Microsoft Breaks Ground in San Antonio
Microsoft officially broke ground today on its 447,000 square foot data center in San Antonio. The software giant will invest $550 million in the project, which stands on 44 acres in the Westover Hills development. Armed with shovels, local dignitaries and Microsoft officials turned some dirt during a ceremonial event.
"It's massive. It looks like a small town being built here," said Bexar County Judge Nelson Wolff. The project is scheduled to be completed in Juy 2008, and is expected to create 75 jobs. The San Antonio center is the second major facility being built in the U.S. to support the expansion of Microsoft's Live line of online services, following the construction of a similar data center in Quincy, Washington. Microsoft's commitment was announced in January, and has been followed by the announcements of data center projects by the National Security Agency, Stream Realty and Christus Health Systems.
Posted by Rich Miller 
July 30, 2007 | Permalink | Newsletter
May 17, 2007
Hospital Picks San Antonio for Data Center
The data center clustering phenomenon continues to gain momentum in San Antonio, where another company has announced a new data center project in the Westover Hills area. Christus Health plans to build a $21 million data center on 10 acres in Westover Hills, near where Microsoftis building a huge new data center. Dallas-based Christus Health is one of the 10 largest Catholic health systems in the country, and plans to build a 43,000 square foot data center, with a site plan that allows for expansion in 25,000 square foot increments.
Microsoft's decision to locate its $550 million data center in Westover Hills has been followed by announcements of data center projects by the National Security Agency and Stream Realty. As was the case in those projects, Microsoft's decision to build in San Antonio (which followed a national search) was cited as a factor in the data center site location for Christus.
Posted by Rich Miller May 17, 2007 | Permalink | Newsletter
May 01, 2007
The Data Center Clustering Effect
It's an economic development official's data center dream scenario: one major project prompts other companies to follow, opening the floodgates for an influx of investment and high-tech jobs.
Officials in San Antonio, Texas are living the dream, as Microsoft's decision to locate a $550 million data center in the Westover Hills area has been followed by announcements of data center projects by the NSA and Stream Realty. The San Antonio Economic Development Foundation said it is working with five other companies looking at San Antonio for new data center sites, including some speculative projects.
San Antonio provides an example of data center clustering, in which a regional market becomes an aggregation point for many mission-critical facilities. This trend has usually been focused on major Internet markets (NYC, Washington, Silicon Valley) but is now providing opportunties for smaller markets (the industry phrase used to be second-tier markets) amid shifting criteria for data center site location.
Posted by Rich Miller May 01, 2007 | Permalink | Newsletter
April 29, 2007
Stream Realty Announces San Antonio Project
Stream Realty Partners has become the latest data center developer to announce plans for a facility in the booming San Antonio market. The Dallas-based developer has acquired 33 acres in the Westover Hills area for a 150,000-square-foot data center. "The demand for data-center space is extremely strong," Stream Realty managing director Paul Moser told the Express-News.
Westover Hills is already home to Microsoft's 470,000-square-foot data center and a $60 million Lowe's data center. San Antonio will apparently also get an NSA data center in a former Sony plant. The San Antonio Economic Development Foundation said it is working with five other companies looking at San Antonio for new data-center sites, including some speculators.
Posted by Rich Miller April 29, 2007 | Permalink | Newsletter
April 19, 2007
NSA Plans San Antonio Data Center
San Antonio appears poised to win another big data center deal, this time with the National Security Agency, a significant employer in the area. The NSA plans to put a data center at the site of a former old Sony microchip plant on San Antonio's Northwest Side, according to an announcement from the office of U.S. Rep. Charlie Gonzalez. San Antonio,
The facility will be the third major data center for San Antonio, joining a $126 million Lowe's data center and a planned $550 million Microsoft facility. San Antonio is gaining traction in data center site location searches because it has the cheapest electricity in Texas, which is a favored region for data centers because the state has its own power grid and is less vulnerable to rippling outages on the national power grid.
The NSA's need for additional data space may be related to infrastructure challenges at its facilities at Fort Meade, Md. where the NSA has maxed out the available power from the local utility company.
Posted by Rich Miller April 19, 2007 | Permalink | Newsletter
March 08, 2007
San Antonio Gets Green Data Center
CityNAP has become the first "green" data center in Texas by signing a new contract with CPS Energy to purchase all of its power from renewable wind-generated electric sources, reports the San Antonio Biz Journal (link via Environmental Leader). "A center like ours uses a lot of energy, so we're doing everything we can to lessen our impact on the environment by using the most energy-efficient equipment and buying renewable energy," CityNAP President Frank R. Robles says.
CityNAP is a 10,000 square foot carrier neutral data center and Internet hub in downtown San Antonio, which is emerging as an attractive market for data center site location due to its combination of affordable local power and few natural disaster risks. But San Antonio did not have a network access point, to provide interconnections for network service providers.
Posted by Rich Miller March 08, 2007 | Permalink | Newsletter
January 19, 2007
Microsoft Confirms Huge San Antonio Center
Microsoft on Thursday confirmed plans to build a 470,000 square foot data center project in San Antonio, making it official after the San Antonio City Council approved a $20.7 million tax abatement package. Mike Manos, senior director of Microsoft Data Center Services, said the two-building complex will operate around the clock housing Web pages, e-mail and instant message servers, and all kinds of Web-based applications. Microsoft says it will invest at least $550 million in the project, and said that estimate could be conservative.
The software giant is scaling up its data center infrastructure as it moved to a "software as a service" model focused around delivering consumer and business services through web portals like Office Live. Microsoft broke ground last June on a 75-acre data storage facility in Quincy, Washington which could eventually psan 1.4 million square feet.
The project still must go before the Bexar County Commissioners Court, which is expected to approve a similar package of incentives. The tax abatement was approved for 44 acres of undeveloped land in the Westover Hills development at 5150 Rogers Road. The city is also asking CPS Energy to approve up to $5.2 million in assistance to help pay for electrical infrastructure for the project.
Posted by Rich Miller January 19, 2007 | Permalink | Newsletter
January 18, 2007
San Antonio Mulls $25M Package for Microsoft
The San Antonio City Council will consider giving Microsoft a 10-year tax abatement valued at $20 million to gain a commitment for a massive 470,000 square foot data center, according to local media reports. The tax abatement is being considered for 44 acres in the Westover Hills development at 5150 Rogers Road. The city is also asking CPS Energy to approve up to $5.2 million in assistance to help pay for electrical infrastructure for the project from CPS Energy's Community Infrastructure and Economic Development Fund. The incentive package will be considered in a meeting today.
Reports of the cost of Microsoft's project have ranged from $600 million up to $980 million. Mike Manos, senior director of Microsoft Data Center Services, placed the company's investment at $550 million, but said that was a "conservative figure."
The incentive package needs approval because the center will create only 75 jobs, short of the 500 job miniumum required for an abatement longer than six years. Local economic development officials are pushing hard for approval, saying it is essential to gain a commitment from Microsoft. Winning the Microsoft project would also help establish San Antonio as a destination for enterpise data center development.
Posted by Rich Miller January 18, 2007 | Permalink | Newsletter
December 17, 2006
Microsoft Texas DC Project Now $1 Billion
In June we noted that Microsoft is considering sites in Texas for a major data center, with San Antonio and Austin in the running. At the time the reported price tag for the project was $600 million. Local media reports have updated the story this weekend, with Microsoft confirming it is "looking at San Antonio for a potential future operations facility. We are still working on our plans in San Antonio so we do not have detailed information to share at this time."
Of greater interest: the price tag on the project has now risen to $980 million, up nearly $400 million from the original estimates from June. The size of the project - 470,000 square feet - hasn't changed, either. What's up with the cost estimate? One possibility is that the original cost estimate of $600 million was incomplete. Another possibility is that the cost is rising along with projected power and cooling costs. At least one other company developing new data centers has experienced this.
Posted by Rich Miller December 17, 2006 | Permalink | Newsletter
September 07, 2006
ServerBeach Moves Into Larger Data Center
ServerBeach Ltd. announced today that it has relocated its head office and data center operations to a new 18,000 square foot facility in San Antonio, Texas. ServerBeach is a self-managed dedicated hosting subsidiary of PEER 1 Network Enterprises, Inc. The announcement continues a period of strong activity in San Antonio, the site of a new $126 million Lowe's data center, and reportedly among the potential sites for a huge new Microsoft facility.
ServerBeach said it expanded to keep up with its rapid growth in San Antonio, and with 12,000 square feet of raised floor space and an adjoining 6,000 square feet of office space, the company now has ample room to grow. The facility is ServerBeach's third data center, provdiing customers with improved options for geographically diverse backups.
Posted by Rich Miller September 07, 2006 | Permalink | Newsletter
June 29, 2006
Lowe's Chooses San Antonio for Data Center
Lowe's has chosen San Antonio as the site of a $126 million data center, contingent upon the approval of an incentive package by the City Council, according to the San Antonio Express-News. Lowe plans to build in the Westover Hills, where Microsoft is also said to be looking at sites for a 470,000-square-foot data center that would employ about 100 people. The newspaper says Paypal may also be scouting potential data center sites in San Antonio.
The Lowe's center would employ just 25 workers, but use substantial power that would funnel revenue to the city through its utility, CPS Energy. Lowe's is seeking a 10-year tax abatement on the data center. The project will go before the City Council on Thursday.
Posted by Rich Miller June 29, 2006 | Permalink | Newsletter
June 07, 2006
Microsoft Eyes Texas for $600M Data Center
Microsoft is exploring sites in Texas for a 470,000 square foot server farm that could cost as much as $600 million to build, according to local media reports. San Antonio and Austin are in the running for the massive facility, according to the San Antonio Express Times, which cited local real estate and economic development sources.
"People close to San Antonio's talks with Microsoft said its site-selection staff likes the area's inexpensive electrical power, work force and lack of exposure to natural disasters," the paper reported. Real estate firm Jones Lang LaSalle is said to be working on Microsoft's behalf and looking in the Westover Hills area of San Antonio.
Posted by Rich Miller June 07, 2006 | Permalink | Newsletter
May 11, 2006
Lowe's Eyes San Antonio for Data Center
Home improvement retailer Lowe's Cos. is considering sites for a $68 million data center in San Antonio, according to the San Antonio Business Journal. The proposed 100,000-square-foot data center would employ about 30 people and create as many as 300 construction jobs. The San Antonio region is competing with two states and other Texas locations for the projects, sources said.
"We're a good community for their data center, but as yet there has been no final announcement," said Ramiro Cavazos, the city's economic development director. "We will continue working with Lowe's and respect their process of decision making, and we're hopeful they will pick San Antonio."
Posted by Rich Miller May 11, 2006 | Permalink | Newsletter
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