The rural area of Quincy in central Washington has become firmly ensconced on the data center location map following the announcements of five major corporations that they had selected the area for the construction of their new data center facilities.
Attracted by the coalescence of network availability, inexpensive and abundant power, fibre connectivity and the attraction of an easily accessed pool of qualified workforce, Ask.com is joining the ranks of Microsoft, Sabey Corp, Yahoo and Intuit who have all been keen to locate in the region.
The forethought of utilities including Grant County Public Utility District, the major supplier of power, have helped drive the attraction of data centers. GPCUD took an early and important decision to invest in extending high-speed fiber to the Qunicy community whilst other utilities along the Columbia River dam network have made similar investments in fibre connectivity.
Yahoo expects to open the first of three 160,000 square foot data centers in Autumn 2007, whilst Microsoft expects the first stage of its 1.3 million square foot facility to open eminently.