Sabey Plans $100M Facility in Wenatchee, Wa.

Developer Sabey Corp. said today that it will build a 100,000 square feet data center in East Wenatchee, Wash., continuing an inflow of major data centers into central Washington State. Yahoo and Microsoft are also building large data center facilities inn the Wenatchee/Quincy area.

The data center, tentatively named Intergate.Columbia, is expected to cost up to $100 million to construct and to be completed and operational by late 2007 or early 2008. The new facility will have the flexibility to house either a single large user or multiple tenants, according to the company's Senior Vice President of Real Estate John Sabey.

Sabey plans to locate Intergate.Columbia on 30 acres near Pangborn Field. The company has a purchase option on the land, which has already been zoned for a business park, with the Battermann family. Terms of the planned purchase were not disclosed. The center will purchase its power from Douglas County Public Utility District (PUD), which recently approved a service contract for up to 30 megawatts of electricity. "Douglas County Public Utility District was very helpful throughout this process and will be instrumental in the success of this project," Sabey said.

Sabey is a large developer based in Seattle with substantial expeirence in the data center business. It operates the Sabey Data Center, which includes a finished 120,000 square foot data center and 350,000 of expansion space. Sabey initially built the facility for Exodus, but bought it through the bankruptcy court after Exodus filed Chapter 11.

Attractive power rates and very competitive land costs were two of the key factors in the company's decision to locate in Douglas County, according to Sabey. He also cited the area's geological stability, good transportation links to high tech centers throughout the Western US, a solid and intelligent workforce, and a high quality of life for data center employees.

"We see North Central Washington as a very logical extension of our data center business," Sabey said. "We're a long-time Northwest family and a long-time Northwest company, and we're looking to be a part of East Wenatchee and the greater Wenatchee area for a long time as well."

Sabey Corp. is exploring the possibility of installing an advanced thermal recovery system that would capture some of the heat generated by the data center's computers for reuse, offering a secondary industry an opportunity on the site.

"This will be a significant construction project and create 30-50 new family-wage jobs in the area," Sabey said. "The jobs created and the additional tax base generated represent opportunities for current residents to benefit from the wise investments the area has made in utility and communication infrastructure."

"We're also looking forward to working with community leaders to take advantage of the opportunity to introduce a number of the leading Internet commerce and technology firms to the advantages of North Central Washington," Sabey added.

Sabey Corporation has built and currently operates some of the largest data centers in the country, including Seattle's 76-acre Intergate technology campus, one of the nation's largest multi-tenant Internet complexes, along with other past operations in Los Angeles and Denver.

Sabey Corporation is a $400 million real-estate development, construction services and investment company that has built 27 million square feet of commercial, industrial and residential space; manages three million square feet of its own commercial and technology space, and has invested in companies valued at more than $500 million.