Google

Google is developing a data center project in Palo, Iowa, that has created a dispute between the city of Palo and Linn County. The project's specifics regarding capacity and investment value have not been disclosed in the available details. The disagreement between the municipal and county governments suggests tensions over jurisdictional, tax, or land-use issues related to the development. GCs, subcontractors, and vendors should monitor local government proceedings for project timeline and procurement updates.

Google acquired and redeveloped a data center project known as Project Maize, investing approximately $832 million to transform the former Federal Mogul facility at 402 Royal Road in Michigan City. The site had been vacant for over 15 years and qualifies as a Brownfield redevelopment. The project will support cloud computing and AI workloads and is expected to create more than 30 high-skill jobs. Google will cover the full cost of power and infrastructure associated with operations. The project completed an extensive approval process with the Michigan City Common Council. GCs and local trades should note Google's stated intent to hire locally for construction and ongoing operations.

Google has announced a new data center in Hermantown, Minnesota, partnering with Minnesota Power for energy supply. This represents a hyperscale facility development by Google in a relatively uncommon data center market in northern Minnesota. Minnesota Power, an ALLETE subsidiary, will serve as the energy provider for the facility. This is a notable signal for the Duluth/Hermantown area as it brings hyperscale investment to a non-traditional data center market, potentially opening opportunities for infrastructure, construction, and utility service providers. The project appears to be in early stages given the recent partnership announcement.

A Colorado CDPHE Permit to Construct has been associated with a new Google-funded data center that will be powered by a large natural gas plant. Google is the developer/funder of this facility located in Colorado. The involvement of a massive gas plant suggests a very large-scale data center campus with significant power demand, likely hundreds of megawatts. This is a Permit to Construct filing, which is among the earliest regulatory signals for new data center development in Colorado, typically preceding groundbreaking by several months to over a year. This represents a strong early-stage indicator for data center infrastructure sales opportunities tied to a major hyperscaler project.

Google purchased over 300 acres in Botetourt County, Virginia in June 2025 and finalized a $14 million deal to build a data center in March 2026. The Botetourt County Chamber of Commerce publicly endorsed the project as a transformative investment. The facility is expected to generate $30 million annually in local tax revenue upon completion. Construction will create at least 1,000 jobs at peak along with long-term high-quality positions. GCs and subcontractors should monitor this large-scale hyperscaler build for upcoming procurement opportunities.

Google is partnering with Georgia Power to fund home energy upgrades as the tech giant's data center expansion drives significant power demand in the state. This collaboration addresses the growing strain on local energy infrastructure caused by the surge in data center construction in Georgia. The partnership signals how hyperscale operators are increasingly investing in community energy programs to maintain goodwill and secure utility cooperation as power demands escalate. This development underscores the critical link between data center growth and regional energy planning.

Google filed construction permits for a 1 GW (1,000 MW) data center in Van Buren Township, Wayne County, Michigan. The project will require significant transmission and distribution infrastructure buildout by DTE Energy, positioning the greater Detroit metro area as a major new data center market.

Google is reportedly attempting to circumvent zoning regulations in an Iowa county to advance its data center development plans. The tech giant appears to be using creative strategies to navigate local land-use restrictions that could otherwise impede construction. This signals ongoing tensions between hyperscale operators seeking rapid expansion and local governments managing community impacts. The situation highlights the growing importance of zoning and permitting challenges as a key bottleneck in US data center development.

A rezoning request for a data center project in Yorkville, Illinois has been withdrawn, and the mayor of Yorkville has publicly stated that the city has 'had enough' data center proposals, signaling a hostile regulatory environment for future projects in this jurisdiction. The specific applicant or developer was not named in the available article details, but the withdrawal and the mayor's comments suggest significant local opposition to data center development in the Yorkville/Kendall County area of the greater Chicago market. This is a notable zoning signal for data center industry professionals as it indicates that Yorkville is unlikely to approve future data center rezoning applications in the near term, making it a less viable target for site selection and business development efforts. Sales professionals targeting the Chicago suburban market should deprioritize Yorkville and monitor whether this anti-data-center sentiment spreads to neighboring municipalities. The urgency is moderate — while this specific project is dead, the broader political signal is important for long-term pipeline planning in the region.

NIPSCO has signed a deal with Google for a data center in Northern Indiana. The utility says data centers will lower residential bills by up to $115 a year. NIPSCO, the local utility provider, is positioning the agreement as beneficial for existing ratepayers. Specific capacity and investment details were not disclosed. GCs, mechanical/electrical subs, and infrastructure vendors should monitor this project for upcoming procurement opportunities in the Northern Indiana market.