Overview
- Microsoft identified itself in a Jan. 7 letter posted by Lowell Charter Township, saying it asked the seller to pause the rezoning process to meet with residents early this year.
- The proposal targets a 237-acre parcel at Covenant Business Park beside I-96, where the current industrial planned unit development zoning would need to change to light industrial.
- The township estimates the project could represent $500 million to $1 billion in investment over three to five years.
- A December planning commission hearing was postponed after an overflow crowd and local objections, and the commission is slated to meet again on Jan. 12.
- Local officials cite a path to increased wastewater plant capacity through the City of Lowell at no added cost to ratepayers, and Consumers Energy says data centers will not raise electricity rates as Microsoft and other tech firms expand infrastructure for AI workloads.