Kasich and others heralded Facebook's announcement of a $750 million data center in New Albany as one more significant step in attracting tech jobs to Ohio.
Facebook unveiled renderings of a 970,000-square-foot data center divided into two large buildings on 345 acres just inside Licking County in New Albany, along Beech Road south of State Route 161.
The first phase is slated for completion in 2019, with the second phase to be opened in 2020. The company expects to have 100 permanent employees there, in addition to creating about 1,000 construction jobs during the building phase.
"One of our goals has been ... to diversify the state," Kasich said at the press conference at New Albany City Hall to officially announce the project. "Ohio has had a heavy reliance on manufacturing," he said, after thanking Facebook for recognizing that Ohio has the workforce to support high-tech jobs.
John Minor, CEO of JobsOhio, the state's privatized development organization, said that excluding "capital intensive" shale and gas projects, Facebook's investment is the second-largest - behind Amazon - that the state has attracted since JobsOhio's creation in 2011.
Facebook officially announced its plans Tuesday morning to build a data center in the New Albany International Business Park.
The company will invest $750 million on its 970,000-square-foot facility that it said will be powered completely by renewable energy.
The center will be located on 345 acres on a site east of Beech Road and south of State Route 161.
Facebook said the New Albany center, which will be the company's 10th, is expected to begin delivering services in 2019.
"We're thrilled to have found a home in Ohio and to embark on this exciting partnership," said Erin Egan, Facebook's vice president of U.S. public policy, in a statement. "Everything here has been as advertised — from a committed set of community partners and strong pool of talent to the opportunity to power our facility with 100 percent renewable energy. The Buckeye State is a great place to do business."
After completion, Facebook said it expects to employ approximately 100 workers at its New Albany data center.
©2017 The Columbus Dispatch (Columbus, Ohio) Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.
