MCDONALD, Ohio – Developers are negotiating a deal that would lead to the construction of what could be a $1 billion data center that spans more than 1 million square feet on former steel mill property in the village, principals say.
“We’re in the process of assembling 350 acres that includes the U.S. Steel property” and surrounding land to support a data center project from an as yet unnamed company, said Mike Cenit, managing partner of Applied Partners Inc. “At this point, the company plans what could be a 1 million- to 2 million-square-foot data center.”
A subsidiary of Applied Partners, AP McDonald LLC, owns 52 acres of what once was U.S. Steel Corp.’s McDonald Works at 100 Ohio Ave. In 1980, U.S. Steel closed the mill, but a local investment team led by businessman David Tod and attorney Dan Roth rescued a portion of the plant and created McDonald Steel Inc., which opened the following year. The plant manufactured steel shapes for customers across the country.
McDonald Steel shut its doors in December 2023 and sold the land and 650,000-square-foot plant to Allied Partners in July 2024 for $3.25 million.
Cenit said AP McDonald has two contiguous properties under contract that include 250 acres operated by Larry’s Truck and Electric and 65 acres owned by U.S. Steel. The sales are expected to close May 1, 2026.
The acreage does not include a going concern that still operates on the site, the Mandrel Group, Cenit noted. Although developers would prefer obtaining the 15-acre lot, the data center project is still able to move forward without acquiring that property.
AP McDonald has been onsite demolishing the buildings and removing any associated contaminants, such as asbestos and PCBs, from the structures, Cenit said. That project is nearing completion, and the objective is to sell the land to the developer, who would then begin work on further environmental soil cleanup and then start construction on the new data center.
AP McDonald’s crews have been at the site since September, said Douglas Soper, project manager. “Normally, a project like this would take about 10 months,” he said. However, the process has taken longer since plans to develop the new data center emerged.
Soper said he expects most of AP McDonald’s work could be finished by the end of the year, depending on holiday schedules. Once the site is completely cleared of scrap and debris, crews will return to the site in the next year and demolish three giant smokestacks toward the rear of the property.
“It’s a safety issue,” Soper said. “You’re doing a demo in a pretty complex old steel mill here. It just doesn’t come down. There are a lot of moving pieces.”
“I have no idea who the end-user is,” Cenit acknowledged. “But by the size of it, they could be major.”
It’s also unclear as to the total value of the project, he said. However, development costs would range between $600 and $1,100 per square foot. Therefore, a 1 million-square-foot center would require a minimum investment between $600 million and $1.1 billion.
Cenit said the project stands to transform the site from its traditional steel manufacturing heritage into a new industry that fits the 21st century. “This could be a prototype for the future of this industry,” he noted. “It’s really a good thing for the village of McDonald.”
The construction phase of the project could take approximately four to five years, Cenit said. One advantage is that adequate power infrastructure already feeds the property, although access to the site is limited to an aging steel bridge that leads into the site. “I’m absolutely sure they’ll rebuild the bridge,” he said.
The project conservatively would employ approximately 350 trade jobs during the construction phase, Cenit said. Once the data center is operational, the operation would employ between 35 and 75 full-time positions.
Different Than Lordstown
Cenit also emphasized that this developer and project is entirely unrelated to a similar proposal that recently caused a backlash in Lordstown.
Lordstown Village Council on Nov. 3 voted unanimously to ban all future data centers from the village. Residents have expressed concerns over noise levels generated by these centers and potentially higher utility bills, since data centers require large quantities of power and water.
Bristolville 25 Developer LLC has presented plans to develop a $3.6 billion data center in Lordstown on a greenfield site along state Route 45 that it says would employ 1,300 workers during the construction phase and another 130 full-time workers once the center is operational.
Cenit said the McDonald project presents a very different scenario. Although large, the data center would not command a major footprint proportionate to the total 350 acres, which is already zoned industrial. Furthermore, the site is insulated from much of the residential community, buffered by trees and brush to the south and the Mahoning River to the north.
Mayor Ray Lewis said he is open to discussing any business opportunity that wants to make a major investment in McDonald. “The Village of McDonald is open for business,” he said. “I’m of the mindset that two jobs are better than no jobs.”
As of publication, Lewis said the village had not received any submissions or permit applications from developers detailing plans for the site.
Preserving History
Although AP McDonald is charged with demolishing a landmark industrial site that once employed thousands, Lewis said the company has taken great strides to protect and preserve its history.
The company, for example, has donated pieces to the Youngstown Historical Center of Industry and Labor, Lewis noted. On one occasion, AP McDonald discovered hundreds of wood templates approximately 2 feet in length etched with schematics of roll forms dating to the U.S. Steel days as far back as the 1930s and 1940s.
“Instead of getting rid of them, they made them available for residents who might want to grab one,” he said. “I think we’ve given out about 500 of these.”
The McDonald Works was established in 1918 by U.S. Steel subsidiary Carnegie Steel Co. The mill thrived for decades until 1979, when the steel giant announced plans to close the McDonald plant and its Ohio Works site in Youngstown as part of a corporate-wide restructuring that impacted 20,000 steelworkers across the country.
AP McDonald’s Cenit said he wants to remain respectful to the site’s heritage, and the developer has plans to affix a name to the new development that holds true to the more than century of steelmaking there.
“It’ll be beautifully landscaped,” he said. “We’re going to name it Carnegie Park,” he said.
Pictured at top: The former McDonald Steel site.