A hulking new data center could be headed to South San Jose, with Prologis filing plans for a three-story, 516,000-square-foot facility on a 15-acre site that is already drawing serious power upgrades.
The proposal lays out a full-scale digital fortress: a large on-site substation, a fenced generator yard and interior office space, all tied into heavy-duty electrical infrastructure. Prologis estimates that once approvals and utility work are in place, full buildout would take about two years.
The project application with city planners zeroes in on 5977 Silver Creek Valley Road. Prologis is proposing roughly 516,000 square feet across three floors, with about 30,000 square feet carved out for office use. The campus would include a substation, a dedicated generator yard and a second independently routed transmission line that Prologis says it would pay for itself. The company estimates the facility would draw about 99 megawatts of electrical capacity and use water roughly equivalent to 40 households per year. Those details are laid out in project documents and a company statement, according to The Mercury News.
The land itself has been on a bit of a corporate journey. An affiliate of Duke Realty paid about $40.2 million for the 15-acre parcel in October 2021, according to coverage of the sale. Prologis later pulled the property into its orbit when it completed its acquisition of Duke Realty in October 2022, folding the South San Jose site into its broader development pipeline. The earlier sale was reported by The Real Deal, and Prologis’ acquisition of Duke Realty is described in the company’s own materials (Prologis).
Power and infrastructure
For this project, electricity is the main character. Prologis says it will cover the cost of the interconnection work needed to feed the campus, including that second, independently routed transmission line meant to boost resiliency.
PG&E has already been beefing up capacity in the area. The utility recently expanded the Santa Teresa substation’s capacity to 80 megawatts to handle rising loads in South San Jose, according to The Registry. On top of that, state CEQA filings show a 100-megawatt battery energy storage project queued up to interconnect at the same substation to help manage peak demand (CEQAnet). Together, those moves highlight how utilities and local agencies are quietly retooling the grid for much larger data center loads.
City context and local impact
San Jose officials and PG&E have been working through a pipeline of electricity projects aimed at serving current and future data centers, with city leaders saying they are in talks with developers to sync timelines and public benefits, according to reporting. Prologis has said it intends to enroll the new facility in San Jose’s Total Clean Energy program or a similar option while also financing the necessary grid interconnection work. That pairing of clean energy enrollment with developer-funded upgrades is being presented as a way to curb emissions from backup generators and keep the project aligned with the city’s clean power goals.
What happens next
The proposal is now in the hands of San Jose’s Planning, Building and Code Enforcement department, where it will run the usual gauntlet of permitting and environmental review. That process includes public notice and opportunities for community feedback.
According to the city’s PBCE guidance, San Jose processes commercial projects through its SJPermits and SJePlans systems, posting application materials and timelines as they move through review (City of San José PBCE). Neighbors and other stakeholders will be able to examine the plans and comment while planners analyze traffic, noise, water use and other local impacts tied to the massive new data hub.
