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A public meeting at Minooka Village Hall drew more than 100 residents seeking information about a proposed 300-acre data center to be built by Equinix on Holt Road near Ridge Road. The event allowed community members to question company representatives and local officials about the project’s potential impact.
Equinix’s senior director of real estate, Parker Hanks, explained that the facility is not being constructed solely for artificial intelligence (AI) applications, though it could serve that purpose depending on customer needs. “We’ve got 10,000 customers from all over the world,” Hanks said. “We don’t know. We’re not building this for a single customer.”
Residents expressed concern about rising electricity bills, with one noting their bill had increased by more than 50% despite stable usage. Bill Pegel, a project manager with ComEd, addressed these concerns by stating that data centers are not responsible for recent increases in energy costs. He attributed higher bills to PJM Interconnection’s rate-setting practices based on regional energy trends. “What you are seeing on your bill, the cost of delivery of transmission and the cost of delivery of distribution, has not gone up significantly in the past several years,” Pegel said. “The cost of generation has, and that is from Illinois all the way to the east coast, Ohio, Missouri, and all of the different regions. They’re reacting to the same thing.”
Pegel added that bringing a data center into ComEd’s service area represents a new market requiring additional investment from both ComEd and Equinix.
Hanks told attendees that Minooka would benefit financially through utility taxes and property taxes paid by Equinix.
Water usage was another topic raised by residents. Jeremy Mickler, design director for Equinix, stated that the facility will use air cooling rather than water cooling. As a result, daily water consumption should be similar to an office building of comparable size. Any water used will operate within a closed loop system.
Noise was also discussed as a concern. According to materials distributed at the meeting, sound shrouds will be installed on exterior equipment along with screen walls and natural plantings to help reduce noise levels.
Minooka Village Administrator Dan Duffy estimated that tax revenue generated by the project could reach $7 million over ten years once operational, including $3 million within its first five years.
Construction activity is expected to begin with site preparation toward the end of 2025. Building construction is slated for 2027 with plans for completion and opening in 2031.
