Project Overview & Background:

Approximately 40 acres of the former Lucent campus have sat vacant for a quarter of a century, and now Karis Critical proposes to make a substantial investment to bring a best-in-class, boutique data center campus to Naperville. Data centers are crucial to supporting today’s cloud-connected society.

The redevelopment of the vacant property spurs economic and job growth in Naperville, revitalizing the tollway corridor and driving new tech-focused development in the area, while unlocking millions in new annual tax revenue to support local classrooms, essential services, and amenities that contribute to the community’s high quality of life.

Benefits to Naperville:

Revitalizing the property will unlock tremendous economic and fiscal benefits that benefit Naperville’s residents, businesses, and taxpayers for years to come. In addition to jumpstarting the city’s recruitment of growing, tech-based businesses, the new campus is expected to:

• Generate Millions in New Local Tax Revenue:The data center campus is expected to create a windfall of nearly $2.25 million annually for local area governments, including up to $1.5 million annually for the City of Naperville and nearly $500,000 for Naperville School District 203.
• Economic Growth for the Region: The campus will provide a substantial boost to the local economy, generating jobs and income for families while supporting the ongoing growth and development of area businesses that extend beyond Naperville. On an annualized basis in the region, the initial phase of the Naperville data center campus is expected to create and sustain up to 341 jobs, generating ~$27 million in annual income for individuals and families, and spurring up to $238 million in economic activity across the county.
• Revitalizing Naperville’s Technology & Jobs Corridor: Turning the abandoned and vacant site into a campus a best-in-class data center campus in the community will support the ongoing recruitment of growth industries, contributing to the revitalization of Naperville’s I-88 corporate corridor as part of the Naperville Development Partnership’s plan to attract 15,000 new jobs to the area.

Karis is investing in technologies and design elements to operate the data center campus in alignment with the environmental values of Naperville and the State of Illinois. The U.S. Green Building Council has established standards and best practices to help operators address the unique needs of these facilities. The proposed Naperville campus is being designed to attain LEED Certification.

Water Usage: The proposed data center campus incorporates the best practices of the rapidly evolving industry. The volume of anticipated daily water usage is less than what was consumed by the former office building on the property. No potable water is used by the cooling system of the campus.

Electric Usage: Data centers rely on electricity to function. As a large load customer, Karis has been in coordination with the City of Naperville’s Department of Public Utilities. The developer will cover 100% of all associated utility infrastructure costs to accommodate the campus. Naperville residents and ratepayers will not be required to pay or subsidize any necessary upgrades to utility infrastructure.

Reliability: Naperville is among the most reliable electric utilities in Illinois, with reliability ratings that are considerably better than those of ComEd. The property is located adjacent to a substation, and as a result, it has one of the most reliable connections in all of Naperville. This site-specific attribute will significantly reduce the projected need for the backup generation equipment to run.

Sound Impact: As part of its commitment to being a responsible operator and good neighbor, Karis commissioned a comprehensive sound study that modeled the impact its operations would have on the surrounding area. Given the property’s isolated status and setbacks that provide considerable buffer from the nearest residences, as well as Karis’ investment in industry-leading technologies, screening, sound suppression, and mechanical systems, the study concluded the campus would have at most a barely perceptible increase in sound at any point in the day compared to current conditions.