Data Center Census

St. Charles, St. Charles County, MO

Project Cumulus

CancelledWithdrawn Aug 2025; city adopted a one-year moratorium, then in May 2026 amended its code to effectively ban data centers
  1. Rumored
  2. Proposed
  3. Approved
  4. Under construction
  5. Operating
  6. Cancelled

Project Cumulus was a proposed hyperscale data center on about 440 acres along Highway 370 in north St. Charles, near the city's Elm Point well field. The developer, CRG Cumulus LLC, affiliated with Clayco, withdrew the application in August 2025 amid resident opposition. The city then adopted a one-year moratorium and in May 2026 voted 7-1 to amend its code in a way that effectively bans data centers.

Key facts

Size & schedule

Site size440 acres [1]
Buildings3 [2]
Permanent jobs (promised)150 [2]
50 per building, per project spokesperson
Construction jobs1,000 [2]
stated as 700-1,000

Power

Backup generatorsBackup generators with about 1 million gallons of diesel fuel stored in 150 tanks [7]
Source excerpt
“allowing the use, handling, and storage of hazardous substances, including some 1 million gallons of diesel fuel (spread among 150 tanks).”

Local decisions & site

ZoningSite plan plus a conditional use permit required to store and use hazardous substances such as diesel fuel within the wellhead protection district; Planning and Zoning Commission approved the site plan but defeated a favorable recommendation on the conditional use permit by one vote [7]
Source excerpt
“the Planning and Zoning Commission split on the two items, approving the site plan but defeating a favorable recommendation on the conditional use permit by one vote.”
Parcel / address440 acres on both sides of Highway 370 between Huster Road and Harry S Truman Boulevard [1]
Source excerpt
“The proposal would have seen a data center be built on a 440-acre land parcel located on both the north and south sides of Highway 370 and between Huster Road and Harry S Truman Boulevard.”

Figures are as stated by the cited source. Where sources disagree, each figure is shown.

Timeline

  1. Planning and Zoning Commission partially recommends approval [1]

  2. Developer withdraws proposal ahead of City Council vote [3]

  3. City Council unanimously adopts one-year citywide moratorium on data center applications [4]

  4. City Council votes 7-1 to amend code defining data centers separately from warehouses, effectively banning them [5]

Issues raised

  • Residents objected to siting on the city's drinking water source near the Elm Point well field [2][6]
  • Opponents cited use of nondisclosure agreements and an undisclosed Fortune 100 end user [2][3]
  • Developer Bob Clark said the project would have funded water system upgrades and generated $30-40 million a year in tax revenue [6]

Sources

  1. Bernie Sanders praises residents after developers shelve planned data center in St. Charles, Missouri
    Data Center Dynamics · Aug 22, 2025 · news
  2. St. Charles residents push back on hyperscale data center near city's water source
    Mid Rivers Newsmagazine · Aug 15, 2025 · news
  3. Proposed St. Charles, Mo., Data Center Is Dead for Now
    St. Louis Post-Dispatch (via GovTech) · Aug 19, 2025 · news
  4. St. Charles bans data centers with yearlong moratorium
    Spectrum News · Aug 22, 2025 · news
  5. City of St. Charles bans data centers
    Mid Rivers Newsmagazine · May 22, 2026 · news
  6. As St. Charles weighs data center ban, developer says project would have upgraded water system
    First Alert 4 (KMOV) · May 18, 2026 · news
  7. St. Charles residents don't want a data center city leaders are eyeing
    St. Louis Magazine · Jul 15, 2025 · news