Project Cumulus (off Highway 370, St. Charles)
Also called: Project Cumulus, CRG Cumulus
CRG proposed a $1 billion data center called Project Cumulus on about 440 acres off Highway 370 in St. Charles, near the city's drinking water wells. Residents objected to the secrecy and water and power use. The developer withdrew in 2025, and the city later banned large data centers.
Where things stand: Developer withdrew in August 2025; the city then paused and in May 2026 banned large data centers.
🕒 Latest update (May 2026): City Council voted to ban large data centers in city limits.
What we know
- 📍 Whereoff Highway 370, near the city's well field, St. Charles, St. Charles County
- 🏢 CompanyCRG Cumulus LLC
- 🏛️ Owned byCRG
- 👤 Built forunknown (news reports tied it to Google)
- 🌳 Size440 acres
- 💵 Cost$1 billion
- 🤐 Secret deal (NDA)Yes. After the fight, the mayor said the city will no longer sign secret deals (NDAs) with data center developers.
❓ Still unanswered
Nobody has answered these in public yet. Can you help find out?
- Was Google the planned user of Project Cumulus? 🙋 I'll find out
What happened so far
- Aug 2025Developer withdrew its application before an Aug. 19 council vote.
- Aug 22, 2025City Council passed a one-year pause on new data center applications.
- May 2026City Council voted to ban large data centers in city limits.
Local votes and rules
🚫 Ban
City council voted 7-1 for Bill 14085. Data centers are no longer allowed in any zoning district in the city, so large data centers are banned. It makes the 2025 pause permanent.
⏸️ Pause on new data centers
City council voted unanimously in a special meeting to stop taking applications for new or bigger data centers for one year. It came after anger over a secret AI data center plan near the city's wells. In May 2026 a permanent ban replaced it.
An aerial photo of the area.
Where this comes from
- St. Charles data center moratorium · Spectrum News · Aug 22, 2025
- St. Charles places a 1-year pause on data center projects · First Alert 4 (KMOV) · Aug 23, 2025
- St. Charles passes a ban on data centers · St. Louis Public Radio · May 20, 2026
- Data center backlash unites some Missouri and Kansas towns against lawmakers and big tech · KCUR · Sept 2, 2026
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