US (IN): Data center to include tech incubator, Purdue greenhouse

Indianapolis attorney Tom Dakich and New York City-based data center mogul Peter Feldman plan to invest at least $40 million in the proposed Indiana NAP data center at the site of the former coal-fired State Line Generating Plant on the border of Hammond and Chicago. The project is estimated to create 250 construction jobs for skilled tradesmen and would include a tech incubator, a renewable energy campus and a greenhouse for Purdue University Northwest.

The Indiana NAP data center would trim its energy costs with solar panels and wind turbines. The project also would include a greenhouse where Purdue University Northwest students could conduct agribusiness research and, at the request of Hammond Mayor Thomas McDermott Jr., a tech incubator.

Start-ups could lease space at the tech incubator to take advantage of super-fast internet speed that comes with being so close to vital infrastructure. The developers have been in talks with local universities about potentially managing the tech incubator, which would be similar to ones in Chicago and Indianapolis.

Read more at nwitimes.com (Joseph S. Pete)