Hoffman Estates could see third data center campus with sale of Plum Farms property

The recent sale of the 185-acre Plum Farms property at the northwest corner of Route 59 and Higgins Road could lead to a third data center campus in Hoffman Estates, Mayor Bill McLeod announced in his State of the Village address Wednesday.

The undeveloped site lies directly west of The Arboretum of South Barrington shopping center. Until recently, plans centered around residential development.

In his annual update before the Hoffman Estates Chamber of Commerce at the Now Arena, McLeod said no formal plans have been submitted, but the village expressed its openness to the possibility of another data center campus.

Microsoft is completing and powering up the first of its planned data center buildings at Barrington Road and Lakewood Boulevard while applying for a construction permit for a second, McLeod said.

Meanwhile, Dallas-based Compass Datacenters is continuing the demolition of the massive former Sears headquarters at the west end of the village to make way for its own campus.

But even as McLeod provided an update on the ongoing commercial and residential redevelopment of the former AT&T headquarters at Bell Works Chicagoland — the chamber’s Business of the Year — one audience member asked for a timeline on the repair of the Cook County-owned Central Road that’s critical to its future.

“Now that’s an age-old question,” McLeod remarked, noting the two-year project is currently expected to begin next year.

Last summer, Democratic Congressman Raja Krishnamoorthi of Schaumburg presented Cook County with $500,000 in federal funding he secured for the planned $18.9 million improvement of the 1.3-mile stretch of bumpy, patched road running along the north side of I-90.

“It will definitely be worth the wait when it’s finally done,” McLeod said.

Now Arena General Manager Ben Gibbs joined the mayor to report on the post-pandemic recovery of the village-owned entertainment venue and the new summertime opportunities presented by the regrading of the previously sloped Village Green next door.

The arena’s 2024 numbers were up 70% from pre-pandemic 2019, with record ticket sales of $7.1 million, Gibbs said.

Adding food, parking, suite rentals and corporate sponsorships, the facility brought in a total of $13.1 million last year, netting the village $3.9 million.

Gibbs lauded the arena’s staff for the amount of work that goes into each event.

“It’s not for the faint of heart,” he said.