Real estate developer Vintage Partners has decided to cancel its plans for a data center in the Laveen area of Phoenix, Arizona. Instead, the company will use the 63-acre property to develop a mixed-use project, which will feature commercial, retail, restaurant, and multifamily residential spaces.
The decision to abandon the data center project follows challenges related to local regulations and power availability. According to a report from the Phoenix Business Journal, the city of Phoenix requested the change despite Vintage Partners already beginning initial infrastructure work on the site. Walter Crutchfield, a partner at Vintage, stated the data center was "almost ready to switch on" before this shift in plans.
The site, located at the southwest corner of Lower Buckeye Road and the Loop 202, was seen as a prime location for the original project due to its proximity to existing transmission lines and an electrical substation. Vintage had spent a year and a half developing the data center campus and had received city approval for the project.
However, the development ran into hurdles as Phoenix implemented stricter regulations on data centers over the last year. On July 2, new rules were adopted to address concerns over land and power demand, following earlier calls by Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego to end tax incentives for data centers. These regulatory changes, combined with adjustments to the process for power allocation, placed additional burdens on Vintage. As part of a power user "cluster", the company became responsible for upgrades to the power grid.
Crutchfield explained that these challenges led to the decision to pivot away from the data center. The company also filed for compensation for the property’s loss in value but ultimately dropped the claim at the city’s request in exchange for scrapping the data center plans.
While the data center has been shelved, the upcoming mixed-use project signals a new direction for the site, with Vintage Partners aiming to meet the city’s evolving needs through its revised development plans.
