Project Snapshot
Location & Site Details
Address: 3110 South Service Road, Burlington (former Tucker’s Marketplace site)
Building Size: Two-storey, 5,163 m² (55,600 ft²) on a 0.8-hectare lot
Parking: 136 vehicle spaces (84 underground, 52 surface), 8 bicycle spaces
Facility Profile
Type: Multi-purpose facility, not a hyperscale data centre
Purpose: Secure storage, processing, and management of digital data for businesses, online services and governments
Current Status
Site Plan Application: Under technical review by City staff, Burlington Hydro, Halton Region, Conservation Halton, and other agencies
Building Canada's Digital Infrastructure Responsibly
The proposed data centre at 3110 South Service Road is a moderately sized multi-purpose facility explicitly designed to integrate responsibly into Burlington.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How much electricity will the data centre require, and will it strain the local power grid?
A: The facility will have an electrical capacity of 20 megawatts (MW). To responsibly manage this and minimize the impact on the local grid, the project features dedicated Burlington Hydro feeders, flexible load management, and battery energy storage. These systems will reduce peak demand and are actually designed to support Burlington Hydro during peak demand events
Q: Will the facility consume a large amount of the municipal water supply?
A: No. In compliance with Halton Region rules that prohibit water cooling for this type of industrial use, the facility uses an air-cooled system for its primary cooling. Its municipal water usage will be similar to that of a standard modern commercial building
Q: Will the data centre generate excessive noise for nearby residents?
A: The facility is custom-engineered with architectural acoustic screening panels to ensure 100% compliance with Ontario’s strict MECP NPC-300 environmental noise guidelines. Based on preliminary assessment, the combination of equipment layout, distance attenuation, and architectural screening is expected to reduce the sound levels at the property line to within a target range of approximately 45–50 dBA.
Q: What environmental and sustainability features are included?
A: The facility is designed with high-efficiency building systems to achieve a Low Power Usage Effectiveness. It also incorporates battery energy storage for flexibility.
Heat recovery opportunities are under exploration, with the potential to capture waste heat generated by the data centre’s cooling systems and redirect it for beneficial community use.
The site also features an underground ACO Stormbrixx storage system and a HydroDome unit designed to capture and remove 80% of Total Suspended Solids (TSS) from surface water runoff before it leaves the site. This shows a strong commitment to local water quality.
Q: Why do we need a data centre in Burlington?
A: Data centres are essential digital infrastructure for modern life. They enable cloud computing, secure digital services, and everyday tools used by residents, hospitals, schools, and government services. The Province of Ontario positions them as critical infrastructure for the digital economy, and locating this facility here helps keep Canadian data within our borders
Q: Are there examples of similar data centres operating safely in urban areas?
A: Yes. There are successful examples of data centres operating in densely populated areas, such as near Union Station and in the Distillery District. These facilities have operated for decades with virtually no noticeable effect on neighbourhood noise, electricity grids, or municipal water supplies