Microsoft buys more land in Racine County near data center project

Less than a month after buying roughly 170 acres in Racine County, Microsoft has acquired even more land for its $3.3 billion data center campus.

Microsoft purchased 70.9 acres of mostly vacant land in Mount Pleasant for $12.75 million, according to Wisconsin Department of Revenue online records.

The sale was recorded Tuesday. Like the 173 acres purchased last month, the land acquired in August is located along Louis Sorenson Road. It’s near the main data center development site, according to a project overview. The company also bought 32.1 acres on the road back in May. 

In late 2023, Mount Pleasant officials approved Microsoft’s purchase of more than 1,000 acres that were initially meant for Foxconn’s plans for a massive $9 billion development that would create 13,000 jobs. Foxconn’s promises never came to fruition.

With the closing recorded this week, Microsoft now owns more than 1,270 acres in Racine County.

In May, Microsoft announced it would spend $3.3 billion on the project, expanding on its initial plan of spending $1 billion on data centers in Mount Pleasant. 

Officials have said the project is expected to bring more than 2,000 union construction jobs to the area by the end of the year. As part of its plans in the state, Microsoft has also said it will work with the United Way Wisconsin to provide artificial intelligence skills training for more than 100,000 Wisconsinites by 2030.