LOWELL TOWNSHIP, Mich. — Lowell Township has paused the development of a potential data center at Covenant Business Park.
In a press release on Thursday, the township said it was "putting on hold" its consideration of a rezoning application from Franklin Partners after the developer sent a letter requesting the pause.
"Until more specific details are known and can be made available, Franklin Partners has informed the Township it is taking more time on its rezoning application for Covenant Business Park," Lowell Township Supervisor Jerry Hale said in a statement.
Hale also said the township "remains open" to reconsidering a rezoning "if and when the applicant renews its request and provides more public information."
In an interview with FOX 17 on Thursday, Hale said the township had a "long list of things" that needed to be answered.
"We have not been able to get them to commit to anything," he said. "We don't have answers and we're getting a lot of pressure from the community for those answers."
Hale said the potential data center's water usage and environmental impact would need to be determined before the township would reconsider its development.
He also mentioned a need for a traffic study and a desire for the developer to name its potential tenant.
While Franklin Partners has publicly stated the tenant is an American owned company, it has not identified them as the final sale of the property at the business park has not been finalized.
"The same concerns that the community does, we have all those concerns," Hale said. "We know there would be some interest, but it is more than we'd expected."
The township's announcement follows a Facebook post and press release on Friday from the City of Lowell, which said it was "suspending its participation" in the potential data center's development.
"If and when the prospective tenant comes forward and provides specific details about what they are asking for in terms of water and wastewater use, the city would be open in reengaging in this project," the city said.
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When asked if the city's decision informed the township's, Hale said "they just did it first. We were thinking of doing the same thing, they just happened to do it before we did."
In a previous interview with FOX 17, Lowell City Manager Mike Burns said that, regardless of whether a data center is built and allowed to do business in the area, the city would need to "double" the size of its water plant from 1.5 million gallons of water a day to 3 million gallons of water a day.
Notably, the city provides water and wastewater services to the township.
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During the interview, Burns also said Franklin Partners, based on a preliminary estimate, believed the data center would likely use around 30,000 gallons of water a day, which would amount to 1% of what would be the plant's expanded capacity.
On Thursday, Hale said the estimate was "a little fuzzy."
"I want to know exactly how much and Mike [Burns] does, too," he said.
If the potential data center were to be approved, a development agreement would allow the cost of expanding the water plant to be passed onto the business. If denied, Hale says the bill, an estimated $10m, will be borne by rate payers in the area.
"I'm really concerned about that," he said. "If [the data center] is a way we can finance this thing and have it not be a burden for rate payers, then that's why we have to explore this [development]."
A public hearing on the rezoning application for Covenant Business Park — originally scheduled for December 8, 2025 at Lowell Township Hall and postponed to January 12, 2026 at Lowell High School due to high turnout — has now been canceled.
The Lowell Township Planning Commission's regular January 12 meeting will now "likely" be held at Lowell Township Hall.
This is a developing story. Read and watch FOX 17 News for future updates.
