Downtown San Francisco has shown signs of revival since being battered by the Covid pandemic, which led to what many called a “doom loop” of vacant buildings, a worsening homelessness crisis, and dwindling public transit. But one highly visible reminder of the city’s struggle to recover remains: the San Francisco Centre mall, which sits at the heart of these urban renewal efforts and has been conspicuously boarded up since January of this year.

A number of ideas have been floated for the mall’s reopening, including a multi-level sports complex, housing, and more traditional retail uses. But now, another potential plan has emerged: the shuttered mall is being considered for an AI datacenter project, the San Francisco Chronicle reported.

In emails uncovered by the Chronicle, Maryland-based development firm KG Growth Partners asked San Francisco officials in June about datacenter permits on behalf of an unidentified potential buyer. Jared Krieger, the chief executive of KG Growth Partners, confirmed the Chronicle report, but said the firm has not yet applied for permits, “as we do not know if our client has won the bid to purchase”.

He stressed that the proposed project would not be a “traditional server-based datacenter” but instead a “cohesive, community-based AI exhibit”.

The Chronicle reported this “exhibit” includes plans to turn the 350,000 sq ft property formerly leased by Bloomingdale’s into an “AI-controlled living space” with a rooftop garden. Krieger clarified by email that these plans for a “living space” do not include actual residences. Instead he described the proposed project as “a living exhibit of how AI technology can interact with community and public spaces”, in which significant portions of the building would remain public facing. He said the project would include, “culture, design, retail, sports, and education spaces, along with a rooftop park”.

“As for concerns about foot traffic, this project is specifically designed to support the city’s vision,” he said. “By dedicating the majority of the space to public use, culture, and retail, we are creating a destination that invites people downtown every day, directly supporting local businesses.”

Such a project may not have a straightforward path to approval. Backlash to datacenters has been on the rise across the US, and San Francisco – despite being the center of the AI boom – is no different. In response to growing concerns, Mayor Daniel Lurie signed a measure last week putting a moratorium on data center development in San Francisco for 45 days to allow the planning department time to research impacts of data centers on communities where they are built. Lurie’s office did not respond to requests for comment regarding the Chronicle report. It is unclear how the potential downtown data center might be affected by this moratorium, as Krieger said it is “fundamentally different from a conventional datacenter”.

“We are proposing a regenerative urban energy center that recycles power and water, providing a clean energy supply and public benefits, rather than a sealed box that merely consumes from the grid,” he said.

Business owners downtown have long complained about the mall’s plight impacting the neighborhood ecosystem. The AI boom has brought money back to the Bay Area, and while the retail market in San Francisco at large has shown signs of recovery, businesses in the shadow of the shuttered mall say they aren’t seeing those effects.

Helen Nasser, who has owned SF Deli & Wine, a convenience store on the same block as the San Francisco Centre mall, for nearly 30 years, said she has watched a number of nearby stores close since the pandemic, and estimates business at her deli has plunged at least 60% since the mall closed.

“I’m the last man standing,” she said. “I need the mall to come back or I’m not going to survive.”

Nasser started the deli with her husband, who died 20 years ago, and said she has tried everything – including repeatedly emailing the mayor’s office for help – to keep her business afloat. She was shocked at potential plans to open a datacenter in the mall building, saying it is the “worst thing [Lurie] could do for the neighborhood”.

“We need the city to give back to the people – we need to utilize that space as somewhere families can go, where kids can go, and create something that brings foot traffic to the small businesses in the area,” she said. “If you put a datacenter there, you are going to kill us.”