Joliet Plan Commission recommends approval of data center project

The Joliet Plan Commission on Thursday gave prelininary approval for the proposed 795-acre data center at a meeting that lasted more than five hours because of the large number of people who showed up to speak against it.

The council voted 7-1 to recommend approval of the project to the City Council, which will have the final vote on March 16.

Dozens of people spoke against the project, although about a dozen also spoke for it.

Resident holds custom sign against the proposed Data Center at the City of Joliet Plan Commission meeting on Thursday, March 5, 2026 in Joliet. (Gary Middendorf)

Public comment went on for hours as people questioned the impact of the project on electricity bills, whether the data center would.soak up local water supplies, and how it would contribute to the replacement of jobs with artificial intelligence.

“AI is intended to take away jobs from human beings and replace the need for them,” one opponent said.

David Silverman, attorney for developers Hillwood and PowerHouse Data Centers, acknowledged the anti-AI feeling in the room in his final comments to the commission before the vote.

“This is not a referendum on whether artificial intelligence is a good thing or not,” Silverman said.

Attorney David Silverman speaks at the proposed Data Center at the City of Joliet Plan Commission meeting on Thursday, March 5, 2026 in Joliet. (Gary Middendorf)

Several of the backers for the project were representatives from building trades unions, which stand to get 7,000 to 10,000 jobs during the course of construction.

“I think it’s what the area needs,” said union pipefitter Jim Slowik of Joliet. “I am for this project.”

The data center would be built on farm land in an area south of the Chicagoland Speedway.

The data center plan originally was to be heard by the Plan Commission in October, but staff took it off the agenda for more review.

[ Photos: Residents speak out on Joliet data center plan ]

In the meantime, opponents had been coming regularly to Plan Commission and City Council meetings to speak against the project.

City of Joliet Plan Commission board member Michael Turk sits in on the vote for the proposed Data Center at the City of Joliet Plan Commission meeting on Thursday, March 5, 2026 in Joliet. (Gary Middendorf)

A petition with more than 3,000 signatures from people opposed to the data center was presented to the Plan Commission.

“That’s a lot of people,” Tia Quinerly, who started the petition drive, told the Plan Commission. “That means something. That means people care about this issue.

Developers Hillwood and PowerHouse Data Centers say the project will bring more than 7,000 construction jobs and 700 permanent jobs once fully built.

Many of the opponents said they believe the permanent jobs would be a fraction of what is promised.

The project also is expected to generate $310 million in property taxes over 30 years.