Google laid out more of its plans Thursday night for a data center campus near Palo, and the numbers point to a large, multi-year construction job for eastern Iowa.
Company leaders told Linn County residents they plan to break ground by early next year and want the data center operating within two years, KCRG reported. The full project, six buildings near a nuclear power plant that is planned to reopen, would take until 2031 to complete.
What's proposed
The facility would sit northeast of the intersection of Palo Marsh Road and Comp Road, KWWL reported. It would include six one-story data center buildings covering about 650 acres, plus another 100 acres of buffer with trees and other landscaping.
According to KWWL, the facility would employ up to 2,500 construction workers over the course of the project, which Google hopes to finish by fall 2031. Construction could begin early next year if the Palo City Council approves the project.
Google leaders said they're still in the planning stages, KWWL reported.
Water use
The water numbers drew attention. KCRG reported the data center would use 10 million to 14 million gallons of water a day, and it will not use a closed-loop cooling system, which uses less water. Google told the room the region has enough capacity to support it.
"The basin has long term capacity and low overall physical water scarcity," a panelist said, according to KCRG.
Google also said it would pay for the infrastructure. "We are hyper focused on paying our way for the water infrastructure. That will absolutely be 100% our bill to pay. That includes domestic water and waste water infrastructure," said Eric Murray, Google's director of global infrastructure and energy investments, according to KWWL.
Murray also said the company is not seeking tax increment financing. "We're going to pay real property taxes. We're not doing a TIF," he said.
Why Palo, not Linn County
Residents asked why Google turned away from Linn County to work with Palo. The county says it's because it passed stricter environmental rules and asked for more money, KCRG reported.
Allyson Eastman, Google's workforce development manager, said there has been a lot of misinformation about the project but couldn't discuss why the company left talks with the county. "We are committed to working with the city of Palo and we are still working with Linn County on some aspects," she said.
Eastman said Google is coming to the community earlier than it has in the past. "We have waited until almost groundbreaking in the past," she said, adding that the company recently changed its approach to data center development in response to what it's hearing from communities.
Traffic
Traffic to and from the site was another concern. Google said it plans to work with Palo and the county to avoid the kinds of problems seen on Cedar Rapids' southwest side, where two data centers are under construction, according to KCRG.
Why it matters for contractors
Up to 2,500 construction workers over a build running into 2031 is a long, deep pipeline of work for eastern Iowa. Six data center buildings on roughly 650 acres means years of site work, concrete, steel, roofing, electrical, mechanical and low-voltage work, plus the water and wastewater infrastructure Google says it will pay for, and 100 acres of landscaped buffer.
There's a catch, though. The Cedar Rapids area already has two data centers under construction, so skilled trades and local roads could be stretched. Subcontractors may find themselves competing for the same workers.
The project isn't approved yet. Contractors should follow the Palo City Council's review closely. If it moves on Google's schedule, bid activity for early site packages could start soon.