Exploring the potential to expand our presence in Ohio

***Update October 16, 2024***

After careful consideration, Microsoft has decided not to pursue the site on Breese Road. We appreciate the community’s engagement as we navigated our decision-making process.

August 12, 2024

Microsoft is investigating developing a datacenter in Perry Township. If approved, the datacenter will bring a range of benefits for the Lima community and the State of Ohio.

Understanding datacenters

Datacenters are facilities that house computers, servers, and other equipment that power the internet and cloud services. Whenever you open an app on your phone, join a virtual classroom or meeting, snap and save photos, or make an online appointment with your doctor, you are using a datacenter.

Datacenters are the backbone of the Microsoft Cloud, which provides services such as Office 365, Azure, Xbox Live, and Bing to millions of customers around the world. Microsoft operates more than 300 datacenters in over 34 countries and demand continues to grow as more people and businesses rely on cloud computing.

Proposed datacenter development in Perry Township

Microsoft is committed to advancing cloud services and enabling next-generation technology that will benefit customers across the Lima region and beyond. Datacenters are creating not just new opportunities for existing businesses, but also new companies and entirely new business categories through innovation.

Datacenters also support the local economy through job creation and increased tax revenue for public projects like improved roads and schools, construction jobs, datacenter jobs, and community investments to promote environmental sustainability, STEM education, and tech skills development. When we build a datacenter, we pledge to operate responsibly as a force for good in the community.

Several factors attracted Microsoft to Perry Township and the Lima region, including customer demand, the availability of suitable land, access to power and fiber optics, a quality workforce, and supportive local partners.

Microsoft is looking at a site that is approximately 350 acres in Perry Township. The site is currently zoned for industrial use and is undergoing a rezoning process to permit a datacenter. Microsoft currently anticipates that if developed, the site would include up to six datacenter buildings.

Compared to many other industrial facilities, datacenters do not create significant noise pollution or have a substantial impact on traffic flow or congestion. Microsoft aims to build datacenters that are best in class in performance, reliability, safety, aesthetics, and sustainability.

Community investments in the Lima region

As part of Microsoft’s Datacenter Community Pledge, we recognize that a strong and vibrant economy isn’t possible without a strong and vibrant community. That’s why Microsoft invests in programs that benefit the people who live and work in our datacenter communities. We look forward to supporting local priorities in the Lima community, such as tech skills development so residents can train for jobs in the technology sector.

In 2023, Microsoft began planning to build datacenters in Licking County, Ohio. Over the last year, we’ve invested in local programs that benefit people of all ages. Our collaborations have included:

• Central Ohio Technical College and Career & Technology Education Centers of Licking County, funding technology certification scholarships as part of Microsoft’s Datacenter Academy program.
• Licking County Foundation, funding the “Livable Licking County Fund” that supports workforce development and STEM programs.
• United Way of Licking County, funding:
  • A gener8tor Skills Accelerator program to support individuals facing underemployment and unemployment to gain technology skills and secure meaningful employment.
  • Housing support program that provides multifaceted support to the unhoused in Licking County.
• New Albany Community Foundation, funding STEM scholarships and speakers series that prioritizes lifelong learning for youth and adults.
• Society of Ecological Restoration, Stream and Wetlands Foundation of Ohio, and Dawes Arboretum funding the support restoration of wetland habitat and natural hydrology and establishing native vegetation.

Operating sustainably for the good of the community

Sustainability is a key focus of our datacenter investments. Microsoft strives to protect the environment and manage water and energy responsibly.

• We are committed to being carbon negative by 2030 and by 2050 to remove from the atmosphere an equivalent amount of all the carbon dioxide our company has emitted either directly or by our electricity consumption since we were founded in 1975.
• By 2030, we will also replenish more water than we consume across our global operations, with a focus on water-stressed regions where we work.
• We will achieve 90% diversion of operational waste at owned datacenters and campuses, and 75% diversion for all construction and demolition projects, by 2030.

In a Microsoft blog post, Corporate Vice President, Noelle Walsh announced progress towards water efficiency sharing that our newest datacenter designs are optimized to support AI workloads and consume zero water for cooling. To achieve this, we’re transitioning to chip-level cooling solutions, providing precise temperature cooling only where it’s needed and without requiring evaporation. With these innovations, we can significantly reduce water consumption while supporting higher rack capacity, enabling more compute power per square foot within our datacenters.

Learn more in our 2024 Environmental Sustainability Report.

When we build a datacenter in your community, we are here for all of us. As we explore a potential datacenter investment in Perry Township, we commit to being responsible neighbors and operating as a force for good in the Lima community.