Happy June, this is Cold Isle Insights.
We’re looking at data centers and the people, technologies, and trends that make them run.

Here’s what’s going on this morning:

Est. read time: 5mins, 1secs

- Trend Watching -

Digital Realty becomes the latest to bring data center conversion project to LA

Demand for data centers is on the rise everywhere, and the cultural and digital hub of the west coast is no exception. Digital Realty filed plans to become the latest operator to convert a part of the city to data infrastructure.

The site - A current parking garage at 727 S Grand Avenue, the 39,000 sqft mid-block site is situated right across from DR’s current downtown location, LAX10, and one block from the most connected building on the West Coast, One Wilshire Drive.

The facility - The windowless building will be 13 stories and feature 486,000 total sqft, most of which will be dedicated to servers. LAX10 across the street features 622,000 sqft and over 45000 kW of total power capacity.

Real estate, taxes and earthquakes - LA has historically been a tricky market for data center operators but has seen continued growth of digital demand. It’s expensive as hell to build and operate anything, however, LA is a critical connection hub for connecting the west coast to Asia and the Pacific.

What’s more - These data center retrofits are only getting more frequent. A former office building, a department store and a post office facility have all been converted into data centers over the past few years.
Digital Realty has similar plans for a new data center next door to the Cermak Carrier Hotel in Downtown Chicago.

Phoenix is so hot right now…

A recent CBRE survey on data center trends ranked Phoenix, AZ ranks as the 5^th fastest-growing data center hub in the nation. With recent power concerns in Northern VA, providers are looking for markets like Phoenix to provide low-cost computing.

State of the market- Currently the Phoenix market is home to 2.6 million sqft of data center space, representing 458 MW of power consumption. And this is growing fast, according to Mark Bauer at JLL, last year was “the first year that anyone has absorbed more product than Northern Virginia.”

Why Phoenix – Most importantly, Phoenix offers a competitive power environment that offers relatively low-cost and reliable power. Phoenix has the added benefit of space- its metro area is sprawling and offers hundreds of thousands of acres of affordable land for development and expansion. Its is also flat and has almost zero risk for seismic, tornado, and flooding events.

Growth on the horizon- There is no end in sight either. Stack, Aligned, Vantage, Google, Meta, NTT, QTS, and Microsoft all have current or announced expansion plans in the Valley of the Sun.

UT-based Novva Data Centers gets TRICky

Known for its sustainable design and high-tech features, Novva Data Centers has a new project on the horizon in the Reno-Tahoe area. Planned for 2024, the new data center will join Novva’s expanding portfolio with facilities in Colorado Springs, West Jordan, UT, and North Las Vegas.

At the site: The data center will be nestled in the heart of one of the world’s largest industrial destinations, the Taho Reno Industrial Center (A 167 sq mile industrial park in Storey County is home to over a hundred companies’ logistics and fulfillment centers).

CEO Storey Wes Swenson says Storey County is ideal for new data centers due to its proximity to the West Coast, access to renewables, and business-friendly tax climate.

What’s inside? Novva Tahoe-Reno will contain 300k sqft, 60-MW of capacity spread over 6 data halls. The facility will feature:

• A proprietary water-free cooling system

•  Autonomous Aerial drone security

• Robotic dog monitoring

• Direct-to-chip compatible cooling

In addition, a dedicated on-site 100 MW N+1 substation will ensure scalable power from NV Energy.

Joining the IT Crowd: Novva’s new data center won’t be the first at TRIC. They’ll be joining tenants like Edgecore, Google, Tesla, Switch, and Prologis, who all have a presence in the area.

- Big Deals -

Daily Dall-E

Rendering of Google’s future data center outside Phoenix….

Thanks a lot for reading. Please let me know how we’re doing by replying directly to this email. And if you want to help grow this, please share with a coworker!

- Taylor