Illinois data centre project: $18 billion campus gets first permit as neighbours say they learned about it too late

A massive data-centre campus planned in Grayslake, Illinois, has moved a step closer to construction after the village issued its first building permit, paving the way for an 800,000-square-foot facility. The larger development is expected to involve as much as $18 billion in private investment, but the project has also triggered opposition from residents who say they were not given a meaningful opportunity to weigh in before approvals were granted.The T5 Data Centres project, known as the Cornerstone development, is planned on land along Peterson Road in Grayslake. The latest plans call for about 6.7 million square feet of data-centre space to be built over 7 to 10 years. Earlier approvals allowed for a larger development of up to about 473 acres and as much as 10.1 million square feet, according to village documents. The village said the initial permit marks the operational start of the multibillion-dollar campus, with site work moving forward.Neighbours say they found out too lateWhile the village and developer have promoted the project as a major economic investment, some nearby residents say they were unaware of the scale of the development until after key approvals had alread...