Before breaking ground on its new data center March 24, Google announced the purchase of a 73.58-acre parcel from Northwest Aluminum.
The property, which the Fort Dalles Rodeo Association had leased since 1975, was sold to Google on March 17.
Darcy Nothnagle, Google’s head of external affairs for its Northwestern region, said the company has no immediate plans to build on the site but wants the option of continuing to invest in The Dalles as business demands.
Google will allow the association to use the property for future rodeos until it can find a permanent home, and provide funds to help the rodeo purchase equipment that was auctioned off in September.
“We’re excited to be working with the rodeo association,” Nothnagle said. “Our goal was to make sure they have options there for the next couple of years if they want it. We really love being in The Dalles and work hard to be part of the community.”
The Dalles Rodeo Association President Damon Hulit said talks with Google are “very preliminary” but the idea is to have a rodeo as early as 2017 on a different location on the 73.58-acre parcel.
There will not be a rodeo this summer.
“I’m pleased to be a partner with them,” Hulit said of Google. “It’s been a project here we’ve been quietly working on for a while and it’s great that they are willing to be able to have a chunk of ground that they allow to be used for other purposes.”
Hulit said he’d like to see the new facility be used more often than the rodeo grounds were, for events like carnivals or circuses.
He’d also like for the rodeo’s equipment to be more portable.
Google also announced Thursday a $100,000 grant to The Dalles-Wasco County Library Foundation for STEM programming and to help furnish the new children’s wing.
Since the cost of the expansion came in 40 percent higher than the initial estimate, District Librarian Jeff Wavrunek said a lot of the funds earmarked for furnishing were used finishing construction and that, without the Google grant, purchasing items like a digital media lab, changing tables for the family bathroom and even blinds for the windows wouldn’t be possible.
“It’s a huge gift for us and we’re very grateful,” Wavrunek said.
The new data center, Google’s third in The Dalles, represents $600 million worth of investment and increases its annual payment split between the city and Wasco County to $2.19 million. This makes Google the largest fee payer in the county. Google will pay the most for the latest data center, with a minimum initial payment of $1.45 million to the city and county along with $250,000 to the Port of The Dalles and then an estimated $1.14 million each year after.
Google’s payment is based on the cubic feet of the third data center, which is not yet exact since the tech company is still working on finishing the building design.
“This is a great day to celebrate,” Wasco County Commissioner Scott Hege said. “I’m very proud to have the richest company in the world choose The Dalles as home. It’s one more step in hopefully a long future.”
As part of a new enterprise zone agreement, Google is required to generate at least 10 jobs but the company has said as many as 50 could be created.
“Today’s groundbreaking is excellent news for Wasco County,” U.S. Rep. Greg Walden, R-Ore., said in a press release. “Google’s expanded presence in The Dalles is just one more example of why the Columbia Gorge is a great place for businesses to grow and bring more good, family-wage jobs to our community.”
Since 2008, Google has awarded more than $1.2 million in grants to support Wasco County Schools and nonprofits. “Google has provided us much-needed revenue that makes it possible for our community to do things we would not otherwise be able to do,” said The Dalles Mayor Steve Lawrence. “Every time Google makes new investment, it provides opportunities for the entire area.”
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