Data Centers
Project Announcements
Amazon Plans Montgomery County, Missouri, Data Center Operations
Applied Digital Plans Rapides Parish, Louisiana, Operations
Google Plans Montgomery County, Missouri, Data Center Operations
Nebius Plans Independence, Missouri, AI Operations
IonQ Expands Bothell, Washington, Operations
IBM Plans Chicago, Illinois, AI Data Center Operations
Corderill Plans Meridian, Mississippi, Operations
Creekstone Energy Plans Millard County, Utah, Data Center Operations
Amazon Web Services Expands Mississippi Data Center Operations
Premier Brands of America Plans Lackawanna County, Pennsylvania, Manufacturing Operations
Google Plans Putnam County, West Virginia, Data Center Operations
Metrobloks Plans Liberty, Missouri, Data Center Operations
Minth Group Limited Plans Gadsden, Alabama, Manufacturing Operations
MarfoFMA Plans Covington, Kentucky, Production Operations
Recent Features
Google’s 100-Year Bet
What Alphabet’s century bond signals about the future of data center site selection.
Can AI Help This Supply Chain?
Companies are changing how they forecast demand, manage inventory, and make location decisions — and that transformation is happening against a backdrop of tariff turbulence, nearshoring pressure, and relentless port volatility. Here's how to read the signals.
The Infrastructure of Intelligence
Why the next economic map will be drawn in megawatts, not square feet.
The AI Arms Race Comes to Your Backyard
The race to build AI infrastructure is no longer just a technology story — it’s a geopolitical one.
When Natural Gas Can’t Move, Compute Can
How North Dakota’s stranded natural gas can drive AI.
What Does “Site Readiness” Really Mean?
A roundup of programs—and the consultants who know what they’re worth.
40th Annual Corporate and 22nd Annual Consultant Site Selection Survey Results
For decades, the bedrock question of corporate site selection was some version of the same calculation: where can we do this most cheaply? That era is not simply fading. According to the results of Area Development's 2026 Annual Survey of Site Selection Consultants, it has ended. Welcome to the new era of operational certainty.
JLL, InfraPartners Bet Prefab Can Cut AI Data Center Timelines by Up to 22 Months
A new build model overlaps site work and fabrication to accelerate AI infrastructure delivery.
2026 Data Center Outlook: What Actually Changes Next
Demand is a given. Power, timelines, and execution are not — and that’s where 2026 decisions are getting made.
Data Centers in 2025: When Power Became the Gatekeeper
The era of easy expansion is over—success now depends on early alignment among utilities, governments, and capital.
Why Utilities Are Becoming Developers
The energy transition is reshaping real estate strategy as utilities and corporations compete for control of generation assets.
Around the Horn: Data Center Supply Chains — What's Next?
Area Development magazine caught up with its Q2 guest editors, Ford Graham and Steven Pearce from McGuireWoods consulting, to talk about their reporting on data center supply chains. We also invited Ermengarde Jabir Director of Economic Research at Moody’s to join the discussion.
Electrons Are the New Gatekeepers
As grid capacity tightens, manufacturers must treat energy as a core site selection filter.
Supply Chain Whiplash Reshapes CRE
Power, ports, and unpredictability are pushing manufacturers to rethink their entire real estate approach.
Powering the Next Generation of Projects
Small modular reactors could help meet surging demand for energy in manufacturing and data centers.
Data Center Demand Stabilizes Amid Changing Market Forces
Pre-leasing slows, location criteria evolve, and real estate tax structures face pressure from leaner buildouts.
From Silicon to Server: Mapping the Data Center Supply Chain
How suppliers and innovators have powered the explosive growth of America’s data center infrastructure.
New Rules for the Cloud Rush
What developers need to know about how states are regulating data centers—and utilities are shifting the cost burden.
Energy Costs and Constraints Are Reshaping Site Selection in 2025
Surging energy demands, grid instability, and ESG pressures are changing how companies choose new facility locations.
Facility Deployments in a Dynamic Electric Landscape
How companies can adapt to evolving utility policies, secure reliable power, and mitigate risks in a shifting electric landscape.
Is It Time to Start Planning for Quantum Data Centers?
It’s looking like a question of when, not if. A look ahead at this emerging technology — and what it means for economic development.
Unlock Efficiency and Performance in Data Centers
Aging data centers face mounting pressures to evolve as 55 percent of facilities are over a decade old. Strategic upgrades can unlock new levels of reliability, scalability, and energy efficiency.
The Colossus of Memphis: Elon Musk’s Supercomputing Investment Transforms the Region
Five Strategies to Tackle the Data Center Talent Shortage
The booming data center industry urgently needs more skilled workers to sustain growth.
AEP Ohio Proposes Controversial Data Center Rate Hike Amid Power Demand Surge
AEP Ohio, the state’s largest power provider, has proposed a controversial new rate structure targeting data centers and cryptocurrency mining operations, prompting strong opposition from tech giants such as Google, Amazon, Microsoft, and Meta.
The Impact of the November Election on the Auto Industry: Navigating a Revolutionary Transition
Continuation or expansion of current mandates and incentives would accelerate the transition to electric vehicles, while a rollback might provide temporary relief for ICE manufacturers but hinder long-term progress towards cleaner technologies.
21st Annual Shovel Awards: The Projects of the Year
The investments that stood apart for their scale, strategic significance, and economic impact — from advanced manufacturing and life sciences to headquarters expansions and AI-powered data centers.
Contributed Content
How Ohio Is Powering America’s Next Industrial Wave
With surging demand, business-friendly legislation and billions in investment, Ohio is building the energy infrastructure that factories, data centers and advanced manufacturers need to grow.
The Evolving Landscape of AI Infrastructure
AI is reshaping site strategy. This episode explores compressing “Time to First Token,” power-first location decisions, and the execution discipline executives need as data centers scale, faster than real estate cycles.
Contributed Content
Potential Energy: Why Power Availability is Driving Site Selection
In today’s economic development landscape, power availability is no longer an item on a checklist — it's often the entire list.
Contributed Content
Plugging into Kansas: Power, Policies and People Will Propel Data Centers
New nuclear innovation, forward-looking energy policy and workforce alignment position Kansas as a scalable partner for next-generation data center investment.
Peek a Boo Data Centers
AI’s power hunger is pushing data centers underground, underwater—and soon into orbit—redefining cooling, reliability, and sustainable energy.
Editor's Note: The Year Site Selection Grew Up
Energy availability takes center stage as companies compete for grid capacity and rethink growth strategies
First Person: David Robey, Co-CEO of QTS Data Centers
With QTS rapidly scaling to meet hyperscaler and enterprise demand across North America and Europe, Co-CEO David Robey shares his perspective on site selection, utilities, incentives, and what’s next for the industry. Robey, who previously served as COO, brings a tactical mindset to an evolving set of location priorities.
First Person: Joe Capes, CEO, LiquidStack
LiquidStack CEO Joe Capes on choosing Texas for expansion, working through AI supply chain shocks, and why hot water is the future of cooling.
Around the Horn: Getting Power to Projects-A Discussion
Guest Editor Bradley Migdal leads an illuminating discussion with Karla T. Moran, Manager of Economic Development at Salt River Project, and Coleman Peiffer, Senior Business Attraction Manager at Alliant Energy, exploring infrastructure challenges and solutions for large-scale manufacturing and data center projects. This conversation has been lightly edited for style and space.
