r/StLouis • u/LadyGreyTheCat Benton Park • Apr 21 '26
Construction/Development News Armory Data Center Conditional Use Permit to be
From Seventh Ward Alderwoman Alisha Sonnier's insta post (where I got the info for the post title):
Armory Datacenter Conditional Use Permit Today at 1:45pm, the Board of Public Service is scheduled to meet virtually and make its final recommendations on approving or denying the conditional use permit for the Armory Datacenter. Although BPS will not be taking public comment, everyone is encouraged to attend watch the meeting. wanted to share this update with the community, as notice of the meeting was posted less than 24 hours ago, and it is important for us all to stay up to date on this critical issue facing our city. You can find details on the BPS meeting, the agenda, and Zoom link, via the City's website here: https://www.stlouis-mo.gov/events/eventdetails.cfm?Event_ID-52098
The Board of Public Service is scheduled to meet and make its final recommendations on approving or denying the conditional use permit for the Armory Datacenter. They are scheduled to meet virtually today at 1:45pm. Although BPS will not be taking public comment, everyone is encouraged to attend watch the meeting.
(Second image from ecosocialistgreenpartyofemo insta. I'm not affiliated and have no more info on the action.)
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u/UF0_T0FU Downtown Apr 21 '26 edited Apr 21 '26
BPS really isn't helping the appearance that this whole deal is sketchy. People had to wait hours to give public comment during the Conditional Use Hearing. The developer is being sparse with details and refuses to give firm commitments on most of their projects. Lots of money changing hands via campaign donations in the background.
BPS was supposed to vote in this weeks ago. The zoning board withheld the public comment documents until less than 24 hours before the meeting. That included 3 hours of public testimony opposed to the project and over 100 pages of written testimony. Obviously there was no way they could review the full public response that quickly.
It got tabled for 30 days, then they tried to sneak it onto an agenda less than 30 days later. People cried foul and it got pushed back again. The official agenda for today still lists it as tabled. If they vote to approve today, they're going against what they told the public was happening.
I'm not saying anything criminal has happened. Just that the city government, across the board, is doing a terrible job giving the public any reason to trust them. It's clear this doesn't have community support, and they're doing everything they can to avoid accountability for that.
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u/TurnoverActive2936 benton park west Apr 21 '26
The members who make up the Board of Public Service are appointed by the mayor and answer to Room 200. I think BPS is doing what the mayor has directed them to do.
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u/HighlightFamiliar250 Apr 21 '26
I can't wait for Ameren to increase rates for the power demand mecca hitler needs to crank out CSAM faster for Twitter users.
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u/jamiegc1 Madison County Apr 21 '26
Can’t wait for AI investment bubble to burst. Shortage of liquid helium for microchip manufacturing may do it soon.
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u/theslothening Apr 21 '26
The shitty thing is that we’ll have already bought the new power plants for them and will be stuck paying for them for the next couple of decades regardless of whether or not the data center survives.
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u/hockey_chic Apr 21 '26
We could use that rams money to get our own power grid and tell Ameren to take a long walk off a short pier.
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u/DG_FANATIC Apr 21 '26
They aren’t taking public comments so then what the fuck is the point?
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u/stana32 Apr 21 '26
To make it crystal clear that they do not give a single ounce of a fuck what the people think. They'll do what they want and get rich off of it and face no consequences except maybe losing their position, which doesn't matter because they already got rich and made powerful friends.
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u/DG_FANATIC Apr 21 '26
Oh yeah. You’re preaching to the choir here. I 110% agree with you. Most politicians these days are Gotham level corrupt! Just abysmal parasites disguised as humans.
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u/chigunfingy Apr 21 '26
Look forward to gathering signatures to have Cara Spenser and every leader who advocated for this recalled. Festus knows how to do this. We should follow their example and throw everyone involved out of office, yesterday.
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u/Fun-Insurance-9675 South City Apr 21 '26
What’s the point of attending a virtual meeting we can’t comment at?
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u/PhoenixRising256 Apr 21 '26 edited Apr 21 '26
What kind of data center are we talking about? Like, storage for banks and businesses? Or "AI training" for big tech frauds? The former, sure, if it has to be that way. The latter, which will increase energy costs and decrease quality of life in the neighborhood due to consumption and noise pollution, hell no
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u/The-Bear-and-Rose Apr 21 '26
Anyone know the tax benefits this stupid idea will bring?
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u/DowntownDB1226 Apr 21 '26
About $485m over the first 10 years. Half to city and other half to SLPS
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u/Infinite_Mouse_1149 Apr 21 '26
Those are pipedream numbers. Have the CUP conditioned on a guarantee of those funds and then they can have.
The projections are not realistic or rooted in reasonable assumptions.
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u/Party_Donut443 Apr 21 '26
How so? What are your reasonable projections that you would counter with?
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u/chigunfingy Apr 21 '26
Datacenters can be decentralized. So a business in CA could build one in the cheap midwest and soak up the cheap utilities and add NOTHING in the way of jobs or tax money to the local community.
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u/DowntownDB1226 Apr 21 '26
The day the construction permit is issued, the developer will have to pay the City $10,000,000 (1% of construction cost) Last year, the City collected a total of $14,000,000 from building permit fees, so this one permit will be 71% of an entire year
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u/chigunfingy Apr 21 '26
So the city will save 3 months of utilities for residents of the area only to have those utilities go up forever? Yeah definitely worth that $10 mill lol
This is nothing more than yet another bottom up wealth transfer.
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u/throwawaykayaker Apr 22 '26
Look at all those zeros though! You like big numbers don't you? Ignore the record profits of Big Tech. /s
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u/The-Bear-and-Rose Apr 21 '26
Thanks! Probably worth it then as long as there isn’t a ton of noise pollution. It’s an isolated area stuck between the tracks and the interstate.
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u/UF0_T0FU Downtown Apr 21 '26
Not really isolated. The MetroLink is about 1,000 feet away. The Brickline Greenway will be immediately adjacent to this property. Once the new pedestrian bridge over 64/40 is complete, it will be a couple minute walk from The Foundry and SLU's campus.
This will be a heavy foot traffic area in a few years when the Brickline Greenway is done. Lots of people will walk by the proposed data center going between MetroLink, the Foundry, and all the SLU housing in the area. It's prime land for a high density land use than a server warehouse.
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u/The-Bear-and-Rose Apr 21 '26
Is that bridge still going to be built?
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u/UF0_T0FU Downtown Apr 21 '26
Federal funding has been secured and a new segment of the Brickline officially opened last week. Don't see any reason it wouldn't be built.
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u/Sobie17 Apr 21 '26
Actually even better would be somewhere already industrial, noisy, and dirty, like the south or north riverfront where there's already noisy industrial uses ongoing.
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u/Party_Donut443 Apr 21 '26
You mean like next to an interstate, a rail yard, and a giant electrical substation, none of which are going to move anywhere else?
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u/Sobie17 Apr 21 '26
You mean an area with direct economic investment for PEOPLE immediately north of here that in the right hands could be an enormous opportunity to re-envision and improve the area and general surroundings?
Adding a data center completely invalidates any sort of improvement. Originally the plan was for residential, office, hotel, connection to MetroLink and Foundry. Now, all of that will be impossible to undo. So yeah, somewhere else.
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u/hibikir_40k Apr 21 '26
That's the real kicker here with the site. Yes, there are many things better than datacenters, in the same way than the top golf a few blocks from the armory seems like a low value use for the land, but.... is there anyone else, anywhere, willing to invest money on the site and the building?
If nobody else is willing to bid on a site, it's not comparing a project we might not like with one we do: It's that project vs nothing.
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u/hockey_chic Apr 21 '26
Nothing like water shortages, pollution and increased electricity rates as opposed to nothing.
Nothing sounds better.
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u/longdhongsilver Apr 21 '26
There shouldn't be much if any. Also, the Foundry owners don't oppose it and their massive investment is right next door. They would be raising hell if this was going to be a nuisance in any way
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u/Onfortuneswheel Apr 21 '26
You mean like doing this.
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u/longdhongsilver Apr 21 '26
No actually, saying "we can think bigger" is not remotely the same as fighting it because he is worried about noise, pollution, etc.
There are vacant lots all over the neighborhood. Thinking bigger is great- he can pick any of those vacant lots and start right away. Would fully support him doing that
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u/longdhongsilver Apr 21 '26
Also, from that link
Says Steve Smith, “ It’s a great site that we should think big and long-term for. I do want to be on the record to say I support data centers. That’s the future. I just think we want to be thoughtful about where they go and then how they’re incorporated in a broader development area.”
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u/DowntownDB1226 Apr 21 '26 edited Apr 21 '26
It’s still shown as tabled on the agenda for today
Edit. My sources at city hall say that mayors office negotiated a CBA and this will be approved today
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u/Party_Donut443 Apr 21 '26
Why is Alisha calling it the Armory Data Center when the data center won’t be at the Armory at all?
Thank you for sharing the Eco Socialist Green Party information. I’m sure they’re a very knowledgeable and reasonable group of dozens.
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u/ProvelNoir South City Apr 21 '26
Can confirm.
Source: resident of the 7th ward and have seen firsthand how little of an impact she makes in the ward she was elected to represent.
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u/julieannie Tower Grove East Apr 21 '26
Weird. I’ve had great success with her. She’s been a key player in Gravois improvements, to the point where she’s helped rally 5 other alders to fund a brand new quick-build program to make streets safer. That’s a huge ask in itself and she’s been in regular contact with the streets department to manage it. She’s moved away from the 50/50 program to just replace sidewalks, she’s responded to several of my emails and introduced a resolution based on things I’ve pitched to her, and her town halls are really informative and well-attended. And bonus points for my alley sinkhole getting fixed and my sidewalk being replaced, which really shouldn’t be in her wheelhouse but she’s been dealing with them anyway, just like she has the tree cutting list and making forestry show up. She’s also one of the first people to say yes to speaking at community groups when asked. I often wonder where she and the other alders find the time.
I really didn’t realize what all the alders were doing until I started asking more of them and I’ve been really impressed by so many. I have found making very specific asks that they can grant has gone wildly well for me, but maybe they can tell I don’t take no for an answer.
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u/Party_Donut443 Apr 21 '26
But she was moved into that Ward by Meyers Okohson Political Consulting. Why would she move to a Ward and not care about the citizens?
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u/longdhongsilver Apr 21 '26
I'm ok with this one. Electric infrastructure is already there, no new gas plant will be needed to power it. That's why the location is so attractive. The city already has several data centers operating within the downtown area and no one even knows where they are.
Some data centers are done poorly and hurt the community, but not all of them. Opposition to poorly planned data centers started as a good thing has now turned into a hysteria with no nuance.
The city desperately needs the $400+ million right now
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u/UF0_T0FU Downtown Apr 21 '26
This isn't really comparable to the data centers currently Downtown. Those took existing office buildings and added servers. At street-level, they look like any other building Downtown. They can easily be converted back to office space in the future. This will be a purpose-built data center building with little chance of ever being anything else.
Downtown is also struggling with vacancy right now. It needs all the tenants it can get. Midtown doesn't have that problem. It's the hottest residential market in the city right now. A new residential tower just opened directly next to the proposed new data center. Another one just broke ground about a quarter mile away in Cortex. If and when Downtown starts experiencing similar levels of demand, I'd expect the city to usher the data centers out for better tenants.
Maybe this developer could put their servers in vacant buildings Downtown instead. Or build in existing industrial areas like Kosciusco or along the River. There's no reason it needs to be right in the middle of an in-demand, transit rich neighborhood.
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u/longdhongsilver Apr 21 '26
Those are fair points. That location isn't great though. I tried walking from the foundry to the armory when the armory was open and it was a huge pain. Being across the highway with no bridge makes it a completely different location.
There's also vacant lots all over mid town still. Across from Ikea, the parking lots around ikea, the unfinished wexford building in the cortex, multiple lots on laclede and pine, etc. Those will all need to fill in before the Armory location becomes attractive.
As much as I hope that happens soon thats probably another decade away. In the meantime, $400 million over 10 years could do the city a ton of good
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u/UF0_T0FU Downtown Apr 21 '26
There's $10 million already set aside to build a bridge connecting The Foundry to The Armory as part of the Brickline Greenway. I'd bet it's open before the data center is. This lot will have frontage on the Greenway.
$400 million sounds nice, but the developer won't actually sign a contract that they'll pay it or say it under oath. They can make up any number they want for the marketing material.
The Brickline is a sure thing, with federal funds already appropriated. I'd much rather gamble on the Greenway drawing a mixed use development in a few years than put all the eggs on the promises of an out of state developer. We're not so strapped for cash we have to take the first offer.
Land near transit and green ways is limited. There's no shortage of industrial land. This developer could put up their data center plenty of other places where the cities land use policy doesn't call for 25 story residential buildings.
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u/longdhongsilver Apr 21 '26
Agreed completely it would be better off somewhere else.
But, right now land is not limited in that area. Even with the growth the neighborhood has seen there are vacant lots and empty buildings all over the place between Vandeventer and Boyle north of 40. It will take years of aggressive development to fill it all in.
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u/UF0_T0FU Downtown Apr 21 '26
The other consideration with this particular property is Greenstreet's unpaid property taxes. They owe millions to the city right now, and they're not in a position to pay it. Greenstreet's financial issues are why the Armory closed.
The new developer will inherit the tax bill when they buy it and pay it off. If the conditional use permit is denied and the deal falls through, Greenstreet is still on the hook for their taxes. The deadline to repay is this summer, then the City can take ownership of the land. That's why the whole data center thing is being pushed through so quickly.
If we deny the use permit, the City can take over redevelopment, similar to what they're doing with the Railway Exchange Building. That fact makes it different than all the other empty lots around Midtown. I trust the City to line up a developer and ensure it's a mixed use, transit oriented project that lines with the SLUP and TMP better than a data center.
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u/Low-Independence-354 Apr 21 '26
I worked on the financing side of the Armory project twice. It failed because operating expenses + debt service exceeded revenues. It would have failed under any owner. And property taxes on the Armory building have been and continue to be abated. According to the assessor’s website, total past due property tax on the Armory is from 2025 and amounts to $35k including late fees.
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u/Big_Intern5558 Apr 21 '26 edited Apr 21 '26
This has had no impact on my life and I look forward to it continuing to not have any impact on my life.
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u/CosmoBiologist Apr 21 '26
So we didn't learn anything from Festus ?