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Mid-Michigan could be getting another data center. Lansing is considering a new development as similar projects in nearby localities have proven contentious.
Deep Green is asking the Lansing Planning Commission to rezone nearly three acres of land between South Cedar Street and South Larch Street.
The data center itself would occupy less than an acre of the land. That makes it significantly smaller than projects being considered in Howell and Saline Township.
The site is currently a parking lot. Lansing Mayor Andy Schor said the project would “provide not only urban infill and density, but will also be a major investment and dynamic innovation in our downtown.”
The company would capture the data center’s heat output and use it to heat water at the Lansing Board of Water & Light.
“Our mission is to accelerate the decarbonization of heat for the benefit of people and the planet,” Deep Green CEO Mark Lee said. “By capturing and reusing heat that would otherwise be wasted, this project transforms Lansing’s energy landscape, turning technology into a local sustainability solution.”
The project would offset a quarter of the Lansing Board of Water & Light’s natural gas use and save it more than $1 million annually.
Lansing Board of Water & Light General Manager Dick Peffley said those savings would “minimize future rate increases for those customers, and also increase our return on equity to the Lansing community.”
Schor said the project would “strengthen our local economy, support good-paying jobs, and move us closer to a cleaner, more resilient high-tech future.”
The Lansing Planning Commission will meet at 6:30 p.m. at the Neighborhood Empowerment Center.
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