The world’s top search engine company announced it selected Central Ohio as the location for its two newest datacenters, creating hundreds of jobs for building trades members, including work for Sheet Metal Workers Local 24 members.
Site preparation has begun in Columbus and Lancaster, as each city will be home to a new Google datacenter.
At the May 3 announcement, Mark Isakowitz, Google Vice President of Government Affairs and Public Policy, said the new facilities will play a crucial role in powering tools like Search, Gmail and Maps, as well as Google’s artificial intelligence (AI) innovations.
“Tech is helping grow Ohio’s economy,” Isakowitz said. “The datacenters announced today will help power Google tools for users across the nation and worldwide. We are proud to partner with the state and local communities to help fuel the state’s growth as a technology hub.”
Ohio Gov. Mike Dewine beamed about Ohio’s growing presence as a tech hub.
“Ohio is a growing technology hub and datacenter market, and we welcome these two new Google projects in Columbus and Lancaster to complement the one already in New Albany,” he said.
For members of SMW Local 24, the announcement means good-paying jobs. Quite a few members are currently working on datacenters throughout the region, including Google’s New Albany datacenter campus. Construction began on this $600 million project in 2019, and two years later, Google announced plans to invest an additional $1 billion to expand the site.
Winston Stewart, Google’s Head of External Affair in Ohio, said the two new locations will bring Google’s total investment in Ohio to more than $2 billion.
The Columbus datacenter will be located at 5076 S. High St. on the city’s far south side. Columbus Business First reported in March 2021 that the construction price tag on the Columbus site will be about $300 million.
The Lancaster Campus will be built on about 120 acres of farmland and cost $120 million. The campus will be located at 104 Whiley Road.