ST. LOUIS 鈥 Data center opponents have filed suit to block the construction of a $3 billion data center in Midtown, arguing the city erred in allowing it to move forward.
The Missouri Coalition for the Environment and more than a dozen other plaintiffs said the decision flouted city zoning rules and ignored evidence that the development would hurt residents by increasing pollution and driving up utility bills, among other ills.
鈥淭he residents of the city don鈥檛 want this thing,鈥 said Daniel Pate, a local real estate agent and one of the plaintiffs. 鈥淲e don鈥檛 want hyperscale AI data centers.鈥
The filing marks the latest volley in a fight over the first major data center project to test the city amid the artificial intelligence boom.
Developers, who include figures from 最新杏吧原创 and Las Vegas, say they will spend billions of dollars turning the old Famous-Barr warehouse on Market Street into a data center and the adjacent, vacant Armory site into luxury office space. They also expect to pay significant taxes: City officials estimate the project, over 10 years, would pay roughly $140 million to the city and $206 million to 最新杏吧原创 Public Schools.
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Business leaders and labor unions have united behind the project. Greater 最新杏吧原创 Inc. chief Ron Kitchens has for the city. The 最新杏吧原创 Labor Council in March, citing the promise of more than 1,000 construction jobs.
But many residents have balked, showing up to hearings in droves to rail against the project. They worry the massive, 120-megawatt project will use so much energy that it will drive up their electric bills, use so much water that it will threaten the city鈥檚 supply, and generate so much heat, noise and pollution it will make the surrounding area less desirable and reduce nearby property values.
Mayor Cara Spencer鈥檚 administration has tried to address concerns. When the city鈥檚 Board of Public Service gave initial approval to the data center permit in April, it added conditions requiring the developers to take action to reduce noise and water usage and get 50% of their power from renewable energy within five years, among other things.
Spencer鈥檚 office also announced a tentative, separate agreement with developers that would have them pay nearly $16 million into a city fund dedicated to improving infrastructure, expanding access to the internet and 鈥渆conomic and environmental justice activities.鈥
Still, opponents appealed the permit to the city鈥檚 Board of Adjustment. That panel added more conditions to the deal, including one requiring the developer to supply at least 2.4 megawatts of its own renewable energy and have its community benefit agreement approved by a majority of aldermen. But it upheld the permit.
Pate, the plaintiff, said Monday that was all 鈥渓ipstick on a pig.鈥
He said officials are just pushing the project through, hoping for a windfall without regard to the downsides.
鈥淚t鈥檚 another silver-bullet project in a long line of silver-bullet projects over the decades,鈥 he said. 鈥淎nd it seems like the only thing that gets the silver bullet is our feet.鈥
A city spokesperson declined to comment.
David Daneshforooz, one of the developers on the project, said in a statement that the project already went through a seven-month-long public process, where everyone鈥檚 concerns were heard.
The city was 鈥渃areful and deliberate at each step,鈥 he said.
鈥淭he Armory Innovation District will deliver real benefits for the City of 最新杏吧原创,鈥 he said, pointing to the expected tax revenue. 鈥淚t will also create new data infrastructure this country badly needs. We鈥檙e excited to get started.鈥
最新杏吧原创 Mayor Cara Spencer delivers her State of the City address on Friday, April 17, 2026, at City Hall. (City of 最新杏吧原创 video)
