MOUNT PLEASANT — The Mount Pleasant Village Board of Trustees approved two Microsoft site plans Monday as the tech giant looks to expand its footprint in southeast Wisconsin.
One plan proposes a campus of nine data centers along Durand Avenue, while the other outlines a campus of six data centers along International Drive. Both sites are just east of Interstate 94.
The items were part of Monday's consent agenda, meaning they could be approved in a single motion without discussion, unless a board member requests an item be removed for individual discussion.
Several board members discussed the items within the consent agenda, prior to a unanimous vote to pass all items Monday evening.
The trustees voted after nearly an hour of public comment.
Monday's village board meeting followed the Plan Commission's vote to move the plans forward last Wednesday.
Watch: Racine County residents consider potential impact of proposed Microsoft expansion ahead of village vote
Racine County residents have mixed feelings about the potential expansion and its impact on the community.
TMJ4's Lauren Sklba spoke to several residents who live within eyesight of the site along International Drive.
One woman said she hopes Microsoft buys her house. Another man said the area was a great place to raise kids, but now he has no problems with Microsoft's planned expansion.
"I like the idea of more business. I think that's great. But definitely the impact of it—commuting, it's going to make it more difficult. But that's going to bring in more jobs, so that's great. So it's really going back-and-forth on the positive and the negative," said Lynda Studey, who lives in neighboring Elmwood Park.
She also expressed environmental concerns about the development.
"From an environmental standpoint, I definitely think about the surrounding areas. It is coming up on farmland, which is not developed, so you have to think about river runoff, how it's going to affect migration patterns, light pollution, items like that," Studey said.
Several people expressed concerns about the transparency of the process.
"Everyone seems to be finding out the same way, and that's through news sources," said Studey, who serves on the Village of Elmwood Park board. "To have a portal that we could check to see what's coming up, what's being proposed, just so we know."
Another Mount Pleasant resident told TMJ4 he feels the village prioritizes bringing in new taxpayers over caring for existing residents.
TMJ4 reached out to Village President David DeGroot about these concerns and to hear his thoughts on the potential impact, but did not hear back Monday.
TMJ4 also contacted the Racine County Economic Development Corporation with questions about the possible economic impact for the county, but did not receive a response as of Monday afternoon.
Village documents show the total taxable value of the two sites is estimated at more than $13 billion.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
It’s about time to watch on your time. Stream local news and weather 24/7 by searching for “TMJ4” on your device.
Available for download on Roku, Apple TV, Amazon Fire TV, and more.
