Data center profile · Woodward, Dallas County, Iowa (Highway 141 and Seminole Avenue)

Microsoft Woodward

Microsoft bought about 600 acres in Woodward Eco Business Park, Iowa, in Oct. 2026 for a cloud data center campus not yet designed.

Land bought, pre-design. Microsoft closed on the land on Oct. 8, 2026, and residents first heard on Oct. 12. Microsoft says design has not begun, and the city still has to approve a development agreement and a site plan.
600+ acres
bought in the Woodward Eco Business Park
closed Oct. 8, 2026; price not disclosed
2 to 3 years
of design before construction, then about 2 years to the first building
Microsoft staff, Oct. 12, 2026
$0
tax incentives sought
Microsoft says it will pay for electrical, road and utility upgrades
MW not disclosed
no campus capacity published
none found in company, press or city sources
OperatorMicrosoft
CustomerMicrosoft (cloud and storage workloads, not AI training, per company staff)
First building in serviceOur estimate: 2029 or later (no dated power path yet); company says 2031.
Next stepCity council approval of a development agreement and a site plan, neither yet negotiated
Power

Power and the grid

Sources on record, size not disclosed

Getting on the grid

Who supplies what, what it costs, and what is still not public.

  1. Oct. 12, 2026
    Wholesale purchase model stated
    Microsoft told residents it would pay for all electrical infrastructure and buy power from a wholesaler, not the local grid. News report · Oct. 2026
  2. As of Oct. 2026
    No utility filing found
    No Iowa Utilities Commission docket names the campus. News report · Oct. 2026
Permits

Permits checklist

1 granted · 3 checked, nothing on file

Approvals a campus like this normally needs, and what we found.

Risks

What could slow it down

Money

Money on record

Not on record: land price: not disclosed, value of the purchase agreement not shared News report · Oct. 2026; Microsoft says it will not seek tax incentives: no incentives, company statement, Oct. 12, 2026 News report · Oct. 2026

Timeline

What happened, and what is due

SitePaper trailConstructionPowerPermitsMoneyLegalUpcoming
  1. June 8, 2026
    Permits Woodward's council rezones the park parcel to the Eco Business Park District with readings waived News report · June 2026
  2. Oct. 8, 2026
    Site Microsoft closes on more than 600 acres in the park News report · Oct. 2026
  3. Oct. 12, 2026
    Site Microsoft discloses the purchase at a residents-only meeting; hundreds attend and one is removed after confronting the mayor News report · Oct. 2026
  4. Oct. 12, 2026
    Money Microsoft says it will pay for utility upgrades, seek no tax incentives and design before it builds News report · Oct. 2026
The buildings

Specs

Who is involved

Owners, partners and builders

Owners and developers
  • Microsoft: land owner and planned operator
  • ABG Development Group: owner of the rezoned property per a council agenda
Decision-makers
  • Woodward City Council: development agreement and site plan
  • Todd Folkerts: mayor
Still unknown

Open questions

Where this comes from

21 records from 4 documents

Drawn from news reports, each kept with its date and source. The bar shows documents by type.

News report 4
Evidence

Every quote behind this page

Grade key: A = the primary record itself (permit, filing, exhibit) · B = a dated official statement · C = news reporting. Map distances are our own measurements on OpenStreetMap and carry no grade. Allegations in lawsuits are marked as such in the quotes.

Power (2)
  • Microsoft told Woodward residents on Oct. 12, 2026 that electricity would be purchased directly from a wholesaler rather than the local grid, and that Microsoft will fund all infrastructure including electricity infrastr
    “Microsoft will pay for all the infrastructure required by the data center, including water and sewer upgrades, roadway construction and paving, electricity infrastructure and the like”
    News report · Oct. 2026 · grade C
  • Microsoft staff on record (Oct 12, 2026): design not yet begun (2-3 years of design, then approximately 2 years to a first building); the campus is for cloud computing and data storage workloads, not AI training; closed-
    “Nickolaus added that the data center is expected to serve cloud computing and data storage workloads, not AI training workloads.”
    News report · Oct. 2026 · grade C
Money and contracts (3)
  • Microsoft closed the purchase of more than 600 acres near Highway 141 and Seminole Avenue in the Woodward Eco Business Park on October 8, 2026; purchase first disclosed publicly October 12, 2026
    “Microsoft had purchased more than 600 acres near Highway 141 and Seminole Avenue for a data center campus in the city”
    News report · Oct. 2026 · grade C
  • At the October 12, 2026 meeting Microsoft said it would cover necessary electrical, road and utility improvements and would not seek tax incentives; design had not begun (2-3 years of design, then about 2 years to build
    “Microsoft would cover necessary improvements to electrical infrastructure, roads and utilities and would not seek tax incentives.”
    News report · Oct. 2026 · grade C
  • Microsoft closed Oct 8, 2026 on approximately 600 acres in the Woodward Eco Business Park (a state certified site since 2018), rezoned from agricultural to the Eco Business Park District in Jun 2026. The purchase price w
    “Microsoft has acquired 600 acres of land outside Des Moines, Iowa, for a potential data center campus.”
    News report · Oct. 2026 · grade C
Permits and government (3)
  • City of Woodward City Council:
    “At its June 8 meeting, the City Council approved rezoning a property from agricultural use to the Eco Business Park District”
    News report · Oct. 2026 · grade C
  • The Oct 12, 2026 unveiling was a residents-only, ID-screened community meeting (the regular council meeting was cancelled): at least 300 residents attended, one resident was forcibly removed after confronting the mayor,
    “According to the Des Moines Register, one resident shouted: 'You work for the people.' One resident was forcibly removed from the meeting.”
    News report · Oct. 2026 · grade C
  • STATE VERIFIED: Woodward, IOWA (Dallas County): Rezoning to Eco Business Park District approved June 8, 2026 (readings waived) - the parcel framework Microsoft bought into
    “At its June 8 meeting, the City Council approved rezoning a property from agricultural use to the Eco Business Park District, where Microsoft now plans to develop its data center campus”
    News report · June 2026 · grade C
Site and other (3)
  • County code: 19049
    “The land lies between Highway 141 and Seminole Avenue. Woodward is located around 30 miles northwest of Des Moines in Dallas County.”
    News report · Oct. 2026 · grade C
  • Microsoft's land development manager told residents design has not begun: 2-3 years to design the campus, then ~2 years to complete the first building - putting any energization in the 2030s on the company's own telling,
    “We have not even begun to design the building, so we have no idea what mechanical systems will be going into the buildings”
    News report · Oct. 2026 · grade C
  • Project status: land acquired
    “As reported by the Des Moines Register, the land purchase in Woodward was revealed on October 12 during a meeting with local residents. The sale went through just four days prior, on October 8.”
    News report · Oct. 2026 · grade C