Microsoft - Azure Datacenter
601 Northwest Avenue · Northlake, Cook County, IL
Source: OpenStreetMap
Microsoft - Azure Datacenter is a mapped data center in Cook County, IL, operated by Microsoft Data Center LLC and ultimately owned by Microsoft Corporation. DataCentersExposed has documented a 306,766 sq ft footprint at this site.
Reporting by Eric Keller · Updated Jun 14, 2026
Overview
source: linkThis mapped Azure data center in Northlake, Cook County, Illinois, is operated by Microsoft Data Center LLC and ultimately owned by Microsoft Corporation. The site covers 306,766 square feet and draws power from Commonwealth Edison Co within the PJM grid. Beyond the corporate-parent link and footprint, public details about its capacity and operations remain limited.
Operator chain
- Ultimate parentMicrosoft Corporation
- Files asMicrosoft Data Center LLC
- This facilityMicrosoft - Azure Datacenter
Grid & water — why here
source: HIFLD · EPAThe closest existing grid infrastructure and the municipal water system this location sits in — the same constraints the buildout model screens on (it won't site a campus more than ~2 km from a substation or ~5 km from municipal water). Distances are straight-line to public HIFLD/EPA features, not a metered connection.
In the news
source: Google News- Nvidia, Microsoft, xAI and BlackRock part of $40 billion deal for Aligned Data CentersCNBC· Oct 15, 2025
- BlackRock Joins Nvidia and Microsoft in a $40 Billion Move to Secure Data Centersinc.com· Oct 15, 2025
- BlackRock, MGX Make $40 Billion Bet on AI Boom With Aligned Data Centers DealEnergy Connects· Oct 15, 2025
- Demolition To Clear Way For 47-Acre Data Center Near Higgins & ElmhurstJournal & Topics· Oct 6, 2025
- BlackRock’s $40 Billion Bet on A Lesser-Known Data Center FirmBloomberg.com· Oct 3, 2025
- As data centers drive electricity costs higher, energy sector reform fails in SpringfieldDaily Herald· Jun 4, 2025
Data-center discussions in Cook County
source: LocalView (CC0)Local-government meetings in this county that discussed data centers, each cued to the moment. From the public LocalView corpus of government meetings on YouTube — a county-level signal, not necessarily about this specific site.
Tax breaks & subsidies
source: Good Jobs First / GASB 77No per-deal tax break is linked to this site yet. No state discloses the recipient of a data-center abatement at the facility level, so per-site deals are rare in the public record. If you have a development agreement or board resolution for this site, send it to us.
Illinois reported $983.2M in Data Center Investment Program — state & local sales/use tax exemption (20 ILCS 605/605-1025; administered by DCEO) (2019-2024 (27 certified data centers; cumulative estimated exemption value)) (Illinois Department of Commerce and Economic Opportunity (DCEO)). Program-wide, not attributable to this site.
Water use
No measured record exists, so this is a low-confidence model from 37 MW (interconnection capacity): 1.8 L/kWh cooling (temperate climate) + 0.5 gal/kWh embedded in PJM grid mix. How we estimate. Have a utility document? Send it and we'll replace this with the real figure.
EPA permits & violations
source: EPA ECHONo reported violations as of last sync.
What this site costs the grid
source: PJM RPM auction reportsPJM's capacity auction sets a $/MW-day price that utilities pass on to every household and business in the zone. This site sits in PJM's COMED pricing zone, where soaring data-center demand is a documented driver. See the full zone-by-zone breakdown →
An estimated ~60 to 130 MW of load at the zone's $333/MW-day, annualized — the capacity charge a load this size carries at the current auction price. Estimated from the building footprint at 200 to 400 W/ft² (the typical range for modern data centers). A rough order-of-magnitude figure, not a metered or permitted capacity.
Separately, a typical home in this zone pays an estimated $4 to $10/mo more on the capacity portion of its bill that PJM's market monitor attributes to data-center demand. See your address's full impact →
Air quality near this site
source: AirNowAir Quality Index from the nearest AirNow reporting area (Chicago), as of 2026-06-10. Regional context — not this facility's own emissions.
Who lives nearby
source: Census ACS 2023Demographics of the census tract this facility sits in (American Community Survey 5-year estimates). Environmental-justice context for who bears the local impacts.
Nearest school
source: HIFLD / NCESThe nearest public school, Mannheim Early Childhood Ctr in Northlake, is 0.7 mi from this site (127 students). 4 public schools sit within a mile of the site.
Schools are sensitive receptors for the noise, backup-generator exhaust, and traffic a large data center brings. Straight-line distance to the nearest public school (HIFLD/NCES, US public schools only).
Hearings timeline
No public-hearing records linked to this site yet. We surface planning-commission and board-of-supervisors dates when a record names a facility. If you know of a hearing on this site, tell us.