Data Center Infrastructure Developer Takes 343-Acre Chicago-Area Swing

Developer Tract acquired a massive plot of land in the distant suburbs of Chicago and plans to build the infrastructure to support a 2.9M SF, 1-gigawatt data center campus on the site. 

An affiliate of Clarius Partners sold the 343-acre parcel of vacant farmland located off I-80 in Morris, Illinois, to an affiliate of Tract for about $51.5M, according to public records. The site is about 50 miles from Chicago Midway International Airport and 65 miles from downtown Chicago. 

The Morris Technology Park will become operational on an accelerated power timeline, with initial energization targeted for June 2028 and a full 1 GW load ramp achieved by 2032, Tract stated in a press release.

The project is a result of several years of collaboration with Morris, electric provider Commonwealth Edison Co. and the Illinois Economic Development Corp., Tract President Graham Williams said in a statement. This includes a transmission security agreement with ComEd.

“We were impressed with the foresight and proactive approach of the Morris community leaders in preparing a fully annexed and zoned economic development site suitable for a data center campus of this size,” Williams said. 

Tract acquires raw land in prime locations for potential data centers and secures proper zoning and permits for those projects. It also builds infrastructure on the land, including power, fiber, roads, water and sewer. 

Then, the company offers the land to large data center players such as Amazon, Google and Microsoft or other data center developers. The company usually spends between $100M and $150M on a site to prepare it for a sale, Williams told The Wall Street Journal in 2024. 

Tract did not respond to Bisnow’s request for comment. 

The infrastructure project secured city approval last year, with most local leaders confident the utility grid could meet the needs of the massive data center. 

Advancements in technology have led to significant improvements in data centers’ water and power efficiency, said Aindrea Hogan, vice president of development at the Grundy Economic Development Council, during a Morris City Council meeting in August. Data centers also don’t generate significant truck traffic, she said.

Morris Alderman Alex Clubb voted against the proposal, citing concerns about the amount of water the data center would need compared to the city’s current utilization rate. The project would require a new water facility that the city may have to partially fund, he said. 

However, Morris Mayor Chris Brown told WCSJ after the meeting that the city is in “good shape” with its water supply and is considering building a large water facility. 

The deal marks Tract's first entry into the Chicago area. The company has over 25 GW of planned capacity on more than 25,000 acres of land with campuses proposed in places such as Arizona, Iowa, Nevada, Texas, Utah and Virginia. 

The release from Tract stated that the Morris Technology Park will generate more than 1,000 construction jobs and about 350 permanent, high-skilled positions. Morris had an estimated 2025 population of 14,646, with Grundy County — where Morris is located — recording about 54,000 residents, according to Cubit. 

Avison Young’s Michael Fonda, Adam Haefner and Howard Berry represented Clarius Partners in the sale and assisted with marketing the land. 

Not all Chicago-area suburbs are in favor of cashing in on the data center gold rush.

Last week, the Naperville City Council quashed a data center plan that had drawn significant pushback from neighbors concerned about energy consumption, noise pollution and emissions. The Naperville project was much smaller in proposed scope than the Morris Technology Park, at just 145K SF with a power capacity of 36 megawatts.

Local lawmakers in Naperville echoed the community’s fears over the potential drawbacks of that proposed data center. 

"In light of the uncertainty of the future availability and cost of electricity, I'm concerned that approving this proposal may constrain the city's ability to support future development in the I-88 corridor without substantial additional investment," said Naperville City Councilwoman Supna Jain, according to the Daily Herald.