Sue Data Centers

Data Center Registry

Metrobloks Southfield Data Center

Southfield, Oakland County, Michigan · All 5 Metrobloks sites

PermittedContestedRecord updated October 24, 2026

Metrobloks Southfield Data Center is a permitted data center in Southfield, Michigan (Oakland County), operated by Metrobloks. The public record puts it at 100 MW planned, 12.19 acres, a reported $1.5 billion investment. It is the subject of active public debate, with hearings, petitions, or organized opposition on record.

Every line on this page traces to a public source listed at the bottom. Where a figure was looked for and not found, the row says so. A blank is never a zero.

Facility record

Permitted

Operator
Metrobloks
Facility type
Data center
Location
Southfield, Oakland County, MI
Coordinates
42.4740, -83.2930 (approximate)
Power capacity
100 MW planned
Land
12.19 acres
Investment
$1.5 billion
Announced
Not established from a public source
Utility
DTE Energy
Power source
Grid
Cooling
Closed loop
Water use
Not established from a public source
Jobs
35 permanent
Public subsidy
Not established from a public source
Community reception
Contested
Source confidence
Confirmed by multiple independent sources or official documentation

Opposition and litigation at this site

Yes. Metrobloks Southfield Data Center in Southfield, Oakland County, Michigan is contested. Hearings, public comment, petitions, or organized opposition are on record, and no lawsuit has been filed so far. Majority of public speakers opposed at the Dec 16, 2025 council hearing ('too many unknowns' -- Council President Charles Hicks); approved anyway 5-2.

A new status, a permit, a reception finding, or a lawsuit. Nothing else, ever.

How the community has taken it

Reception is a sourced signal, not an editorial judgment: contested means active public debate is on record, with hearings, petitions, or organized opposition, without litigation.

Majority of public speakers opposed at the Dec 16, 2025 council hearing ('too many unknowns' -- Council President Charles Hicks); approved anyway 5-2.

Power and water

DTE must deliver power before construction can begin, possibly 2027 or 2028

Approved site plan describes a closed loop water system with no ground water usage.

Notes on the record

217,030-230,000 sq ft, two-story building on ~12.19 acres of vacant land along Inkster Road north of 11 Mile Road, Southfield's northwest corner. Los Angeles-based developer Metrobloks (as of August 2026, already tracked elsewhere in MO/IN/FL) has not completed a data center build anywhere yet per reporting. City of Southfield's own statement explicitly says the facility is NOT intended as 'an artificial intelligence repository' -- an AI classification is omitted here rather than defaulting to likely AI-specific. City Council approved the site plan 5-2 on Dec 16, 2025; the city notes 'Approval of the proposal does not remove City oversight' -- still subject to further permitting. A named IT-engineer public commenter said the real target may be closer to 150 MW by groundbreaking; unconfirmed beyond that public comment. Closed-loop cooling planned, city says 'minimal long-term water use.' Coordinates are an approximate Inkster/11 Mile intersection estimate, not parcel-geocoded.

What the record does not establish, and the document that would

In every fight on our tracker the decisive fact came out of a public records request. These are the requests for this site.

  • Tax abatements or other public subsidy
Which document closes each gap
Tax abatements or other public subsidy
The abatement, PILOT, or development agreement approved by the county, city, or development authority, and the state's data center sales tax exemption certificate if one was issued.

Have one of these documents? Send it to us and we will add it to the record with attribution.

Other sites within 30 miles

Distances are between recorded coordinates, many of which are a city or county centroid, so treat them as approximate. Cumulative load on one utility and one aquifer is the question a planning commission rarely asks.

Tell us about your situation

Living near Metrobloks Southfield Data Center?

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Questions people ask about this site

Is there opposition to the Metrobloks Southfield Data Center in Southfield?

Yes. Metrobloks Southfield Data Center in Southfield, Oakland County, Michigan is contested. Hearings, public comment, petitions, or organized opposition are on record, and no lawsuit has been filed so far. Majority of public speakers opposed at the Dec 16, 2025 council hearing ('too many unknowns' -- Council President Charles Hicks); approved anyway 5-2.

Has anyone filed a lawsuit over the Metrobloks Southfield Data Center?

No lawsuit over Metrobloks Southfield Data Center appears in the record we track as of October 24, 2026. Residents most often reach a lawyer over water supply, well drawdown, noise from cooling plant, property value, or a rezoning approved without the notice the ordinance required. If any of that is happening near this site, it is worth a review whether or not a case has been filed yet.

How much water does Metrobloks Southfield Data Center use?

No water withdrawal figure for Metrobloks Southfield Data Center is on record here. Cooling is recorded as closed_loop, which is the strongest available clue: closed loop and air cooled plant draw far less than evaporative cooling. We leave the number blank rather than estimate one.

Who operates Metrobloks Southfield Data Center, and how big is it?

Metrobloks is the operator on record. We hold 5 sites for that company across the registry. Capacity on record is 100 MW. The site is recorded at 12.19 acres.

How to cite this page

SueDataCenters.org Data Center Registry, "Metrobloks Southfield Data Center," updated October 24, 2026, https://suedatacenters.org/data-centers/metrobloks-southfield-mi.

Facility data from Compute Atlas (E. Kubiak), version 1.34.1 (October 4, 2026), licensed CC BY 4.0, record https://www.compute-atlas.com/facilities/metrobloks-southfield-mi, retrieved October 29, 2026.

Corrections with a public source are welcome at the Compute Atlas record or through our contact page. The whole registry is available as CSV and JSON under CC BY 4.0.

Sources for this record

As compiled and cited by Compute Atlas, with our own reporting appended. Archived links are used where the original has moved.

  1. 1.City of Southfield Statement Regarding Proposed Data Center · City of Southfield, Michigan · retrieved August 8, 2026
  2. 2.Southfield City Council greenlights divisive data center plan: 'Too many unknowns' · Planet Detroit · retrieved September 21, 2026
  3. 3.Southfield City Council approves data center site plan · C & G Newspapers · retrieved September 9, 2026
  4. 4.How many AI data centers are planned in Michigan? We counted., "LA-based developer Metrobloks LLC has received site plan approval from the Southfield City Council for a 100-megawatt data center" · Gander Newsroom · retrieved October 7, 2026
  5. 5.Southfield data center proposal: City council to hear public input Monday (developer: 'Ours is 100') · FOX 2 Detroit · retrieved October 24, 2026

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