A much larger campus<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
The first phase now combines buildings of 300,000 and 863,000 square feet. A later phase would add two 864,000-square-foot buildings, with no public schedule yet for that second stage. Together, the four structures would cover about 2.9 million square feet.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Also Read: A Kansas data center doubled to 2.9 million square feet: why residents call it a breach of trust<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nBeale says the August 2025 drawings were conceptual and were not part of the formal application. The city says the development agreement did not set a maximum building size and that the approved plan complies with zoning. Resident Toni Caldwell called the change \u201ca breach of understanding with this community.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n
That distinction is important. A project can satisfy the written agreement and still leave people feeling that the practical deal changed. In De Soto, the environmental debate is also a debate over when a preliminary plan becomes a public promise.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Water is not the whole story<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
At the June open house, water use dominated many conversations. Beale says the campus will rely on a closed-loop, air-cooled system that is filled and recirculated rather than continuously consuming water through evaporative cooling. The city estimates phase one will use 15,000 to 20,000 gallons per day on average, about the same as two or three sit-down restaurants.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"Construction](\"https:\/\/okdiario.com\/techy\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/de-soto-kansas-data-center-expansion-1.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
Beale Infrastructure’s data center campus in De Soto has nearly tripled in size, sparking local discussions on energy and trust.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nThat is a meaningful design choice, especially when many residents hear \u201cdata center\u201d and picture cooling towers<\/a> swallowing water. But the published consumption estimate covers the first phase, not a full-buildout total. A phase-by-phase forecast would make the promise easier to track.<\/p>\n\n\n\nWater is visible. Power is harder to see, and that is where the scale becomes more striking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The 600 megawatt question<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Beale lists the campus\u2019s expected capacity<\/a> at 600 megawatts. If it were used continuously at that full level, it would equal about 5.3 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity per year, although actual consumption will depend on construction, tenant equipment, and utilization. <\/p>\n\n\n\nIn practical terms, one of the largest environmental variables may be electricity from the grid rather than water from the tap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A Department of Energy-backed Berkeley Lab report found that U.S. data centers used 4.4 percent of the nation\u2019s electricity in 2023 and could reach 6.7 percent to 12 percent by 2028. The range is wide because AI hardware, operating patterns, and cooling choices are changing quickly. De Soto is stepping into that national curve, not standing outside it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The city says Evergy will serve the campus and that a new substation is planned. Beale also says Kansas\u2019s large-load tariff is intended to stop project-triggered grid upgrade costs from being shifted to other customers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\nAlso Read: A Quebec rail firm is expanding after a $150 million contract to rebuild VIA Rail’s sleeper cars<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nThe public project pages reviewed for this article mention wind in Evergy\u2019s generation portfolio, but they do not present a project-specific annual energy forecast or carbon target.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Money grows with size<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
De Soto\u2019s agreement links Payments in Lieu of Taxes to built square footage. That means expansion increases local revenue, and the city currently projects more than $300 million in city revenue over 25 years through franchise fees, energy sales taxes, and property-related payments. Bigger buildings bring bigger checks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The package also allows up to 10 years of property tax abatement for eligible buildings and certain construction sales tax exemptions, while Beale must fund project-required infrastructure and invest at least $700 million within seven years to keep incentives. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
The first phase is expected to support around 50 full-time on-site jobs, with more than 100 permanent positions at full buildout. For a roughly $3.1 billion campus, the public bargain will be judged mostly on long-term revenue<\/a>, infrastructure, and environmental controls rather than a huge permanent workforce.<\/p>\n\n\n\nTrust remains fragile<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Beale\u2019s June 18 open house drew more than 150 people and focused on water, energy, and noise. Company officials considered it productive, but resident Sara VanDeCreek said it felt like a \u201cpublicity opportunity,\u201d pointing to face painting and balloon artists when attendees wanted technical answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n![\"A](\"https:\/\/okdiario.com\/techy\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/kansas-data-center-expansion-de-soto.jpg\" "\\"\\"")
Beale Infrastructure’s data center campus in De Soto, Kansas, expanded significantly from preliminary plans, prompting resident concerns over public transparency and resource usage.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\nThat small scene says a lot because a family event can make a company approachable, but it cannot replace accessible plans, assumptions, permits, and monitoring data. Can a project be legally compliant and still feel poorly explained? Many residents in De Soto appear to think so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
What should come next<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
De Soto already requires annual reporting on construction, operations, employment, and investment. The city should turn that obligation into a public dashboard showing building area, peak and annual electricity use, power sources, water withdrawals, wastewater, generator testing, noise results, tax payments, and jobs for each phase. <\/p>\n\n\n\n
\n\n\nAlso Read: Meet the Airbus Beluga XL: the world’s strangest-looking cargo plane that is rewriting Airbus’s future<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\nThen residents could compare promises with performance without searching through meeting packets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
Urgency is growing because Digital Realty has separately proposed a roughly 1,400-acre De Soto campus, with a first phase of nine buildings totaling about 3 million square feet. One project can be managed as an exception. Two large campuses begin to shape the city\u2019s identity, grid planning<\/a>, and environmental future.<\/p>\n\n\n\nAt the end of the day, the Beale project shows why data center debates cannot stop at \u201cjobs versus opposition.\u201d Closed-loop cooling is a real environmental improvement, but scale changes the questions, and the public deserves answers that grow as fast as the campus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
The official project information was published on City of De Soto<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"De Soto, Kansas, is getting a much bigger data center than residents first saw. Beale Infrastructure\u2019s four-building campus grew from … <\/p>\n
That is a meaningful design choice, especially when many residents hear \u201cdata center\u201d and picture cooling towers<\/a> swallowing water. But the published consumption estimate covers the first phase, not a full-buildout total. A phase-by-phase forecast would make the promise easier to track.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Water is visible. Power is harder to see, and that is where the scale becomes more striking.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Beale lists the campus\u2019s expected capacity<\/a> at 600 megawatts. If it were used continuously at that full level, it would equal about 5.3 billion kilowatt-hours of electricity per year, although actual consumption will depend on construction, tenant equipment, and utilization. <\/p>\n\n\n\n In practical terms, one of the largest environmental variables may be electricity from the grid rather than water from the tap.<\/p>\n\n\n\n A Department of Energy-backed Berkeley Lab report found that U.S. data centers used 4.4 percent of the nation\u2019s electricity in 2023 and could reach 6.7 percent to 12 percent by 2028. The range is wide because AI hardware, operating patterns, and cooling choices are changing quickly. De Soto is stepping into that national curve, not standing outside it.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The city says Evergy will serve the campus and that a new substation is planned. Beale also says Kansas\u2019s large-load tariff is intended to stop project-triggered grid upgrade costs from being shifted to other customers. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The public project pages reviewed for this article mention wind in Evergy\u2019s generation portfolio, but they do not present a project-specific annual energy forecast or carbon target.<\/p>\n\n\n\n De Soto\u2019s agreement links Payments in Lieu of Taxes to built square footage. That means expansion increases local revenue, and the city currently projects more than $300 million in city revenue over 25 years through franchise fees, energy sales taxes, and property-related payments. Bigger buildings bring bigger checks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The package also allows up to 10 years of property tax abatement for eligible buildings and certain construction sales tax exemptions, while Beale must fund project-required infrastructure and invest at least $700 million within seven years to keep incentives. <\/p>\n\n\n\n The first phase is expected to support around 50 full-time on-site jobs, with more than 100 permanent positions at full buildout. For a roughly $3.1 billion campus, the public bargain will be judged mostly on long-term revenue<\/a>, infrastructure, and environmental controls rather than a huge permanent workforce.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Beale\u2019s June 18 open house drew more than 150 people and focused on water, energy, and noise. Company officials considered it productive, but resident Sara VanDeCreek said it felt like a \u201cpublicity opportunity,\u201d pointing to face painting and balloon artists when attendees wanted technical answers.<\/p>\n\n\n\n That small scene says a lot because a family event can make a company approachable, but it cannot replace accessible plans, assumptions, permits, and monitoring data. Can a project be legally compliant and still feel poorly explained? Many residents in De Soto appear to think so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n De Soto already requires annual reporting on construction, operations, employment, and investment. The city should turn that obligation into a public dashboard showing building area, peak and annual electricity use, power sources, water withdrawals, wastewater, generator testing, noise results, tax payments, and jobs for each phase. <\/p>\n\n\n\n Then residents could compare promises with performance without searching through meeting packets.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Urgency is growing because Digital Realty has separately proposed a roughly 1,400-acre De Soto campus, with a first phase of nine buildings totaling about 3 million square feet. One project can be managed as an exception. Two large campuses begin to shape the city\u2019s identity, grid planning<\/a>, and environmental future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n At the end of the day, the Beale project shows why data center debates cannot stop at \u201cjobs versus opposition.\u201d Closed-loop cooling is a real environmental improvement, but scale changes the questions, and the public deserves answers that grow as fast as the campus.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The official project information was published on City of De Soto<\/em><\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" De Soto, Kansas, is getting a much bigger data center than residents first saw. Beale Infrastructure\u2019s four-building campus grew from … <\/p>\nThe 600 megawatt question<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Also Read: A Quebec rail firm is expanding after a $150 million contract to rebuild VIA Rail’s sleeper cars<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
Money grows with size<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Trust remains fragile<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
What should come next<\/h2>\n\n\n\n
Also Read: Meet the Airbus Beluga XL: the world’s strangest-looking cargo plane that is rewriting Airbus’s future<\/a><\/h4>\n<\/div>\n<\/div><\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n