FAIRFIELD, Ala. — A technology company has purchased Fairfield’s long-vacant Walmart property for $32 million, advancing plans to turn the former retail store into a data center and technology campus that city leaders hope will bring investment and jobs to the community.
Patmos Fairfield LLC acquired approximately 16 acres, including the former Walmart Supercenter at 7201 Aaron Aronov Drive, according to local reporting citing property records. The sale closed Nov. 5, AL.com reported.
Patmos plans to reuse the approximately 205,000-square-foot building, which has been vacant since Walmart closed in 2016. The company says initial operations are expected to begin in May 2027.
The proposal gives Fairfield a potential new use for a large commercial property that has sat empty for a decade. Mayor Herman Carnes Jr. has backed the development as an opportunity to attract investment while encouraging broader economic growth.
“This isn’t about one project,” Carnes said at an August town hall, according to ABC 33/40. “It’s about momentum.”
Patmos representatives have described the project as a colocation data center, where businesses rent space for servers and other computing equipment, within a broader technology campus. The company says the campus would also accommodate other technology businesses.
That description does not mean the facility would be limited to data storage. Patmos’ latest announcement says it is being designed to support artificial intelligence, high-performance computing, colocation and other web services, including high-density AI workloads.
The company’s current plan calls for approximately 20 megawatts of initial electrical capacity, with the potential for up to 50 megawatts of utility capacity over time. That updates the eventual 45-megawatt figure discussed at the August town hall.
Patmos representatives estimated at that meeting that the initial 20-megawatt development would represent about $150 million in investment. The $32 million property purchase is a separate figure from the company’s estimate for the initial development.
The company expects the completed campus to support about 50 permanent jobs, including workers employed by other technology businesses occupying the property. That projection is not limited to employees operating the data center itself, according to WBHM’s reporting on the town hall.
Company representatives described a core staffing plan that included infrastructure employees, senior engineers, a site manager and an administrative position, along with contracted security and electrical and mechanical services.
Patmos also has discussed potential training opportunities with Fairfield City Schools, Miles College and other educational institutions. Those ideas were presented as possibilities, rather than established programs.
“We don’t build data centers in the traditional sense,” Patmos CEO John Johnson said in the company’s acquisition announcement. “Our data centers power mixed-use Technology Campuses that create job-dense tech ecosystems and new opportunities for communities.”
Community engagement has been part of the project’s public rollout. Hundreds of people attended an Aug. 12 town hall at the Fairfield Civic Center, where Patmos executives, city leaders and Alabama Power representatives fielded questions about jobs, electricity, water use, noise and other issues.
WBHM reported that company officials spent more than an hour answering questions. Some attendees thanked officials for bringing the company to Fairfield, while others questioned whether the expected benefits would outweigh potential effects on nearby neighborhoods and infrastructure.
Carnes has pointed to the company’s willingness to appear before residents as a reason for his support. Patmos also said at the town hall that it had not asked city leaders to sign nondisclosure agreements.
Still, the meeting did not resolve all concerns. Some residents have questioned the timing of public involvement and sought more documentation about the project and the city’s decision-making.
The Fairfield Environmental Justice Alliance requested records concerning zoning, agreements involving Patmos, meeting minutes and other matters. An attorney representing the group threatened legal action in an Oct. 29 letter seeking production of the records, AL.com reported.
City attorney Kelvin Howard told AL.com that Fairfield provided records to the alliance and its attorney Nov. 5.
“The City takes its obligations under Alabama’s Open Records Act seriously and remains committed to addressing public records requests in accordance with applicable law,” Howard said in an email to AL.com.
Questions about utilities and neighborhood effects also remain part of the discussion. At the August meeting, Patmos estimated the initial facility would use about 10,000 gallons of water daily during hot conditions. The company described a cooling system that would recirculate water through closed loops while still losing some water through evaporation.
Patmos said backup diesel generators would operate during outages and required testing, rather than supply the facility’s normal electricity. Company officials also described plans to install additional mufflers and keep the loudest equipment inside the building. Those statements describe the proposed design and operating practices, not measurements from a completed facility.
Alabama Power representatives told residents at the town hall that the utility had studied service to the project and that Patmos would be responsible for upgrades associated with supplying it. Patmos’ latest announcement says the company will pay the full cost of power and grid infrastructure required to serve the facility through upfront financial commitments.
Fairfield has enacted a temporary moratorium on new data centers, but the restriction does not apply to the Patmos project, according to AL.com. The property purchase moves the redevelopment forward, though the acquisition itself does not establish that all construction permits or other approvals have been issued.
For Carnes, the project represents a chance to return a long-idle property to productive use.
“For years, we’ve wanted to see something positive happen with the former Walmart property, and I’m pleased to see that we’re moving in that direction,” he said in Patmos’ announcement. “We want responsible development that creates opportunities for our residents and strengthens our community.”