Sheboygan Mayor: No data center planned
Developers have reached out to the Sheboygan Water Utility about their plans
SHEBOYGAN — A secretive project on Sheboygan’s far south side has garnered significant attention from city residents.
Earlier this year, KBC Advisors approached City of Sheboygan officials about purchasing 62-acres of land in the SouthPointe Enterprise Campus but made clear their plans for the land had to be kept quiet to avoid community uproar. The only public confirmation about the project came during a meeting in July at City Hall when City Administrator Casey Bradley said the large industrial user plans to hire several hundred workers1 and the company is planning a lot of investment in that area. Bradley said the company has chosen to remain anonymous and the company has forced city officials to sign a nondisclosure agreement.
City officials have been coy about what is planned. Mayor Ryan Sorenson has refused to answer any questions about the potential use of the land and Taylor Zeinert, the city’s Director of Planning & Development, has also refused to comment but did mention the need for additional housing for the unnamed industry2 that is looking to come to the city during a meeting on Monday, October 13th. But through documents and sources at City Hall, the secretive project is rumored to be a data center. Zeinert told WKTS News on Monday afternoon that is “misinformation.” She said the developer is planning an industrial building that will operate as a logistics facility.
A defiant Mayor Sorenson further confirmed Monday night during the Common Council meeting, “This is not a data center. This is not a data center.”
Developers have reached out to the Sheboygan Water Utility about their plans for the south side which means further infrastructure projects could be in the works. The Board of Water Commissioners approved spending $58,000 on a consultant contract with AECOM for study of “hydraulic water pressure requirements of prospective new business operation” at SouthPointe. City officials are mapping out the next batch of land purchases and annexations. The eventual plan, according to publicly accessible documents, is to expand the city as far south as County Road V and as far west as MilliporeSigma. A source told WKTS News that a data center could be built west of Interstate 43 on land that would be annexed into the city but no timetable was set.
Bradley is actively working to court a data center to the city due to millions of dollars in property tax revenue it could collect. A source close to the City Administrator described Bradley as being “giddy” over the prospect. However, if a data center is indeed built in Sheboygan, Alliant Energy would have to expand its power generation and infrastructure to meet that demand. Those upgrades aren’t free — they’re financed through rate increases and surcharges that ultimately get passed on to home owners, renters and small business owners.
“Data centers promise investment, but the reality is it drains our power grids, our water, and our wallets,” said Lisa Salgado, a city resident who has been vocal about the lack of transparency from City Hall. “They create few jobs, demand massive infrastructure, and leave taxpayers footing the long-term costs for private profit.”
The American Transmission Company is planning a 90-mile, $1.4 billion electrical infrastructure project relating to the Port Washington Data Center. “Because our region still relies on coal and fossil fuels, that extra electricity means more boilers running, more smokestacks burning, and more pollution in our air,” added Salgado. “Residents could end up paying twice — once on their bills, and again with their health.”
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Sources
Finance and Personnel Committee Meeting on July 14, 2025
City of Sheboygan
Finance and Personnel Committee Meeting on October 13, 2025
City of Sheboygan
Thanks for reporting on this. Nice work.