Global AI data center, Windsor, Colorado

Weld County approved zoning for a Global AI data center near Windsor in September 2026, after ordering the company to stop construction three times. Global AI, a New York company, bought the 438 acre former Kodak and Carestream Health site at 2000 Howard Smith Avenue West for about $15.6 million in November 2025, and plans a 41 acre data center there. The first phase needs 27.5 megawatts, and Global AI aims to have a gigawatt in its network by 2029.

The county posted stop work orders on May 7, 2026, and June 11, 2026, and a third with no date given in county records. On July 20, 2026, it sent a formal order to abate, giving Global AI until July 31, 2026, to comply or face termination of unlawful occupancy. The abatement letter said the company had added chiller tanks and piping, data center specific work, without the zoning approval or building permits that phase required. Weld County would not detail its inspections or say whether Global AI had complied, citing a pending investigation.

Angela Snyder, a county planner, said of residents' objections: "We sorted the public comments into categories of what is within our jurisdiction to address and what isn't. Those things that we have the ability to address ... we will not approve it unless those things are addressed."

Scott Simmons, a retired information technology architect who lives about a mile from the site, said: "This is not the place to put a data center, right in the middle of all these communities." Of the county's oversight he said: "It couldn't be more 'Nightmare on Elm Street,'" adding, "These people don't care."

The Board of Commissioners approved the zoning 5 to 0 in September 2026, after more than 400 written comments came in against it, on water, electricity, environmental impact and noise. Chair Scott James said: "It repurposes an industrial facility that has been vacant for years. It will spur economic activity." Commissioner Lynette Peppler said site visits and research had overcome her concerns.

The approval came with conditions: closed loop cooling, an initial water fill of 65,000 gallons and an annual top up of 6,500, noise held to ambient levels with 65 decibels in normal operation, and a decommissioning bond.

The Poudre Valley Rural Electric Association has committed 35 megawatts in a will serve letter, but can supply only that much until mid 2028, dropping to 27 megawatts in early 2028. Global AI says it will run the site with Nvidia and Humain, an Arabic language artificial intelligence company backed by a Saudi sovereign wealth fund, and has not said publicly who its customers will be. The company estimates 1,500 construction jobs and 200 long term jobs, and puts the investment at $2 billion to $20 billion.