Microsoft acquires additional 40 acres of nearby land for data center campus in Saint Joseph County

SAINT JOSEPH COUNTY, Ind. -- The Microsoft Data Center on the east side of Saint Joseph County will be growing by another 40 acres. The council voted to rezone an additional part of land that's surrounded by the Microsoft Data Center site from agricultural to industrial.

Petitioners called the 40-acre parcel the "missing tooth" of the site.

They say the land has become challenging for farming, so they were able to acquire the land that will now be included in the Microsoft Data Center campus where they can potentially place more buildings.

The vote didn't come without criticism from several members of the public, who shared a variety of ecological concerns about even more industrial land in the county.