Dell, Sabey Outline Huge Data Center Projects

Dell plans to build a 350,000 square foot data center on land it recently purchased in Quincy, Washington, while developer Sabey Corp. will build more than 508,000 square feet of mission-critical facilities on a nearby property. The two companies disclosed details of their plans in recent documents filed with local officials.

Dell expects to start construction on its project in March, and plans to complete the facility in three phases, with the first phase coming online in 2012.  Phase two and phase three are estimated to be built by late 2018. “This construction date is estimated with respect to market demands and power availability,” the company said in a filing with the city of Quincy.

Dell Behind 'Project Roosevelt'
Dell purchased 80 acres of land in Quincy last month in connection with a secretive data center project known as “Project Roosevelt.” County records indicate that Dell Marketing LP paid $3.6 million to purchase a property in the Port of Quincy.

The Sabey Intergate.Quincy campus will also be built in three phases, with a total built-out of 508,577 square feet of data center space, along with parking, infrastructure and landscaping improvements. Two buildings are 186,660 square feet each, while a third building measuring 140,000 square feet, according to filings with the city.

Yahoo, Microsoft Already Building
Both Yahoo and Microsoft have commenced construction on major expansions of their existing data center campuses in Quincy has become a magnet for data centers because of its abundant supply of cheap, “green” hydro power generated by area dams.

Last month Yahoo confirmed that it has begun building a second phase in Quincy that will feature its Yahoo Computing Coop data center design.  Just down the street from the Yahoo Computing Coop, Microsoft is building a next-generation facility based on its container-based IT PAC design.

Local officials hailed the Dell and Sabey projects as additional evidence of Quincy's emerging status as a hub for data centers. Pat Boss, the Port of Quincy’s economic development and government affairs director, credited the restoration of  tax incentives by the state legislature earlier this year as a key step in helping the Sabey and Dell projects move forward.

"It’s making Quincy very competitive in recruiting these high-tech companies," Boss said. "The fact is that Quincy and central Washington is back in the game again."

In March the Washington legislature passed a targeted tax break would allow a 15-month sales tax exemption on the purchase and installation of computers and energy for new data centers in 32 rural counties. To qualify for the incentives, companies must commence construction by July 1, 20111 to qualify.

The city of Quincy has ruled that both the Dell and Sabey projects are not expected to have a significant adverse impact on the environment, and thus do not require an environmental impact statement (EIS). "This decision was made after review of a completed environmental checklist and other information on file with the lead agency," the city found.