Microsoft’s plans for its Mount Pleasant data center campus have shifted, as the company has modified its plans and now wants fewer buildings and more square footage, according to a report in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel.
The technology giant now plans seven data center buildings instead of nine, plus two utility substations and one storage building, according to documents submitted to the village Plan Commission.
“The current proposal under review has… combined square footage of 5,878,080,” Sean Ryan, communications director for the village of Mount Pleasant, said in an email to In Business Madison. “The site plan reviewed and approved in January … had 5.2 million square feet. If approved, this revised site plan would have fewer buildings and higher square footage.”
The changes, which come amid growing controversy over both large data centers and the artificial intelligence technology that drives them, will be considered by the Plan Commission during its next meeting on Wednesday.
The village of Mount Pleasant has approved up to 15 data centers on the campus. Microsoft has opened its first data center and is building a second one next to it.
Microsoft said in a statement that the changes “in no way reflect a reduction in our ambition, they have been made to ensure faster development, allowing us to access this increased capacity quicker.
“We will continue to evolve our design and keep the community updated prior to beginning any vertical construction,” the statement said.
Correction: An earlier version of this story incorrectly characterized the square footage of Microsoft’s plans for its Mount Pleasant data center.
