ST. LOUIS-Bluebird Network, which provides fiber-optic services throughout Missouri, Illinois and surrounding states, has agreed to a long-term lease at the 210 N. Tucker data center here. San Francisco-based Digital Realty Trust Inc. owns the 300,000-square-foot property.
A Digital spokeswoman would not confirm how much space Bluebird has leased, but tells GlobeSt.com that the 18-story building, a former office property downtown, is 75% occupied. “The rest is not built out, as we typically install the network and systems incrementally, to follow close to the demand. We’re typically paying $800 per square foot to build out these spaces with the right equipment, so we don’t want to do it until it’s needed.”
Bluebird operates the merged networks of Missouri Network Alliance, Illinois Network Alliance and Bluebird Media. The company plans to build out its own dedicated data center within the leased space to support its network of more than 5,000 route miles in providing broadband to rural and underserved communities. By 2013, the company will add 1,500 miles of fiber optic cable to its existing 3,500 miles of cable to create a high-seed telecommunications network.
The spokeswoman says Digital also owns a neighboring building at 900 Walnut, a seven-story building that serves as the area’s Internet gateway. “Many of these data companies, especially fiber firms, want to be near an Internet hub,” she says. The two buildings are connected via 400 strands of fiber.
These facilities are near recession-proof, as demand for power and network capable facilities grows in this digital age, the spokeswoman says. The St. Louis facility is now one of the most desirable data center properties in the Midwest, she says.
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