What to know about the data center being built in a Miami neighborhood
Iron Mountain, a New Hampshire-based information management company, plans to open an “ AI-ready ” data center in Miami this year.
The facility, which Iron Mountain has termed MIA-1, will be 150,000 square feet, located on a 3.4 acre site in Miami's Westview, a predominantly Black neighborhood, according to a press release on the Miami-Dade Beacon Council's website . MIA-1 will run on carbon-free energy, the release continues.
Residents of the neighborhood raised concerns in an early April meeting held by County Commissioner Marleine Bastien, according to the Miami Herald , including potential increases in pollution and power costs. Iron Mountain did not immediately respond to a request for comment by USA TODAY.
"When data centers are built, they raise utility rates for nearby communities,” a study from the University of Michigan states. "As demand surges, utility companies often pass the costs of infrastructure upgrades and increased energy procurement onto residents and small businesses through higher rates."
Where is the Miami data center being built, when will it be completed?
The data center is located at 2925 N.W. 120th Terrace in Miami, Florida.
The company first broke ground on the facility in February of 2025. According to Iron Mountain, the data center is expected to be completed in 2026, though no specific date has been provided.
Other data centers across Florida have also proved controversial
Proposed data centers in Florida are facing their share of backlash – including a complex that's intended to be built on a 200-acre property in Loxahatchee, along with another planned in Fort Meade on a 1,300-acre site.
Some concerns hinge around environmental impacts, as large data centers are resource-intensive, particularly in terms of water and energy.
"Large data centers can consume up to 5 million gallons per day, equivalent to the water use of a town populated by 10,000 to 50,000 people," according to the Environmental and Energy Study Institute. "With larger and new AI-focused data centers, water consumption is increasing alongside energy usage and carbon emissions."
According to the World Resources Institute , data centers can also contribute to noise pollution and increased competition for land, and have frequently been situated in marginalized communities.
"A national review of roughly 700 data centers across the country found that nearly half are in census tracts with above-median environmental burdens, such as air pollution, park access and water pollution, as measured by the Center for Disease Control’s Environmental Justice Index," according to the WRI article, written by Carla Walker and Ian Goldsmith. "Many were located in areas with social vulnerability indicators, such as poverty and lower education levels."
How many data centers are already in Florida?
According to the World Resources Institute, Virginia is the state that houses the most data centers, with 566 in the state as of January 2026. Florida ranks 10th with most data centers in the U.S., with 107.
If you want to see where Florida's data centers are located, you can use the interactive map on the Data Center Map website . There are 103 Florida data centers on the map as of April 22, 2026.
Sarah Perkel is a South Florida Connect Reporter for the USA TODAY Network's Florida Connect team. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday day by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY .
This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Miami data center could open this year, concerning residents
