Project Cornmaze:
Proposed Data Center Development
Town of Beloit and Town of Turtle, Wisconsin
A large data center campus known as Project Cornmaze is being considered for property spanning the Town of Beloit and Town of Turtle in Rock County, Wisconsin.
The developer, Panattoni Development Company, describes the proposal as being in the early stages of planning. The company says it is evaluating the site, conducting studies, and preparing for local review and approval processes. A portion of the proposed site is currently used as an active rock quarry.
Because many essential details remain unresolved—including the project’s final size, electricity demand, water requirements, supporting utility infrastructure, environmental impacts, and enforceable community protections—residents are asking local officials to pause the approval process until appropriate safeguards are established.
Project at a Glance
What Is Being Proposed:
Panattoni is considering developing a data center campus across land in the Town of Beloit and Town of Turtle.
According to the developer:
The project remains in the early planning and site-evaluation stage.
Local government review and approval would be required before development could proceed.
Part of the site is currently an active rock quarry.
The campus is expected to use a closed-loop cooling system intended to recycle water.
Groundwater, aquifer, traffic, noise, environmental, and infrastructure studies are reportedly underway.
Panattoni presents the project as a potential source of construction activity, infrastructure investment, business opportunities, and tax revenue. However, its public website does not yet provide firm figures for the campus’s total electrical load, water withdrawals, number and size of buildings, backup power systems, supporting transmission infrastructure, or long-term environmental impacts.
Project status: Proposed and under evaluation
Developer: Panattoni Development Company
Location: Town of Beloit and Town of Turtle, Rock County
Type: Proposed large-scale data center campus
Why Residents Are Concerned:
A project of this scale could affect far more than the land located within its immediate boundaries.
Rock County residents have raised questions about:
Water and the aquifer
Even when cooling water is recirculated, residents need to know how much water would initially be required, where it would come from, how often it would need to be replenished, and whether the project could affect private wells, agriculture, wetlands, streams, or shared groundwater resources.
Panattoni says groundwater and aquifer studies are underway, but the findings have not yet been made available on the project website.
Electricity demand and new infrastructure
Large data centers can require substantial, continuous electrical service. Residents are asking what new substations, transmission corridors, generation facilities, fuel storage, backup generators, or other utility infrastructure could be required to serve Project Cornmaze—and who would ultimately pay for those investments.
Noise and light
Cooling equipment, electrical transformers, ventilation systems, and backup generators may operate around the clock. Residents are seeking enforceable limits for operational noise, low-frequency sound, nighttime lighting, and impacts extending beyond the development’s property line.
Agricultural land and rural character
The proposal could permanently change a large area of Rock County. Residents want decision-makers to consider farmland conversion, drainage, traffic, nearby homes, wildlife habitat, community character, and the consequences of allowing heavy industrial uses that could continue long after the current proposal changes ownership or purpose.
Cumulative impacts
Project Cornmaze should not be reviewed in isolation. Its electricity, water, transportation, emissions, and infrastructure demands must be considered alongside other existing and proposed industrial developments throughout Rock County and southern Wisconsin.
What Rock County Neighbors Is Requesting:
Rock County Neighbors for Responsible Development is a resident-led organization formed in response to proposed large-scale data center development in Rock County. The group conducts research, attends public meetings, submits comments, and helps residents participate in local decisions.
The organization has formally requested that the Town of Beloit adopt an 18-month moratorium on hyperscale data centers and associated infrastructure while comprehensive local protections are developed.
The requested pause would allow time for:
Independent technical review
Meaningful public participation
Evaluation of cumulative impacts
Groundwater and surface-water protections
Noise, lighting, air-quality, and construction standards
Agricultural and property-value protections
Emergency-response planning
Utility and energy-infrastructure review
Decommissioning and taxpayer protections
Enforceable transparency, monitoring, and accountability requirements
The moratorium request does not argue that local governments must reject every possible future development. It argues that the rules and protections should be established before a project is approved—not negotiated after the community has lost much of its leverage.
For more information, questions, news updates, meeting dates, and other concerns regarding Project Cornmaze, visit Rock County Neighbors website and contact them.
EVA’s Position:
EVA supports a pause on Project Cornmaze and associated infrastructure approvals until the full scope and cumulative consequences of the development are publicly understood.
Before rezoning, annexation, permitting, utility commitments, or other approvals move forward, residents should receive clear and independently reviewed answers regarding:
Total land area and buildout plans
Maximum electrical demand
Required generation, transmission, and substation infrastructure
Water source and maximum withdrawal
Wastewater and chemical-management plans
Air emissions and backup-generator use
Operational and low-frequency noise
Light pollution
Effects on farmland, wetlands, wildlife, and nearby communities
Construction traffic and road impacts
Emergency-service requirements
Tax agreements, public costs, and financial risks
Future expansion, ownership changes, and decommissioning
Development of this magnitude should not proceed on promises alone. The community deserves complete information, enforceable protections, independent review, and a meaningful role in deciding what happens to its land, water, energy systems, and future.
How to Get Involved:
Learn from the developer
Read Panattoni’s description of Project Cornmaze and its stated plans for community engagement, environmental studies, and local review.
Follow local resident research
Rock County Neighbors publishes project information, meeting updates, research, videos, and opportunities for public involvement.
Read the moratorium request
Review the full proposal requesting an 18-month pause and a comprehensive ordinance framework for data centers and associated infrastructure.
Attend local meetings
Watch for meetings of the Town of Beloit, Town of Turtle, local planning bodies, and other affected jurisdictions. Public participation is most consequential before rezoning and development approvals are granted.
Stay Updated
The Project Cornmaze proposal and PSC process will continue to evolve.
Join EVA to receive updates about hearings, comment opportunities, filings, and related statewide developments.