Aurora Reviews Second 1M-Square-Foot Data Center Proposal Near Aurora Highlands Amid Growing Community Backlash

Aurora city officials are reviewing a second large-scale data center proposal in the northeast corridor of the city, just weeks after a separate project drew fierce community opposition from nearby residents concerned about the rapid proliferation of such facilities in residential-adjacent areas.

A development application submitted by Aerotropolis Industrial Development outlines plans for a 1-million-square-foot data center comprising 11 buildings on a 500-acre site south of East 48th Avenue, north of 26th Avenue, east of Aerotropolis Parkway and west of Monaghan Road. The parcel would form part of a broader master-planned development known as the Aerotropolis Logistics Center, which spans more than 1,200 acres and is slated to include an industrial zone on its eastern side alongside residential and mixed-use development to the west.

The project remains in its earliest stages, and critical details — including the facility's power requirements and projected water consumption — have not yet been disclosed. City spokesperson Jennifer Soules confirmed that the application has not advanced past initial review, stating, "The site plan for the Aerotropolis Logistics Center (ALC) is still in its very early stages — the structure and layout of the site are subject to change." She added that the application "was determined to be incomplete and has not been accepted for review at this time."

The Aerotropolis proposal is not the only data center project taking shape in the area. A nearby site within the same logistics center may also host a 300,000-square-foot facility for NTT Global Data Centers, though the company has not yet filed a development application with the city. An incentive agreement approved by the city council in October 2025 indicates that NTT's facility would occupy a 76-acre parcel within the Aerotropolis Logistics Center and would be eligible for up to $13.5 million in tax incentives over 10 years, contingent on the data center supporting 27 jobs that meet specified salary requirements. Soules noted that the incentives are disbursed annually only after the company submits a compliance report, and that payments are withheld if the requirements are not met. "We are unable to confirm that NTT is part of the ALC plan as submitted, as NTT is not specified by name in the plan," Soules said. "However, we do know that NTT hopes to develop in the area and entered into an incentive agreement with the city late last year."

The new proposals come on the heels of mounting public frustration over the Trident data center project on East 48th Avenue, which drew widespread community outrage due to its proximity to the Windler and Green Valley Ranch neighborhoods, including a senior housing development known as The Reserve. Like the Trident project, the Aerotropolis data center falls within Airport District zoning, which permits data centers as a use by right — meaning the project can be approved administratively without a public hearing unless a variance is requested. The Aerotropolis site would directly border the Aurora Highlands neighborhood.

A third data center project has also entered the development application process with the city but has yet to submit any formal plans. According to the city's development portal, the project would comprise a 1.5-million-square-foot data center campus on 260 acres, though no location has been disclosed in public documents.

In response to growing concerns, the city council is weighing a series of regulations for future data centers, including a moratorium on data center tax incentives and the establishment of buffer zones around residential areas. On Monday, the council passed a prohibition on evaporative cooling — a water-intensive cooling method commonly used in data center operations. According to Soules, the new regulations could apply to both the Aerotropolis and NTT projects because neither has been accepted for review. However, any new rules would need to be enacted before the data centers submit complete applications.

The developments in Aurora reflect a broader national tension between the accelerating demand for data center capacity — driven by cloud computing, artificial intelligence and digital infrastructure growth — and mounting local resistance over land use, energy consumption and water scarcity. As municipalities grapple with how to regulate an industry that promises economic investment but imposes significant infrastructure burdens, the outcome of Aurora's regulatory deliberations could serve as a bellwether for other communities facing similar pressures.