
"Infrastructure buildouts progress only when communities conclude that the benefits outweigh the costs," said Brad Smith, Microsoft vice chair and president.
The proposal comes one week after Smith, a Wisconsin native, unveiled what Microsoft calls a "community-first" artificial intelligence initiative. The company pledges to pay higher utility rates, increase transparency and partner more closely with the community.
"We will minimize our water use, and we will replenish more of your water than we will use," said Smith.
Dig deeper:
The new Mount Pleasant proposal follows Microsoft’s decision to scrap earlier plans to build data centers north of the area in Caledonia.
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Goodman, who previously oversaw about 400 data centers while working at GE Healthcare, said Microsoft’s ambitions in Mount Pleasant may extend beyond the current proposal.
"They're hedging their bets right now and they're buying that land for either expanding the data centers in the future, or expanding the types of facilities that they're going to provide themselves," Goodman said. "And one of them could be power."
The 15 proposed data centers would be in addition to two Microsoft data centers already under construction southeast of the new sites.
What's next:
The Mount Pleasant Plan Commission is scheduled to meet Wednesday at 1 p.m.
Microsoft in Wisconsin; new $4B investment in Mount Pleasant datacenter
Microsoft, along with state and local leaders, held a news conference on Thursday, Sept. 18 to announce Microsoft’s next infrastructure investment in Wisconsin.
The Source: The information in this post was collected and produced by FOX6 News.