Residents Opposing Data Center Construction Plan in Chiba Pref. City; Signs with Messages of Protest Hung

The Yomiuri Shimbun

2:00 JST, February 24, 2025

SHIROI, Chiba — A plan to construct data centers in residential areas in Shiroi, Chiba Prefecture, has been met with opposition from nearby residents who said the envisaged buildings will overwhelm the area and block out sunlight.

GLP Japan Inc. plans to build two data centers, both 30-40 meters high: one in front of a seven-story apartment complex in the Sakuradai district and the other next to an estate of houses in the Fuku district.

The Chuo Ward, Tokyo-based company is known for building huge logistics centers and other facilities across the nation.

In the Sakuradai district, three buildings between 31.8 and 33.5 meters high are planned for a 3.6-hectare site that faces three blocks of the apartment complex across the road. The plan has led residents of the complex to form a group in an effort to preserve the neighborhood and call for a review of the plan.

The group has continued to make requests, such as changing the height of the facility, to the company and the Shiroi city government. Some residents have hung banners on their balconies with messages including “Don’t destroy our neighborhood.”

According to Satoru Nagashima, 76, a representative of the group, the planned buildings are 1.7 times the height of the three apartment blocks and only 43-60 meters away.

“Like a huge wall, the data center would create a very oppressive atmosphere,” he said. “I’m also worried about the safety of the heavy oil tanks that are going to be installed underground and the negative impact on sunlight and property values.”

In the Fuku district, a data center is planned on a 13-hectare site to the south of Shiroi Station on the Hokuso Line. The site is surrounded on three sides by a junior high school and a residential area, or Category 1 low-rise exclusive residential district. It is also an urbanization control area, meaning buildings cannot be erected there in principle. However, under the City Planning Law, construction can be done if a district plan is formulated.

In the company’s original plan, one of the buildings was 40 meters high, which sparked opposition from residents, who said its huge wall would deteriorate the environment of the neighborhood. In response, the company revised its plan, saying it would construct a terraced building instead. According to the revised plan, the part of the building closest to the neighboring apartments would be no higher than 15 meters, but the building would gradually increase in height to 26 meters the further away it got.

In April last year, the city government’s planning council meeting discussed the revised plan and concluded it was “generally appropriate,” in that it met such conditions as “working on necessary measures after deepening the understanding of residents in the surrounding areas regarding the height.” The city government is expected to formulate a district plan.

However, the company held an information session for residents in late September last year where it presented a further revised plan that set the height of the building at 40 meters, including the part closest to the residential area.

The residents are becoming more and more opposed to the plan, with one of them saying: “We weren’t convinced with the original revised plan to begin with, and now with this new revised plan, we’re back at square one.”

Satoshi Oikawa, 59, a lawyer and nearby resident, said: “This is like cheating in a game by watching your opponent’s move before making a move yourself. Deliberating the actual plan has a proper procedure, and what’s going on now makes the council’s deliberations meaningless. It could be a violation of the City Planning Law.”

Oikawa filed a lawsuit, which was later dismissed, to block the city planning decision for the project.

In November last year, the plan to construct the two data centers was discussed at the Shiroi city assembly, which stated that it had conveyed the residents’ requests to the company.

“We have not announced any construction plans or disclosed any relevant location, so we cannot answer any questions,” GLP Japan said, responding to questions from The Yomiuri Shimbun.