The Minnesota Star Tribune reports…

Google expects to open a second large data center in Minnesota, this one in Hermantown, the northeast Minnesota town where residents have pushed back on both the project and the secrecy that’s enshrouded it for months.

The technology giant announced March 3 that it plans to build a data center in a rural corner of Hermantown under an agreement with Minnesota Power. It will also work with Twin Cities-based developer Mortenson on its proposed 1.8 million-square-foot campus.

The city of more than 10,000 “is a natural fit for this project,” with a climate that supports air cooling as opposed to water, along with a “resilient power grid and a dedicated and motivated workforce,” Kate Franko, Google’s regional head of public affairs for data centers, said in a statement.

Concerns for the environment and potential use of Lake Superior’s coveted stores of water have been central to controversy about the data center, to be built on more than 200 acres in the city next to Duluth.