Tract Wants to Build Data Center in Morris Illinois

A national data center land developer is making a big first move into the Chicago region, scooping up hundreds of acres of farmland in Grundy County for a power-hungry campus that would rank among the largest in the Midwest.

An affiliate of Denver-based Tract acquired a 343-acre site off I-80 in Morris, Illinois, paying about $51.5 million to an affiliate of Clarius Partners, according to public records. Bisnow reported that the property sits roughly 50 miles from Midway Airport and about 65 miles southwest of downtown Chicago, firmly in exurban territory but close enough to tap the region’s fiber and power backbone.

Tract plans to develop the land into the Morris Technology Park, a 2.9 million-square-foot data center campus designed to support up to 1 gigawatt of power load. Initial energization is targeted for June 2028, with the full load ramping up by 2032, the company said in a press release.

The project has been several years in the making and required close coordination with the city of Morris, Commonwealth Edison and the Illinois Economic Development Corporation, according to Tract President Graham Williams. The work includes a transmission security agreement with ComEd, a critical step for any hyperscale-scale development, according to the statement.

Tract’s business model is to buy raw land, lock down zoning and entitlements and then build out heavy infrastructure — power, fiber, roads, water and sewer — before selling sites to hyperscalers or other data center developers. The company typically spends between $100 million and $150 million per site to get land ready, Mayor Chris Brown told local station WCSJ last year, often courting tenants like Amazon, Google and Microsoft.

City officials approved the infrastructure plan last year, with most local leaders confident the grid could handle the demand. Supporters have pointed to improvements in data center efficiency and relatively low traffic impacts. Still, the project hasn’t been without controversy. Morris Alderman Alex Clubb voted against it, raising concerns about water usage and the potential need for a new water facility that the city might have to help fund.

Brown later said the city is in “good shape” on water and is considering construction of a larger facility to support long-term growth.

The deal marks Tract’s first Chicago-area play, adding the region to a national portfolio that includes more than 25 gigawatts of planned capacity across 25,000 acres in markets like Arizona, Texas, Virginia and Iowa. Tract estimates the Morris campus would generate more than 1,000 construction jobs and about 350 permanent positions — a sizable boost for a city of roughly 14,600 people.

The Morris announcement outside of Chicagoland comes as suburban Chicago debates how much data center development it wants.

Barrington Hills Village officials announced on Monday that Brennan Investment Group withdrew its proposed $2 billion data center campus in Barrington Hills following “negative early feedback” from village officials and organized community opposition, canceling a Feb. 2 public hearing.

Last week, Naperville officials killed a far smaller 145,000-square-foot proposal from Karis Critical, citing concerns over power availability and long-term economic tradeoffs, and Lisle officials paused a proposed data center after residents packed Village Hall with objections.

— Eric Weilbacher