A data center proposal by GI Partners in Silicon Valley, California, has been voted down by planning officials despite winning a majority vote.
BizJournal and the Silicon Valley Voice report that, while the Santa Clara Planning Commission voted 3-2 in favor of the project this month, it failed to receive the requisite number of votes to issue permits and recommend the city council grant the rezoning request. Two members of the commission were not present.
Earlier this year, GI filed for permits to demolish an existing office property and develop a new four-story, 72MW data center at 2805 Bowers Avenue. Set on five acres and to be known as the Bowers Data Center (BDC) and Bowers Backup Generating Facility (BBGF), the data center would span 244,070 sq ft (22,675 sqm).
County staff had identified issues around the project’s “consistency” with the area’s General Plan and Zoning Ordinance, but had recommended approval with conditions.
GI can still appeal the decision to the City Council.
Plans for a data center and generating plant were first filed with the energy commission by GI affiliated ‘DayZenLLC’ back in August 2022. A decision that the plans would not have a significant impact on the environment was made by the commission in November 2023.
The site currently features a 55,000 square foot (5,110 sqm), two-story office building. Built in 1975, it is part of several buildings on an 11-acre site collectively known as the Walsh Bowers Technology Center.
According to an old Cushman & Wakefield sales brochure, the site currently features a small data center. An existing Silicon Valley Power (SVP) substation is located nearby.
GI acquired the property, along with the rest of the technology center, in early 2021 for a combined $79 million via its then-new Essential Tech + Science Fund. KeyPoint Credit Union sold 2805 Bowers to the investment firm for $37.5 million, while the other buildings were acquired from Equus Capital Partners.
The site had been credit union Keypoint’s headquarters.
GI, which founded and then divested Digital Realty, owns stakes in a number of data centers, and owns US operator LightEdge.
