Inflating The Land Bank @ Mesa's Elliot Road Technology Corridor.

To the delight of councilors wishing to make the city ”a technology hub of Arizona”  Wholesale data center giant Dupont Fabros Technology wishes to build a million square foot data center campus in Mesa, Arizona on the 56.5 acres of land it bought on Mesa’s Technology corridor earlier this year.  Chasing that tax free feeling . . . for the time being, it is holding the land in its land bank, and will require a pre-lease from any potential tenants before it launches any development. The company is awaiting a pre-lease to develop the land 3 March 2017 By Tanwen Dawn-Hiscox Real estate investment trust DuPont Fabros Technology is set to expand its geographic scope, having purchased a 56-acre stretch of land in Mesa, Phoenix. Multi-tenant data center provider states that for the time being, it is holding the land in its land bank, and will require a pre-lease from any potential tenants before it launches any development. CEO Chris Eldredge stated that although the land was crucial to the company’s expansion - it currently has facilities in Northern Virginia, Chicago and Silicon Valley, and ongoing construction projects in Portland and Toronto - it was part of a bigger plan to inflate the company’s land bank. Most other investments in Phoenix are within the Chandler suburb, for example those made by CyrusOne and Intel, but with real estate prices shooting up, DuPont Fabros states that Mesa may prove a strategic location. The decision to impose a pre-lease on potential business partners before beginning any development adds an extra layer of security to the company’s investment. DuPont Fabros beat its own investment record last year, reporting that it expects to spend up to $650 million on construction this year. Investments galore  The company has 12 data centers spanning the United States, providing a network-neutral colocation environment for enterprise, ICPs and government-funded organizations. It recently began work on a facility in Toronto and its third in Chicago, stating that it planned to spend $650 million on construction in 2017.   The Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) encouraged Dupont Fabros to build its facilities in Mesa, bringing to the company’s attention that the State offers tax exemptions to data center providers, granted they fill certain capital investment criteria.  According to a recent study of the retail and wholesale colocation market, Dupont Fabros Technology figured amongst the top data center providers with regards to revenue, outdone only by Digital Realty, Equinix and CyrusOne http://www.datacenterdynamics.com/       Press release City of Mesa Newsroom 05-10-2017 at 2:48:22 PM REIT DuPont Fabros Technology Inc. (NYSE:DFT), a leading owner, developer, operator, and manager of multi-tenant wholesale data centers, has announced it has purchased an undeveloped 56.5 acre site on Crismon Road just north of Elliot Road in Mesa's Elliot Road Technology Corridor.

Blogger note: The land is on Crismon Road north of Elliot Road near Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Aiport, the Eastmark development and the big Mesa data center of Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL). The company plans to develop a data center campus with capacity for up to 1 million square feet in the future. "DuPont Fabros Technology's selection of Arizona for a data center site is another excellent example of how our state provides an unmatched platform supporting the world's leading companies," Arizona Governor Doug Ducey said. "Arizona's pro-business environment and stable climate enable companies like DFT to provide their clients with data center services affordably and reliably." "With easy access to multiple freeways and airports, strategic infrastructure and a streamlined development process, Mesa is exactly what companies like DFT are looking for when locating their next facility," Mayor John Giles said. "DFT had a choice when selecting a community and I'm proud they chose Mesa and the Elliot Road Technology Corridor." "My predecessor helped establish, and I continue to push for, the vision of an Elliot Road Technology Corridor that makes Mesa a technology hub of Arizona," District 6 Councilmember Kevin Thompson said. "I will continue to advocate for great companies like DFT to make Mesa their home and to bring jobs to our residents. I am thrilled that DFT has made this purchase in District 6." DFT's facilities are designed to offer highly specialized, efficient and safe computing environments in a low-cost operating model. DFT's customers outsource their mission-critical applications and include national and international enterprises across numerous industries, such as technology, Internet content providers, media, communications, cloud-based, healthcare, and financial services. "DuPont Fabros Technology's selection of Mesa for its new data center site puts it squarely in the East Valley's thriving technology hub and close to Phoenix-Mesa Gateway Airport," Sandra Watson, president and CEO of the Arizona Commerce Authority, said. "This purchase demonstrates that Arizona's technology ecosystem, pro-business mindset, and programs that support the success of data center operations make our state a preferred location for industry leaders." The Arizona Commerce Authority (ACA) provided DFT with a first introduction to the market that highlighted the benefits of doing business in Arizona. The ACA also provided site selection assistance, connectivity to city partners in Mesa and to local utilities, consulting on Arizona's Certified Data Center program, and market cost comparisons. "The continued demand for data storage, data processing and the ever-growing cloud infrastructure is placing a demand for state-of-the-art data center facilities," Chris Camacho, president and CEO of the Greater Phoenix Economic Council, said. "This announcement further illustrates Greater Phoenix's position as a top data center market in the US." DFT's 12 data centers are located in three major U.S. markets and total 3.5 million gross square feet and 302 megawatts of available critical load to power the servers and computing equipment of its customers. DuPont Fabros Technology is a real estate investment trust (REIT) headquartered in Washington, D.C. For more information, please visit www.dft.com. Media Contacts: DFT: Mark Freeman, 202-478-2336 or mfreeman@dft.com Office of the Arizona Governor: Daniel Scarpinato, 602-542-1342 or communications@az.gov Arizona Commerce Authority: Susan Marie, 602-845-1231 or susanm@azcommerce.com City of Mesa: Steve Wright, 480-644-2069 or steven.wright@mesaaz.gov GPEC: Michelle Kauk, 602-262-8602 or mkauk@gpec.org