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Mayor McLeod highlights multibillion-dollar data center investments and housing growth in State of the Village address
Summary
Mayor Bill McLeod told residents the former Sears headquarters site is being redeveloped by Compass Data Centers in a multibillion-dollar project and noted Microsoft's continued data-center work, new housing approvals, completion of Fire Station 21 and steps to implement the village's multimodal transportation and Hello Hoffman planning efforts.
Mayor Bill McLeod delivered the 2026 State of the Village address, saying 2025 marked "a transformational year" for Hoffman Estates as demolition of the former Sears headquarters finished and Compass Data Centers began construction on a new data-center campus, a project the mayor described as an investment of more than $10,000,000,000.
"Compass Data Centers is giving new purpose to the West side of our community by investing over $10,000,000,000 to transform a legacy site into a modern data center campus," McLeod said, adding that the redevelopment will help diversify the village's tax base and strengthen long-term financial stability.
McLeod also reported work on an electrical substation and that Microsoft had entered phase 2 of construction on a data-center campus along Lakewood Boulevard, which the mayor said represents a $500,000,000 investment for phases 1 and 2. He credited private-sector demand for prompting new office and housing projects at Bell Works Chicagoland, where the East Wing is nearly full and a West-side renovation and residential components are under way.
The mayor listed several housing projects in planning or under construction, including townhomes at Kensington Fields, redevelopment of a former CDK Global property, a 335-unit "Grama Reserve" apartment project at Barrington Square approved in December, and proposed townhomes near Higgins Road. He said the village completed Fire Station 21 on Flagstaff Lane and expects construction of Fire Station 22 on Governors Lane this summer.
On planning and transportation, McLeod said the multimodal transportation plan was adopted last fall and that a transportation advisory committee was established in January to help implement and monitor the plan. He urged residents to take part in the Hello Hoffman comprehensive-plan outreach and noted that the village began work on dementia-friendly-community certification and related business training and recognition.
Why this matters: the mayor framed these developments as reshaping local economic opportunity and infrastructure, while stressing community outreach for long-range planning.
The address closed with a thank-you to residents, businesses, volunteers and staff and an exhortation to continue community progress. No votes or formal council actions were recorded in this broadcast segment.
