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City of Centerville <br />EDA Minutes <br />November 18, 2020 <br />information for an organization that the organization needs to have. If a data center is down, most <br />businesses would have a difficult time functioning today. <br /> <br />Data centers hold information for critical facilities. Critical facilities are facilities that the <br />government designates need to be up and functioning if a disaster hits. For example, hospitals, <br />banks, and city offices. <br /> <br />There are two types of structures; one type is where a company owns their own data center, such <br />as Target Corporation. The second type is called a hosted data center, where different providers <br />own the center and break it up for the companies to share. The host runs and maintains it so the <br />individual businesses don’t have to. <br /> <br />Data centers are also highly secure facilities. They are often accessed through man traps and <br />biometrics. Man traps are set up for someone to open a door with a card key and wait in a secure <br />area for the door to close behind them. Once that door is fully closed, then they may open a second <br />door with their card key and walk through. An example of biometrics may be an iris reader. <br /> <br />Mr. Gillmer gave examples of how data centers continue to grow, as data becomes more a part of <br />our daily lives. For example 10 years ago people called a taxi cab when they needed a ride. Today <br />people use their cell phones to call an Uber. All data for Facebook is stored in data centers, and so <br />is the information we stream on our televisions. <br /> <br />He explained that “shovel ready” isn’t good enough for a data center. Other factors taken into <br />account are the costs, the amount of network connectivity, and a low risk for natural disasters. The <br />cost of cooling can be expensive, and a data center in Minnesota would need to be cooled less than <br />other parts of the country. Minnesota also has the best rebates and incentives for people to build <br />data centers. There were a lot of data centers in the southern metro, but they are full, so owners are <br />looking to move somewhere that is not on the same power grid, but still close enough to drive <br />between facilities. <br /> <br />A data center will usually only be built if they can make a profit. The site in Centerville has a 49% <br />return on investment. Most sites have a 25-30% return. <br /> <br />Mr. Gillmer laid out the objectives of the report which were to assess the viability of multiple sites <br />for suitability of a data center, and assess the utility and telecommunication infrastructure <br />available. The study estimated physical size and created a financial model for construction. <br /> <br />Mr. Gillmer also spoke about the study’s approach: Excipio provided data collection requests to <br />client’s representatives and received input from subject matter experts such as the City of <br />Centerville, Comcast and Connexus, and provided weekly status updates and progress reviews. <br /> <br />Mr. Gillmer also spoke about site attributes, including incentives at the state and city levels that <br />make the property attractive to buyers. <br /> <br />Another factor considered was whether or not local government is open to negotiation for <br />prospective partnerships. <br /> Page 5 of 7 <br /> <br /> <br />