Nearly 400 area residents attended a Jan. 29 open house in Ypsilanti, where they could ask questions and learn more about the university’s plan to build a high-performance computational research facility in partnership with the Los Alamos National Laboratory, or LANL.
This was the second community meeting, with the first being held in September 2025.
“This research facility is a generational opportunity to give Michigan researchers the tools they need to solve urgent real-world problems — saving lives, strengthening communities, and keeping discovery and innovation rooted in Michigan,” said Steven Ceccio, the project lead and the Vincent T. and Gloria M Gorguze Professor of Engineering, and professor of mechanical engineering and of naval architecture and marine engineering in the College of Engineering.
Unlike a commercial data center that stores and delivers online content for private-sector platforms, U-M and LANL are proposing a high-performance computational facility to drive scientific research and innovation. The planned facility, which will be about one-tenth the size of a typical data center, will house thousands of computers that work together to quickly analyze information, solve complex problems and drive breakthroughs in science, medicine, energy and other academic fields.
The proposed facility will house two separate research centers. One will support Los Alamos scientists and engineers focusing on critical national security challenges, while the other will be an academic computing center that supports U-M faculty, researchers, students and partners throughout the state.
“By collaborating, U-M and LANL can create a unique innovation ecosystem,” Ceccio said. “This project will bring some of the world’s most brilliant scientific minds to Michigan, providing a powerful resource for our students and faculty while applying pioneering computing techniques to the work of U-M researchers in medical, energy and environmental studies.”
U-M and LANL have not yet selected the site for this facility and continue to evaluate locations in southeastern Michigan that meet the technical and community requirements for a project of this scale. At the open house, the university shared more information about two specific locations: one at Textile Road and one at the Willow Run Airport.
Experts from U-M and LANL presented information that provided an overview of the project, the site selection process, areas of research, and the ways sustainability has been baked into the design of the facility. Officials from DTE were also available to answer questions about how electricity will be supplied.
“U-M researchers are leaders on how to make computing and AI more efficient, and we will be leveraging that expertise in this facility,” said Karthik Duraisamy, director of the Michigan Institute for Computational Discovery and Engineering and research lead on this project. “As a top research university, it is our responsibility and obligation to show the world how computing algorithms, hardware and facilities can be designed and operated more sustainably.”
The proposed facility will be fully electric, with the capacity to add solar panels to self-generate a portion of the necessary power in the future. Inside, the design incorporates direct-to-chip cooling which is the most efficient cooling system available.
Both potential sites would utilize municipal water and neither would draw from nor release water into the Huron River. And both locations are zoned for light industrial and provide adequate space for the facility and a substation that DTE will build with the university funding construction.
“This is a significant research investment for the state of Michigan and it deserves careful consideration,” said Chris Kolb, vice president for government relations. “We appreciate how many people took the time to join us and engage thoughtfully this evening. While we were not able to connect with everyone, we remain committed to keeping the community informed and creating additional opportunities to share updates as the project moves forward.”
Construction on the $1.25 billion initiative, which was endorsed by the Michigan House and Senate Appropriations subcommittees, is expected to begin in 2027 with the facility fully operational in 2031. When completed, the facility will join 17 Department of Energy National Laboratories that make up the nation’s research and innovation ecosystem that provides information that is critical for U.S. economic competitiveness, foreign policy, domestic energy needs, and supports local economies.
Beth Dutridge-Corp
As an Ypsilanti township resident and person who lives near this property site I attended this open house and was disappointed that UM chose this format. Where is the reporting on how the majority of residents who attended are opposed and learned little from this event? UM owes residents more than a poster session.
Briana Chalker
The information provided at this event was primarily false and assumed that residents were ignorant of the negative impact that the data center will have on the community. The people presenting the posters were not directly connected to the project and were unable to answer community member’s questions. This was clearly not meant to inform concerned Ypsi residents, but was meant to placate. It was disturbing to see about 10 cop cars lined up along the entrance outside of the event. This was supposed to be an open house for community members yet the organizers thought it appropriate to have that many cops outside. What type of message is that intended to give Ypsi community members?
Laura Zeitlin
The format was disappointing. We wanted and expected a presentation with Q&A for all to learn from the presenters and other attendees. Instead we got a loud, chaotic poster session. Questions were frequently evaded and information given was often contradictory to what we have received from the township council (which is recorded and available to all). UM reps wore name tags with only first names so we had no idea who they were and what role they held in the proposed project. No commitment was made to attend council meetings despite repeated invitations and nothing is “on the record”. Nothing about this event showed that UM cares at all about our community; quite the contrary. This seemed to be a cursory effort in order to be able to say “we engaged the community”.
Eric Wahr
I understand that the purpose of this statement, and the Record, is to serve as a PR mouthpiece for the University, but how about some quotes from Township residents? Or an acknowledgement of the other side of the conversation?
The tenor of the conversation at these open houses and in this statement continues to be one-sided, not collaborative. There doesn’t appear to be any institutional will to listen to local people or engage with them as equals with a vested interest.
Tiffany Green
This entire event was a farce meant to check the box of ‘community engagement’ on the University’s plan to push this through regardless of what the community wants or not. Ypsilanti has historically been the University’s dumping ground for anything they don’t want to sully their precious Ann Arbor with. Notice how they stopped talking about how many jobs will be created for Ypsilanti residents when it was discovered they were LYING and the majority of the post-construction jobs would be remote and open to out of state applicants. Notice how they don’t say a peep about the environmental impact their own students have posted papers about (for those interested: https://stpp.fordschool.umich.edu/sites/stpp/files/2025-07/stpp-data-centers-2025.pdf). Notice how they keep referring to it as a computing facility when that has no impact on how many resources it requires compared to a commercial data center. Chris Kolb is just another smug white man continuing the University’s policy of racism, classism, and lack of empathy towards their neighbors. I have one question they refuse to answer, and we all know why: If this is going to be ‘so good for the community’, why isn’t it being built in Ann Arbor?
Jill Baker
I live three miles from the proposed Bridge and Textile site and am deeply opposed to the data center being located there. I attended the meeting last night and when I asked a representative why they aren’t building the facility in Ann Arbor instead of Ypsilanti Township, I was met with a blank stare. No one wants this built on virgin riverside land full of deer, coyotes, herons, and even bald eagles, and is less than 500 feet from family homes. If it must be built in Ypsi Township, at least put it at the ACM site, which is already developed and has the infrastructure.
Andrea Sims
I live within walking distance of the Textile Road site for the data center. If built there, it would destroy a beautiful piece of environmentally sensitive land along the river, with mature trees, native plants and critical bird habitat, right next to two beloved public parks. If you imagine a data center and power substation right next to the Arb, and also right across the street from residential apartments, that gives a sense of the loss and destruction. The township has proposed an alternate site next to the American Mobility Center, at the former GM plant, which already has a power substation. The data center won’t bring any jobs or taxes to the township, and U-M is refusing to contribute financially to the township even for the fire and police coverage we have to give them, but they could be a better neighbor by choosing the AMC site.
Colette Keyser
I am an Ypsi Township resident and I have attended several meetings of the Board of Trustees as well as the first “community engagement open house” in September 2025 and I am beyond frustrated. My experience back in September prepared me for the many responses of “I don’t know, you should ask someone more senior than me”, so this time around I waited for quite a while to speak directly with Chris Kolb. I asked him what feedback they took from the first open house and what changes they made with that feedback, he said “many things” and was unable to provide a single concrete example. I asked him what the contingency plans are for when there is inevitably some horrible ecological impact from this project and he said, and I quote, “I cannot fathom a single thing that could happen with this data center that could cause ecological harm”, which is an astounding thing to say given what we are starting to see in communities across the country impacted by these data centers. And finally, I asked him why they are proceeding with this when the community overwhelmingly does not support it and he responded they they, the University and decision makers, know better than the community what is good for us, and kept insisting that it is all perfectly legal. I didn’t think I had to spell this out for a man well into his 60’s, but I told him that just because something is legal and you have permission to do it, doesn’t make it morally okay. He shrugged.
These community engagement open houses are nothing but a show to pretend that they are getting community input and I am profoundly disappointed in this University.
Jasmine Patterson
If this data center is so amazing then why not build it in Ann Arbor?
Pat Steffes
I live close to a mile away from the Textile Road location and strongly oppose the effort to build this in Ypsilanti Township. This was a performative event to claim community engagement with no mention of the strong community opposition to this. When pushed on what feedback the University took from the last event held in September representatives were unable to provide any concrete details. When asked about what the University has planned in the event the community is negatively impacted either environmentally or energy-wise I was flat out told they can’t imagine a scenario where that happens. Why is the University even considering the Textile Road location when the Ypsilanti Township Board of Trustees has sent an official request to remove consideration and instead use the ACM location. If the University wants to be the neighborly stewards they claim to be they will remove consideration from Ypsilanti and find somewhere that actually wants it, but as we are seeing across the state there is strong opposition everywhere.
Kyle Roberts
‘Los Alamos confirms UMich data center to be used for nuclear weapons research’
https://www.michigandaily.com/news/news-briefs/los-alamos-confirms-umich-data-center-to-be-used-for-nuclear-weapons-research/
Michael Atzmon
For independent coverage, see https://www.mlive.com/news/ann-arbor/2026/01/residents-criticize-transparency-of-university-of-michigan-los-alamos-project-they-lied.html?gift=aabd1169-56ba-46c6-af18-bfafe3d430e6
According to MLive, “at the end of the event, Chris Kolb, UM’s vice president for government relations, told MLive that the two sites in the township are “the only two sites we are considering.” It is therefore technically correct, but misleading, for this article to state “U-M and LANL have not yet selected the site for this facility and continue to evaluate locations in southeastern Michigan that meet the technical and community requirements for a project of this scale.”
Also, see a MI Daily article about the subject: https://www.michigandaily.com/opinion/columns/deception-deflection-and-disregard-how-umich-is-forcing-a-data-center-on-ypsilanti/
Gabby Strzalkowski
I am a University of Michigan employee, disappointed alum, and Ypsilanti Township resident who attended this event last night.
During the event, I was able to talk about this project with J. Patrick Fitch, LANL’s Deputy Laboratory Director for Science, Technology, and Engineering, who told me that “2/3 of this facility will be dedicated to nuclear weapons research.” This was further reported on by the Michigan Daily (https://www.michigandaily.com/news/news-briefs/los-alamos-confirms-umich-data-center-to-be-used-for-nuclear-weapons-research/). In light of this, the claim that this facility will “save lives and strengthen communities” is appalling and insulting to all those here at the University of Michigan community who care about public safety and peace.
Not only is the nuclear weapons research deeply disturbing, but the proposed location of the Textile and Bridge site is clearly problematic. The “Candidate Site B Context” diagram provided at last night’s event indicated that this facility would be built directly across from residential homes, an elementary school, and two local parks. Additionally, the site is situated alongside the Huron River. Coincidentally, the Ypsilanti Community Utility Authority estimates that this facility will require an estimated 550,000 to 650,000 gallons of water per day. While U-M and LANL claim that no water will be taken from or returned to the Huron River, I do not trust large institutions to treat our water with care and consideration, given that the devastation of the Flint Water Crisis is fresh in my memory. Furthermore, I was told that water will be pulled from the Great Lakes instead, and I strongly oppose the draining of our Great Lakes at the rate of 550,000 to 650,000 gallons per day to support nuclear weapons research, especially in my own neighborhood, by my own employer. This is not what the “leaders and best” would do.
I plan to contact my political representatives and the Board of Regents today and demand that they stop this project. I am deeply disappointed in the University’s actions and intent to move forward with this project in light of the concerns and resistance from the Ypsilanti Township community.
antonio c cuyler
As a member of the Vision 2034 Advisory Committee, I attended and was also disappointed by the event. For more than a year, including over the summer, we worked to articulate 4 strategic priorities: (1) Life-Changing Education, (2) Human Health & Well-Being, (3) Democracy, Civic and Global Engagement, and (4) Energy, Climate Action, Sustainability and Environmental Equity. Advanced Technology, which we did not originally include, subverts and undermines all four of the Committee’s originally agreed upon strategic priorities. Alas, if only the University would lead and be best at seeking the Public’s trust.
Stephanie Collier
The information provided here was a lie. At this event, community members were led to believe that this would be safe and bring jobs and stability when in reality, this will kill us. The people leading this event were PR and NOT scientists. Cops lined the building’s exterior and although the halls capacity is in the thousands, the attendance was capped far below that. Why do you think that is?
Samuel Vandiver
Skip the puff piece article above and read the comments section. Tells you everything you need to know.
Erin Cleary
No matter how you attempt to spin it, the residents of Ypsi Township do not want this.
The claims that there will be no environmental concerns and no additional costs to taxpayers is laughable and offensive. Despicable behavior.
You can find more information from Ypsi Township, including contact information for Michigan Representatives here: https://ypsitownship.org/news_detail_T2_R161.php
Nicholas Shipman
Just put the data center in Ann Arbor if it’s that important. It can be closer to home for the self-righteous university leaders.
We really don’t need the Arb when you think about it. Fuller Park? Barton Hills? All would be fantastic spots to put it.
Chris Kolb is a disgrace. It’s no wonder a disgraceful university selected the perfect person for the job. Thank you, UM, for continuing to put everyone last.