New AI data center proposed in Southfield among others across Metro Detroit
Data center proposed for Southfield
The meeting was packed inside a smaller room at Southfield City Hall. The proposed site is a 110,000-square-foot vacant plot of land on Inkster Road between 11 Mile and 696.
SOUTHFIELD, Mich. (FOX 2) - Data center proposals are not only causing controversy in Saline Township and Howell; now, Southfield can be added to the list.
On Monday night, instead of a meeting for public comment, there was a presentation about the data center site proposal.
Big picture view:
The meeting was packed inside a smaller room at Southfield City Hall. The proposed site is a 110,000-square-foot vacant plot of land on Inkster Road between 11 Mile and 696.
Developer Jon Crater of Metro Bloks spoke at the meeting, addressing various concerns, including noise pollution, which he claims will be less loud than the highway, and jobs, stating they plan to hire 35 positions, many of which will be high-paying technical engineering jobs.
He also mentioned that the proposal includes a DTE substation on-site, which led to a councilwoman expressing one of her concerns.
"Data centers are known to have a very negative impact," said Councilwoman Ashanti Bland. "I heard you speak about absorbing all the costs, including upgrades. But quite frankly, DTE has been telling this community that they've been doing upgrades for years. Our school system has had to shut down at least 15 days over the last two years due to power surges and things like that. Our infrastructure is old. So my question is, how do you combat that, because there's no real environmental reliability or energy sourcing for a data center?"
"I think to start, it's important to note that the data centers you see in the news are the hyperscale projects at 1,000 megawatts or more. Ours is 100, so we're a lot smaller and it's not going to impact the grid as much," said Developer Jon Crater.
What's next:
Next week, there will be an opportunity for public comment about the data center. However, that wasn't the only topic discussed tonight; there was also a proposal for a brand new Costco that is generating a lot of discussion.