A warehouse site previously planned to be converted into a data center is up for sale in Chicago, Illinois.
Sean Reynolds, regional director at JLL, this week posted a listing for a warehouse and potential data center.
“Our team is excited to offer a 25MW data center development site for sale or lease in Chicago. This is an excellent opportunity for businesses looking to expand their operations in the region,” he said on LinkedIn this week.
Set on 4.8 acres, the property is located at 40 E Garfield Boulevard in Chicago. It is described as a 196,300 sq ft (18,235 sqm) vacant warehouse. The five-story building offers floor plates averaging 46,000 sq ft. An asking price wasn’t shared.
The facility – a former bakery – was previously acquired by data center firm 1547 Critical Systems Realty and real estate investment firm CIM Group, which had planned to turn the site into a data center.
After initially announcing plans to purchase and redevelop the property way back in 2015 with hopes to open a data center there in 2017, the companies didn’t actually officially announce the deal had gone through until 2018.
The Midway Technology Center, as it was rechristened, was set to initially offer 5MW across 52,000 sq ft (4,830 sqm) of raised floor from 2019, with the potential to expand to 10MW. A second phase expansion was to add a further 120,000 sq ft (11,150 sqm) and take the site to 26MW.
However, an article in the Chicago Sun Times from last year noted that there has been little movement on developing the property - currently surrounded by tarp - with 1547 providing no updates or information to the publication.
The property is still listed on 1547’s website. The company also operates another Chicago facility – known as CHIL2 and located at 725 South Wells – that offers 66,000 sq ft (6,130 sqm) and 5MW across nine stories.
John Bonczek, chief revenue officer of 1547, told DCD: "1547's property in Chicago at 40 E Garfield Boulevard is an ideal opportunity for an anchor tenant seeking a minimum of 4MW of power with a 24-month turn-up time."
"1547 is open to a data center development project with the right opportunity. The building is concurrently on offer with JLL for the entire property."
Located in the Washington Park area of Cook County, the building was constructed in 1914 for the Schulze Baking Company and was the home of the successor Hostess Brands' Butternut Bread until 2004. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1982 but had been vacant and in growing disrepair until plans for a data center were announced.
