$11.3B data center pitch in Bradley County comes amid growing local skepticism
Wright Brothers Construction is proposing an $11.3 billion "Project River" in Bradley County, Tennessee, which is very likely to include a data center. The project aims to address common data center concerns by generating its own 1,500 megawatts of power from biomass and natural gas and operating without municipal water. However, the proposal faces growing local skepticism, with residents already voicing concerns at public meetings.
Wright Brothers Construction has proposed a massive $11.3 billion development, dubbed "Project River," in Bradley County, Tennessee, which is strongly anticipated to include a data center. The project, encompassing 850 acres west of Interstate 75 and north of Old Lower River Road NW, was submitted for rezoning and annexation into the City of Cleveland.
Responding to widespread concerns over data centers' energy and water consumption, Wright Brothers Construction CEO Mitchell Simpson stated the development would feature an on-site power plant generating 1,500 megawatts from a combination of biomass (500MW) and natural gas (1,000MW), with an additional 360MW requested from TVA for backup. Developers also claim the facility would not use municipal water for daily operations, instead recovering about 200 gallons per minute from the biomass process for a closed-loop cooling system. They also intend to avoid diesel backup generators and meet local noise standards.
Despite these assurances, local skepticism is mounting. Residents recently packed a Cleveland Planning Commission meeting over a separate Wright Brothers proposal, expressing fears of data center development. Simpson acknowledged the likelihood of Project River housing a data center, noting public meetings are planned at Cleveland's PIE Center to address community questions. The project is currently in the early stages of the local approval process and is estimated to create up to 2,600 direct and indirect jobs.