Clay County Data Centers — Google, Meta, Metrobloks

Data Center Risk

91/100

Very High

Why Clay County is Very High risk

Score calculated from four factors: power infrastructure, water capacity, land availability, and current exposure (known projects in the county). Clay scores 91/100.

Power availability

30/30

Evergy via Nashua Power Station. Google Project Mica has dedicated onsite substations. Meta uses market-based renewable tariff. Combined 850+ MW demand.

Water capacity

13/15

Missouri River via KC Water. Meta uses up to 9.5M gallons/day — more than 95,000 avg households. Google water plan not disclosed.

Land availability

8/15

Golden Plains Technology Park developed for data centers. Limited remaining large parcels as 3 campuses consume 1,000+ acres.

Current exposure

40/40

3 active projects: Meta (operational), Google (under construction), Metrobloks (announced). Ground zero for MO data centers.

This score is comparative, based on publicly available data across Missouri's 115 counties. Methodology: how we calculate it.

At a Glance

The facts, as filed.

3 active projects

Three campuses. One county.

Meta Data Center (Kansas City Northland)

Operational

Meta’s $1 billion facility at Golden Plains Technology Park went operational August 20, 2025. Three data center buildings plus a warehouse totaling 1.4 million square feet on 603 acres off I-435 and US-169. Powered by Evergy via a market-based renewable energy tariff. LEED Gold certified. The facility can consume up to 9.5 million gallons of water per day — while an average Kansas City household uses under 100 gallons. Meta received an $8 billion+ incentive package over 37 years. Tech companies pay no sales tax on billions in equipment under Missouri’s Data Center Sales Tax Exemption. Good Jobs First analyst Kasia Tarczynska: “There’s less money to spend on very important public services such as public health care, public schools and infrastructure development.”

Google Data Center (Project Mica)

Under Construction

500 acres at I-435 and Highway 169. Five buildings totaling 1.56 million square feet, up to 700 MW. Powered by Evergy through the adjacent Nashua Power Station and onsite substations via long-term large-load power purchase agreements. $10 billion in authorized bonds with a 25-year property tax break.

Metrobloks Liberty Campus

Announced March 2026

AI-ready, high-density campus on ~29 acres in Liberty. $1.4 billion investment. Three buildings totaling 568,800 sq ft, ~150 MW. 30 permanent jobs at average 5,649/year.

Timeline

How we got here.

Late 2023

Google acquires Project Mica site. Google quietly acquires roughly 500 acres at the northeast corner of Interstate 435 and U.S. Highway 169 — formerly the Rocky Branch Creek Technology Park. QTS had previously walked away from the site over power availability concerns. Google's involvement is not yet public.

March 2024

Meta breaks ground on $1B Northland campus. Meta begins construction on a $1 billion data center east of Interstate 435 near Worlds of Fun. The facility uses up to 9.5 million gallons of water per day at full operation.

July 2025

Port KC authorizes $10 billion in bonds for Project Mica. The Port Authority of Kansas City approves up to $10 billion in taxable revenue bonds for the campus, plus a 75 percent abatement on real property taxes for 25 years and a full sales tax exemption.

August 2025

Project Mica linked to Google in press reports. Local reporting begins identifying Google as the unnamed tenant behind Project Mica. Google declines to confirm.

November 2025

Missouri PSC approves Evergy data center rate. The Missouri Public Service Commission approves Evergy's new large-load tariff requiring data centers above 75 MW to fully fund grid upgrades and pay a premium rate, with significant early-cancellation penalties.

February 12, 2026

Google publicly confirms Project Mica. Google's regional head of data center public affairs, Trystine Payfer, confirms Google as the developer of the 500-acre, 1.56 million sq ft, ~700 MW campus, ending months of speculation. Project includes $1.75 million in upfront workforce funding, including $1.5 million for the Smithville School District.

February 13, 2026

Construction begins on second Google campus. Cranes go up at the Project Mica site. Construction is expected to span 18–24 month phases.

February 23, 2026

Meta's Northland data center operational. KSHB reports Meta's $1 billion Northland campus is now online, the first hyperscale data center to come online in Clay County.

What It Means

For residents of Clay County.

Water

Meta's facility can consume up to 9.5 million gallons of water per day — more than 95,000 average Kansas City households. Google's Project Mica has not disclosed its water plan, but at 700 MW the demand will be comparable or greater. Combined, Clay County data centers could consume more water than the rest of the county's residential users.

Power

Evergy serves all three campuses via the Nashua Power Station and onsite substations. Google's Project Mica alone requires up to 700 MW. Evergy is building a $2.75 billion generation expansion adding ~2,000 MW to the grid by 2030.

Tax impact

Meta received an $8 billion+ incentive package over 37 years. Google has $10 billion in authorized bonds with a 25-year property tax break. Metrobloks creates 30 permanent jobs for $1.4 billion in investment.

Land

500 acres for Project Mica at I-435/US-169; 29 acres for Metrobloks Liberty. Northland's rapid residential growth places these campuses adjacent to existing neighborhoods. Smithville School District received $1.5 million in upfront workforce funding from Google as part of the Project Mica deal.

Sources

Reporting we relied on.

What you can do

Three campuses, $20+ billion in bonds, 100 jobs. Make your opposition count.

Google, Meta, and Metrobloks built campuses in Clay County while residents had little input. Don't let the next one through. We research your commissioners, write a personalized opposition letter citing Missouri Sunshine Law and project data, and email it to every commissioner on your behalf.

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