Port council considers key data center agreement

The Port Washington Common Council on Wednesday was to meet in closed session to review what could become a linchpin of the proposed data center campus project — a developer’s agreement between the city and Vantage Data Centers.

The meeting was scheduled for 45 minutes before the Common Council’s regular meeting on Aug. 6, during which Mayor Ted Neitzke was to present an update on the status of negotiations over the agreement.

If the document is ready, Neitzke said last week, he would present the draft agreement at the meeting. 

The Common Council could then take public comments on it and vote on the document at its 6:30 p.m. Tuesday, Aug. 19, meeting.

The city had hoped to have an agreement in place last month, but that meeting was delayed.

“We are being diligent in our discussions and negotiations,” Neitzke said at the time. “There’s been no snags, but I’ve been told with this large a project there are unique details that come up and we’re working our way through them.

“We should be set by Aug. 6 — that’s our target.”

Once the agreement is in place, he added, he expects Vantage will move quickly to submit plans so work on the project can begin in the coming months.

The agreement is expected to cover a plethora of details, including timelines for construction, infrastructure improvements  and potential tax incremental financing to extend services such as utilities to the site, which only recently was annexed into the City of Port.

While the agreement wasn’t on the agenda for action Wednesday, aldermen were expected to have an initial review of petitions from VDC Wisco Realty Investments 2 to annex 753.36 acres of land from the Town of Port into the city and rezone it to accommodate the data center.

In May, the city annexed and rezoned 562.4 acres for the first phase of the data center project. 

In all, the data center project is expected to encompass almost 2,000 acres that stretch from the city’s north limits to Dixie Road between the Ozaukee Interurban Trail and I-43.

In the last several months, Vantage has purchased 1,070 acres of land for more than $60 million for the data center, according to Wisconsin Department of Revenue records.

The proposed data center campus is expected to use as much as 3.5 gigawatts of power. While American Transmission Co. in spring identified a route for transmission lines to bring power to that site, this week it notified property owners that changes are being made to the project to accommodate “additional electrical demand needed to support the proposed load growth in Port Washington.”

The new proposal is expanded in its scope, according to a letter sent to property owners, now encompassing work in parts of Calumet, Fond du Lac, Sheboygan, Ozaukee and Washington counties.

In Ozaukee County, the route goes from Highway 57 to the data center property on a path that’s largely between Willow Road and Hawthorne Drive, according to the company.

According to ATC, instead of a single structure to carry the electrical lines as originally planned, the project will now require two structures.

This, the company said, will increase the required easements needed for the project from 150 feet in width to 250 feet.

ATC will host two local open houses and an online event to discuss the options with property owners.

Open houses will be held on Tuesday, Aug. 19, from noon to 2 p.m. and 4 to 6 p.m. at Lepanto Banquet Hall in the Holiday Inn Express and Suites on Seven Hills Road.

The online open house will be at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, Aug. 14. Those attending are asked to register online at https://tinyurl.com/2m3447a2.

Whatever route ATC selects must be approved by the Wisconsin Public Service Commission, something that is expected to be done later this year, according to the company.