As a plan seeks to turn the Alton Steel site into a data center, residents weigh in
TerraWatt is seeking to buy and redevelop the former 381-acre Alton Steel site in Alton, Illinois, into a data center campus. Residents are divided, with some supporting redevelopment and investment while others raise concerns about water use, electricity demand, noise, environmental impacts and rezoning; the sale and required city approvals remain pending.
TerraWatt is offering to purchase the former Alton Steel site on East Broadway and convert the 381-acre property into a data center campus. The proposal calls for demolishing and remediating the site, then constructing 200-megawatt blocks, with each block representing an estimated $2.6 billion investment. If approved, work could begin in 2027, with the first block expected to become fully operational in 2031.
Alton residents expressed mixed views. Some said redevelopment could replace lost steel mill jobs and address an increasingly blighted vacant property, while others questioned the project's long-term employment benefits and raised concerns about water and electricity consumption, noise, emissions, migratory birds and the site's proximity to the Mississippi River. TerraWatt said the data center would use less water and produce fewer emissions and less noise than the steel mill and would not seek local tax incentives. The sale has not been finalized, and the city has received no permit or rezoning applications; Mayor David Goins said Alton will continue evaluating the proposal and may hire a third-party consultant.