Gaines Planning Commission tables vote on Microsoft data center rezoning

GAINES CHARTER TOWNSHIP, Mich. -- After five-and-a-half-hours and comments from 67 citizens, Gaines Township officials have taken no action yet on a data center proposal.

At a special meeting Wednesday night in the South Christian High School auditorium, Gaines planning commissioners voted 7-0 to table a decision on Microsoft’s request to rezone five parcels in the Caledonia/Dutton area to a light industrial designation.

Nearly 600 people attended the meeting, which included a four-hour-long public hearing. The meeting itself did not end until 11:30 p.m. Thunderstorms could be heard before it concluded, with heavy rain pelting the roof.

Microsoft originally requested a 40.5-acre parcel it owns at 7147 Patterson Ave. SE be rezoned to a light industrial designation. That land is just south of the Amazon Fulfillment Center on 68th Street. Microsoft owns a total of 356 acres on two parcels along Patterson Avenue, between 68th and 76th streets. It has options on adjacent 5.5-acre and 19-acre parcels on the proposed data center site.

The global technology company recently announced plans to purchase an additional 57.8 acres of land at 4100 68th St. SE, on the southern section of the former Steelcase Wood Plant site.

 It would like to connect all the parcels it has options on in the area so it would control 439 total acres for the data center project.

Microsoft has requested that the parcel at 7147 Patterson Ave. be conditionally rezoned, so that when the rest of the parcels are combined, the conditions applied to 7147 Patterson would then apply to all parcels. They would all be zoned as light industrial. That condition is needed because Microsoft has options to buy some of the parcels but has not closed on the sales yet. And the current owners do not want to restrict the use of their properties unless Microsoft is able to go ahead with the project.

The parcels at 7147 Patterson Ave. and 6930 East Paris Ave. are currently zoned under the Steelcase PUD-LSP designation. And the following three parcels are currently zoned as Agricultural/Rural Residential: 4233 76th St., 4367 76th St., and 4645 76th St.

So far, no site plan has been approved for the project. But Microsoft did present concept plans for the property during a slide presentation.

Sixty-seven people spoke during the public hearing portion of the meeting. The original hearing was scheduled for Dec. 18, 2025, in the township hall boardroom. But it was postponed due to overcapacity when more than 250 people showed up.

Several people in the crowd Wednesday night who opposed the data center proposal were hostile to Microsoft officials and more so to township officials throughout the meeting. Not only was there frequent loud booing, but Planning Commission Chairman Brad Waayenberg was told by one audience member to wipe the smirk off his face. He replied that he was not making any kind of expression but that was just his natural look.

Community Development Director Dan Wells was derided by some people in the audience, as well, particularly over his testimony earlier in the day to a Michigan House Oversight Subcommittee in Lansing. The subcommittee is gathering information from local municipal leaders about hyperscale data centers.

 Microsoft officials were also heckled several times when they tried to speak. Some citizens talked about mounting a campaign to recall township officials, if they approve Microsoft’s rezoning request. Township Attorney Clifford Bloom and Waayenberg reminded the crowd about the rules of the public meeting and asked for civility.

Jonah Mills is Microsoft’s land development manager for the project. He said the requested rezoning is consistent with the township’s master plan and its Future Land Use Map for the site. Mills also mentioned that the proposed development would not increase utility rates in Gaines Township. He said Microsoft would minimize its water use and that the project would add to the community’s tax base while creating jobs. 

“Our team will continue to engage with the community and the township as the design for the project progresses in future phases,” Mills said.

He said that all data center buildings would be at least 150 feet from the property line and noise that is generated will not exceed 65 decibels during normal operations. Mills said Microsoft would donate about 9.5 acres of land for open space and trail connections.

One citizen, Sarah, held up a sign that read “Microsoft Not Welcome” while she addressed the planning commission.

“Let’s delay,” she said. “Let’s figure out all of these concerns instead of brushing them under the rug. I want to live in Pure Michigan, not Pure Microsoft.”

Some citizens have expressed concern about how much water data centers use, but Microsoft has said that it nw uses closed-loop systems to recirculate water.

Daniel Graham of Byron Center said he is more concerned about groundwater potentially being contaminated because of faulty pipes or systems.

“I don’t want my kids and my future wife … to deal with potential consequences for not maintaining buildings, or their pipes or systems,” he said.

Graham looked over at the Microsoft officials and said, “I don’t trust these guys over here.” And then he turned to the planning commission and remarked, “Simply put, I don’t trust you, either."

A few people in the crowd walked up to the microphone to express support for the data center proposal. One was John Hartwell, the outreach coordinator with Operating Engineers Local 324 in Grand Rapids.

“I’m here tonight to express our strong support for the proposed Microsoft data center project,” he said.

He was booed by several people in the crowd who are opposed to it, as was Brian, another worker in the skilled trades.

“When projects like this are delayed or turned away, those opportunities don’t just disappear, they go to other states,” he said.

Some people in the audience applauded his remarks, however.

Four prominent people who expressed opposition to the data center were Republican State Representative Angela Rigas, former Kent County Commissioner Bill Hirsch, 78th District State Representative Democratic candidate Zach Abbott, and former Michigan Speaker of the House Tom Leonard. He is now running for Governor as a Republican.

Rigas, who represents the 79th House District, says she gets emails and phone calls from residents asking her office to intervene in zoning issues. But she said she supports local control.

“And I don’t believe there’s much trust in this room tonight,” Rigas said.

Leonard said he does not believe what large corporations promise when it comes to promises about data centers.

“I want you to know that during that (Microsoft) presentation tonight, every one of you got absolutely gaslit,” he said. “They talk about 100 to 250 jobs. I was in the legislature when the legislature passed the subsidies for Switch. I voted no, but they told us a thousand jobs and it was going to be the next industrial revolution. Twenty-six jobs materialized.”

After the public hearing closed at 10:30 p.m., a 10-minute recess was held. When the special meeting resumed, planning commissioner Tim Haagsma said he wants to hear more about the long-term impacts of low-frequency noise. He also said he wants the township to receive some assurance that tax assessments on Microsoft will not be contested at the Michigan Tax Tribunal.

Commissioner Connie Giarmo said she wants to see how Microsoft data centers have impacted water and electricity rates at comparable sites. Commissioner Talimma Billips asked if the township could impose a fine if Microsoft were ever to be found out of compliance with zoning regulations.

Microsoft answered some of the questions posed by commissioners and residents at the meeting. Mills said new technology is being installed to control water usage. He said that sludge that is created by a data center’s closed-loop water cooling system cannot be discharged into a local waterway. Instead, it has to be hauled away to a designated site.

As for some other concerns, Mills said Microsoft is gathering more information throgh an initial acoustic study about noise that emanates from data centers. Giarmo asked if the planning commission will be able to view that report before the project site plan is submitted.

Under the terms of the rezoning request, Microsoft would have ten years after it is approved to begin moving forward with the data center operation. Otherwise, it would have to decommission the facility. Mills said Microsoft has never decommissioned a facility that it has used.

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