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Data Center Registry

Gibraltar Data Center (former McLouth Steel site)

Gibraltar, Wayne County, Michigan · All 3 Raeden sites

ProposedIn litigationRecord updated September 9, 2026

Gibraltar Data Center (former McLouth Steel site) is a proposed data center in Gibraltar, Michigan (Wayne County), operated by Raeden (with Cal Realty / Ferragon Corp.). The public record puts it at 100 MW planned. It is or has been the subject of litigation over its siting, permitting, or operation.

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

Proposed

Operator
Raeden (with Cal Realty / Ferragon Corp.)
Facility type
Data center
Location
27800 W. Jefferson Avenue, Gibraltar, Wayne County, MI
Coordinates
42.1063, -83.1968 (approximate)
Power capacity
100 MW planned
Land
Not established from a public source
Investment
Not established from a public source
Announced
Not established from a public source
Utility
Not established from a public source
Cooling
Not established from a public source
Water use
Not established from a public source
Jobs
Not established from a public source
Public subsidy
Not established from a public source
Community reception
In litigation
Source confidence
Reported by at least one credible outlet or filing

Timeline from the record

Newest first. Record entries come from the filings and reports the registry cites. Coverage entries are headlines from publisher feeds we monitor daily, linked to the outlet; last checked September 14, 2026.

  1. August 2026
    Proposed
    Developers filed suit on 2026-08-17 seeking a declaration that the moratorium is invalid and an order compelling the city to approve the plans. Source: Planet Detroit
  2. March 2026
    Proposed
    City council passed a one-year data-center moratorium on 2026-03-09, halting consideration. Source: Planet Detroit
  3. February 2026
    Proposed
    Application submitted to the city; the city asked for additional detail. Source: Planet Detroit

Opposition and litigation at this site

Yes. Gibraltar Data Center (former McLouth Steel site) in Gibraltar, Wayne County, Michigan is or has been the subject of litigation over its siting, permitting, or operation. Gibraltar City Council passed a one-year data-center moratorium on 2026-03-09, after Raeden had already submitted its application.

How the community has taken it

Reception is a sourced signal, not an editorial judgment: in litigation means the facility is or has been the subject of a lawsuit related to its siting, permitting, or operation.

Gibraltar City Council passed a one-year data-center moratorium on 2026-03-09, after Raeden had already submitted its application. Raeden and Cal Realty sued the city on 2026-08-17 in U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan (Judge Robert White), alleging the moratorium unfairly singles out their application and that an application submitted in good faith is entitled to review under the pre-moratorium ordinance. Residents raised concerns about grid strain, the source characterises the facility's draw as equivalent to 80,000 households, and about impacts on the neighbouring Humbug Marsh wildlife refuge.

Source: Planet Detroit

Notes on the record

100 MW proposal on the former McLouth Steel plant site (operated from the 1950s to 1996, now a steel processing site) at 27800 W. Jefferson Ave., with an adjacent Superfund property at 28000 W. Jefferson. Status remains 'proposed', not 'cancelled': the application is blocked by the moratorium and is the subject of active litigation, not a denial. CONFIRMED ABSENCES: no acreage, investment figure, water figure, or job count is stated in either source. The '80,000 households' comparison is the source's characterisation of the 100 MW draw, not an additional measured figure. Coordinates are the US Census geocoder's match for the street address named in the source; the parcel is not confirmed.

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.

  • Cooling method and water use
  • Tax abatements or other public subsidy
  • Permanent jobs promised
  • Land area
  • Which utility serves it
Which document closes each gap
Cooling method and water use
The water service agreement, any groundwater appropriation permit, and the mechanical narrative in the site plan.
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.
Permanent jobs promised
The economic development application or incentive agreement, which usually states a job commitment and a clawback.
Land area
The rezoning application, the plat, or the deed recorded with the county.
Which utility serves it
The electric service agreement or the utility's filing with the state public utility commission.

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.

Questions people ask about this site

Is there opposition to the Gibraltar Data Center (former McLouth Steel site) in Gibraltar?

Yes. Gibraltar Data Center (former McLouth Steel site) in Gibraltar, Wayne County, Michigan is or has been the subject of litigation over its siting, permitting, or operation. Gibraltar City Council passed a one-year data-center moratorium on 2026-03-09, after Raeden had already submitted its application.

Has anyone filed a lawsuit over the Gibraltar Data Center (former McLouth Steel site)?

Yes. This site is recorded as being in litigation. The case, the court, and the filings we hold are listed on this page under the timeline and the sources.

How much water does Gibraltar Data Center (former McLouth Steel site) use?

No water withdrawal figure for Gibraltar Data Center (former McLouth Steel site) is on record here. Water use is rarely published voluntarily; it usually surfaces through a utility service agreement or a state withdrawal permit, both of which are public records. We leave the number blank rather than estimate one.

Who operates Gibraltar Data Center (former McLouth Steel site), and how big is it?

Raeden (with Cal Realty / Ferragon Corp.) is the operator on record. We hold 3 sites for that company across the registry. Capacity on record is 100 MW.

How to cite this page

SueDataCenters.org Data Center Registry, "Gibraltar Data Center (former McLouth Steel site)," updated September 9, 2026, https://suedatacenters.org/data-centers/raeden-gibraltar-mclouth-mi.

Facility data from Compute Atlas (E. Kubiak), version 1.32.0 (September 7, 2026), licensed CC BY 4.0, record https://www.compute-atlas.com/facilities/raeden-gibraltar-mclouth-mi, retrieved September 14, 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.Gibraltar faces data center developer lawsuit after city passes moratorium · Planet Detroit · retrieved September 9, 2026
  2. 2.How many AI data centers are planned in Michigan? We counted. · Gander Newsroom · retrieved September 9, 2026

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