LFF Industrial data center, Rochelle, Illinois

The Rochelle City Council in Ogle County, Illinois, voted unanimously on April 27, 2026, to deny a development agreement for a 48-megawatt, 300,000-square-foot data center planned by Midwest Power Investors, an affiliate of New York real estate company LFF Industrial. The site lies north of Steward Road, west of the BNSF railroad and south of Interstate 88, and optional later phases could have taken it to 100MW and then beyond 150MW.

The council had first voted 4-3 on March 23 to table the agreement, with Mayor John Bearrows and council members Dan McDermott and Tom McDermott voting against tabling. "We are putting a lot of trust in a development firm that is located in New York City to be good stewards for our community's resources," resident Megan Sneyd told the council.

At the April 27 meeting the developers dropped the later phases, but several members said 48 megawatts was still too much for Rochelle Municipal Utilities, whose largest electric customer uses about 10. "I don't think 48 megawatts is a project we need in this community," said council member Kate Shaw-Dickey, and Bearrows cited Illinois's projected power capacity shortage in early 2029. "The developer does not live here," said Christian Bailey. "We do. This agreement is our leverage. Once it is signed, our leverage is gone."

A petition against the data center had 1,018 signatures by April 28, and members said they would consider a smaller development if one came back before the council.