Data Centers in Yorkville: 5 Things Buyers Miss

What should buyers know about data centers in Yorkville before they shop?

Data centers in Yorkville sit mainly along the Eldamain Road corridor on the city’s north and northwest side, not in every neighborhood. As of late October 2026, the City Council has approved three large campuses (CyrusOne CHI-11, Project Steel, and Project Cardinal), CyrusOne has a final plat application pending, and at least two other filings were withdrawn. The city’s 2025 standards set buffers, building separation, height limits, and noise studies, but buyers still have to check the address themselves because the Illinois seller disclosure form does not ask about nearby future development.

By Kealan O’Neil | Updated October 31, 2026

If you are starting to look at homes in Chicago’s Western Suburbs, you have probably seen headlines about data centers in Yorkville. Construction trucks on Eldamain Road, council meetings that run past midnight, and neighbors asking what goes next to a farm field are all part of the same story.

Those headlines matter for buyers, but they are not a reason to write off the whole town. The useful question is narrower: where are the data centers, what rules did the city put on them, where does each project stand right now, and how do you check one address before you write an offer?

Here is what I would want you to know before your first weekend of showings.

Where the data centers in Yorkville sit, and where each one stands

The United City of Yorkville publishes a Data Center Information page that lists each petition, the meeting trail, and the ordinance numbers. Three large campuses dominate the conversation:

• CyrusOne CHI-11 (C1 Yorkville). About 228 acres immediately east of Eldamain Road, north of the BNSF railroad and Faxon Road, and west of Beecher Road. A major PUD amendment cut the plan from nine two-story buildings (about 2.45 million square feet) to eight one-story buildings with a maximum footprint of about 2.16 million square feet, and lowered maximum height from 70 feet to about 50 feet 10 inches. City Council took final action on July 14, 2026 (Ord. 2026-50), and that meeting’s packet included a noise standards exhibit for the amended PUD agreement. The newest step is a final plat application for CHI-11 West (case PZC 2026-12). It would combine seven parcels into one lot and dedicate stormwater easements for the approved eight-building campus, which the city describes as about 1.8 million square feet. As of this update, its committee and council dates are listed as to be determined.
• Project Steel (Prologis). About 540 acres east of Eldamain Road between Corneils Road on the south and Galena Road on the north. The city’s Project Steel page notes a March 18, 2026 revision to 16 data center buildings. The city’s petition table lists the annexation, rezoning, and PUD ordinances as Ord. 2026-29 through 2026-33 and notes the agreements were approved by City Council, with recording still pending.
• Project Cardinal (Pioneer). About 1,037 acres northwest of Route 47 and Galena Road, south of Baseline Road, and east of Ashe Road, planned for fourteen data center buildings totaling over 17 million square feet, plus substations and a utility switchyard. The annexation agreement was approved November 10, 2025 (Ord. 2025-78). In 2026 the council approved two changes, covered in the next section: a later closing deadline and a new construction order.

Other petitions appear on the same table, including Kelaka, Hagemann, and two DMYF sites, several of which were approved for annexation or rezoning. Two filings were withdrawn: a CyrusOne Phase 2 campus that never reached a public hearing, and the Meyer rezoning. Treat the city table as the living map, not a rumor thread.

What changed for Project Cardinal in 2026

Two amendments matter if you are looking north of Galena Road or near Route 47.

First, an annexation agreement amendment (Ord. 2026-44 and 2026-45) moved the developer’s closing notice deadline on about 305 acres from July 1, 2026 to December 31, 2027. In plain terms, the developer has more time to close on that land, so the project’s start depends partly on that deadline.

Second, a major PUD amendment (Ord. 2026-51) changed the construction order. The original plan ran counterclockwise: northeast first, then west, then southeast. The approved plan runs clockwise: northeast first, then southeast, and the western side last. If a listing sits west of the Cardinal site, that change pushes the closest buildings later in the schedule.

Local news has also reported lawsuits challenging the Project Cardinal and Project Steel approvals. I am not going to predict how a court case ends. If a home you like sits near either site, ask your attorney to check the case status with the Kendall County Circuit Clerk during attorney review.

5 things buyers miss about data centers in Yorkville

1. “Yorkville” is not one distance from every campus

A home near downtown Yorkville, south of Route 71, or deep in a subdivision on the east side can be miles from Eldamain Road. A home north of Galena Road or west toward the county line can sit much closer to Project Steel or Project Cardinal.

Open the city’s project pages, find the road names, and put them next to the listing’s map pin. Then drive the route at the hour you would actually commute. Construction traffic and finished industrial traffic are different problems, and both are address-level, not town-level.

2. Yorkville already wrote rules for buffers, height, and noise studies

On June 24, 2025, the City Council passed Ordinance 2025-53, which set standards for energy industrial uses in the Unified Development Ordinance. Among other requirements, the ordinance calls for:

• A minimum 100-foot landscape buffer when the site is adjacent to non-manufacturing zoning, plus 8-foot-tall berms when adjacent to residential subdivisions
• A minimum 100-foot landscape buffer along any public roadway
• A minimum 500-foot separation from the nearest data center building or structure to the nearest residential or commercial structure
• A maximum height of 70 feet, including rooftop mechanical equipment, for data centers within 1,500 feet of a residential structure
• Noise studies reviewed by the city’s sound consultant, with mitigation so operations meet the city’s noise ordinance
• Major mechanical equipment fully enclosed or screened, and backup generator testing limited to 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. on non-holiday weekdays
• Annual noise monitoring for 3 years after construction, or continuous monitoring devices with reports to the city for the life of the development
• A ban on nuclear energy as a power source for data centers in the city

Those standards are process tools, not a promise that you will never hear equipment. Read the specific PUD for the campus near the home you like, because amendments, like the CHI-11 noise exhibit, can add conditions on top of the base ordinance.

3. Construction lasts longer than a model-home sales cycle

Large data centers are phased over many years. Project Steel’s city materials include a phasing plan, Project Cardinal now builds in three sections around the site, and CHI-11 still needs final plat approval before its site improvements can be built in phases. Buyers who close in 2026 or 2027 may share the road with construction traffic for a while even if the finished campus is set back from homes.

Ask three practical questions on any listing near Eldamain, Galena, Faxon, Beecher, or Route 47: Which campus is closest? Which phase comes first, and which side of the site is it on? What does the construction traffic plan say about haul routes? The project pages and meeting packets are public, so you can read the answers yourself.

4. The seller disclosure form will not hand you a zoning map

Illinois sellers fill out the Residential Real Property Disclosure Report under 765 ILCS 77/35. The form asks about defects the seller is aware of on the property: flooding, foundation, roof, plumbing, radon, boundary disputes, and similar items. It does not ask the seller to list nearby planned data centers or to predict what a vacant field will become.

“Aware” on that form means actual notice or actual knowledge without any specific investigation or inquiry. So a seller who never followed City Council can honestly fill out the form while a plat application sits on the city’s project list. My guide to the Illinois seller disclosure report covers what the form does and does not tell you, and the post on future development in Yorkville shows how to check zoning, agendas, and project pages yourself.

5. Water, power, and taxes are campus-specific, not town averages

Data centers use electricity and, depending on the cooling design, water. Yorkville’s standards and individual PUD amendments have been used to limit and monitor those impacts, and the city has been working through a long-term switch toward Lake Michigan water with neighboring towns. My post on Lake Michigan water in Yorkville covers the utility side for buyers who want it.

Tax effects are local too. Finished data centers can add assessed value to the parcels they occupy, but that does not predict your individual tax bill two streets away. Pull the PIN for the home you want, read the current bill, and ask which exemptions belong to the seller.

How to check data centers before you tour

Use the same six steps on every Yorkville address you like so the comparison stays fair.

1. Open the city’s data center petition table. Note which projects are approved, amended, pending, or withdrawn, and open the newest page for any project near you.
2. Pin the three big campuses on a map. Eldamain and Faxon for CyrusOne, Eldamain between Corneils and Galena for Project Steel, and Route 47, Galena, Baseline, and Ashe for Project Cardinal.
3. Read the project page for the nearest campus. Confirm acreage, building count, ordinance numbers, phasing, and any meeting dates still listed as pending.
4. Skim Ordinance 2025-53 for the baseline rules. Buffers, the 500-foot building separation, height, noise studies, and generator testing hours are the items most buyers care about first.
5. Drive the commute and the haul route. Visit at rush hour on a weekday, not only on a quiet Sunday.
6. Bring the findings to attorney review. Ask your attorney what, if anything, belongs in the contract, whether any lawsuit status matters for your address, and keep the city printouts with your closing file.

Illinois gives you a short window after acceptance to raise these questions, so line up your research before you sign. My guide to the Illinois attorney review period explains how that window works.

Questions buyers ask about data centers in Yorkville

These come up most often when people are just starting to look.

Talk through the map before you fall for a house

Data centers in Yorkville are a real land-use story, and they are also a research problem you can solve with public records. The goal is not to scare you out of Kendall County. The goal is to make sure the home you like still fits after you know what is planned down the road and when it is scheduled.

If you are just starting to look, send me the addresses you are curious about. I will help you pull the nearest campus pages, compare distance and construction order, and walk through what to ask before you tour. No pressure and no commitment. Call or text Kealan at 630-425-8815.

About Kealan O’Neil
Kealan O’Neil is the Designated Managing Broker and founder of O’Neil Property Group, an independent real estate brokerage based in Yorkville, Illinois. He and his team help buyers and sellers in Yorkville, Oswego, Montgomery, and the surrounding Kendall and Kane County communities, and he owns and manages a local rental portfolio, so he approaches every decision as both a broker and an investor. Call or text Kealan at 630-425-8815.

This post is general information about real estate in the Fox Valley, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Real estate laws, tax rules, and municipal ordinances change, and how they apply depends on your specific situation. Talk with a licensed attorney, CPA, or lender before making decisions about a purchase, sale, or tax matter. O’Neil Property Group is a licensed Illinois real estate brokerage.