Southfield City Council discusses potential data center

SOUTHFIELD — The site plan for a proposed data center was presented to the Southfield City Council at its Dec. 8 committee of the whole meeting, and it will not be voted on until the next formal council meeting on Dec. 15.

The proposed data center would be placed on a vacant parcel of land along a section of Inkster Road between 11 Mile Road and Interstate 696. It is anticipated to be two stories, have a screening wall facing the adjacent residential area and span 12 acres. The Planning Commission passed the site plan with a favorable recommendation on Nov. 19. Due to its scale, the site plan still requires City Council approval, according to the meeting agenda packet.

Metrobloks Acquisitions and Development Coordinator Jon Prater said that the area was a huge draw for the development, with it being within the metro Detroit area.

Prater said the proposed center for Southfield would span 12 acres and use an anticipated 100 megawatts of utility power.

“Most hyper-scale projects are 400 acres and use 1,000 megawatts or more of power, but this project is much smaller,” he said. “It’s not going to impact the grid as much.”

Council President Pro Tem Coretta Houge asked about the impact of the project on energy and water usage. She asked if residents would be able to see the amount of utilities used by the data center.

“I want to make sure we are being proactive,” she said.

Prater said the center would use a closed-loop water system, which means the water initially drawn into the system would be the only water used. New water would not be drawn into the system. Prater also said water will not be used for cooling purposes.

Prater said Metrobloks wants to be respectful of the residences nearby the proposed site. A screening wall is planned, which would soften any noise generated by the data center.

As this was presented at a committee of the whole meeting, the city council did not vote on the data center project. It is expected that further discussions and voting will take place at the 6 p.m. Dec. 15 City Council meeting, located at the Southfield Municipal Campus, 26000 Evergreen Road.