VILLAGE OF CALEDONIA, Wis. — A Microsoft data center could be coming to southeast Wisconsin after months of discussions between the Village of Caledonia board and developers about a 244-acre project called "Project Nova."
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The proposed data center would sit southwest of the Oak Creek Power Plant on WE Energies land near Douglas Avenue and State Highway 32. Dewberry Engineering is spearheading the rezoning project that could green-light the multi-building campus.
The village president confirmed Tuesday that Microsoft would operate the proposed facility after three to four months of talks with Dewberry. The project has divided residents ahead of a village board meeting.
Prescott Balch opposes the data center and has been part of a group that's collecting signatures on a petition. The group is called the Caledonia Residents Against Rezoning.
"We're an oasis of rural space, sandwiched in between Oak Creek and Racine, and we'd like to keep it that way," Balch said. "It's not because we're opposed to development, but we're in favor of smart development and we're in favor of maintaining the beauty and rural nature of this village."
Balch acknowledges Microsoft's stability as a company but worries about the village's ability to negotiate with the tech giant.
Watch: What Caledonia neighbors really think about Microsoft moving in as new data center proposed
"I think there's a pro there that it's a large stable company that likely isn't going to go bankrupt. On the other hand, the tiny little village of Caledonia of 22,000 people versus Microsoft is a battle I don't think Caledonia wins," Balch explained.
Scott Jurk supports bringing the Microsoft facility to Caledonia, citing potential tax benefits for the community.
"Whether it's Microsoft or any of the other big data companies out there, they're gonna build them," Jurk said. "Bringing in sources like industry or like these data centers that will pay taxes, it can only help us."
"Initially, yeah, it's a risk, but things don't stay the same," Jurk added.
Balch hopes to get answers about the project's timeline and resource usage at the village board meeting.
"Are they gonna build all three buildings at the same time? What's the electrical use, what's the water use?" Balch said. "Are they committing to building all three? Are they committing to a particular timeline? What happens if they don't meet that timeline? Are we gonna revert the zoning if they decide not to build?"
At Tuesday night's meeting, Dewberry will be laying out Project Nova. No vote will take place.
This story was reported on-air by Jenna Rae 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.
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