Nov. 10, 2023 3:40p
(WGTD)---Microsoft plans to more than triple its footprint in Mt. Pleasant.
Microsoft began construction earlier this year on $1 billion data center on 315 acres of land Foxconn once owned.
Microsoft now wants to buy another 630 acres, plus another 400 acres from a private landowner, to build additional datacenters worth "billions" more.
The announcement came in a joint news release issued Friday afternoon.
Special meetings of the Racine County Board and the Mt. Pleasant village board have been scheduled for next week.
Proceeds from the sale of land originally earmarked for Foxconn would be used to pay off $24 million in bonds that financed the purchase of the properties from dozens of private landowners. $12 million will be used to fund the completion of infrastructure in the area, and another $12 million will be paid to the county for obligations the village owes to the the county as part of the Foxconn development.
The Microsoft expansion also eases the burden on Foxconn to meet property valuation goals. While currently employing 1,000 people, Foxconn expects to come no where near the number of jobs it originally projected.
Gov. Evers praised Microsoft's decision to expand even further. "We are thrilled to see a global powerhouse like Microsoft continue to see the value and benefit of growing their operations here in Wisconsin and the booming southeast region of our state," he said in a statement.
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