America’s data center buildout has spawned an unexpected side industry. Entrepreneurs now chase contracts to feed thousands of construction workers, house them in temporary barracks, and give them places to park their trucks. These opportunities stretch far beyond the server racks and cooling systems that dominate headlines.
National Jobsite Catering serves roughly 1,500 meals daily at each of its dozen data center sites. The company’s revenue has climbed tenfold since it focused exclusively on these projects four years ago. Founder Matt Kaplan hires local partners who understand regional tastes but lack experience scaling to thousands of diners. “They know what they’re doing,” he says. “But they’ve never cooked for 1,000 to 3,000 people.”
So. The pattern repeats across the country. Tech giants plan to spend more than $5 trillion on AI technology and data centers by 2030. Over 1,500 facilities sit in some stage of development in the U.S. alone. Business Insider detailed how this wave creates demand for everything from catering to lodging to asphalt lots.
Construction crews arrive first. They number in the thousands per site and stay for years. Their needs mirror those of any massive infrastructure project. Yet the remote locations and specialized demands set this boom apart.
WhereiPark started as a platform for urban parking spaces. Its fastest growth now comes from leasing land near data center builds. A finished facility the size of a Walmart might hold only 50 parking spots. Temporary lots fill the gap during the multiyear construction phase. Once crews leave, the land reverts to prior use. The model requires no permanent ownership. Just nimble matching of supply and transient demand.
Aramark launched a dedicated division called Nexus this year. It supplies hotel-style lodging, gyms, and recreation facilities aimed at skilled tradespeople. Executives project each of three initial sites could produce $150 million in annualized revenue once mature. Higher profit margins accompany these contracts compared with traditional business lines.
But the ancillary play extends beyond single projects. Companies follow crews from site to site, much like service providers did during past oil booms. This nomadic approach turns temporary construction spikes into recurring revenue streams.
Recent research quantifies the ripple effects. Data center-related companies claimed a record 14.4% of industrial leasing in six major U.S. markets in 2025. That figure rose 44% from the previous year, reaching 13.5 million square feet. Cushman & Wakefield reported these trends on October 12, 2026.
Every 100 megawatts of new data center capacity drives about 365,000 square feet of related industrial leasing. The same increment supports 1,285 jobs when counting direct, supply chain, and household spending effects. Annual wages tied to these jobs average $110 million per 100 MW. Gross economic output hits $344 million. Local governments see roughly $15 million in added fiscal benefits.
Across the studied markets, initial industrial jobs linked to data centers totaled between 33,000 and 50,000 from 2022 through 2025. Those positions generated another 2.5 jobs each through multiplier channels. The combined impact produced $11.6 billion in yearly economic output. Cameron Martin, global research manager at Cushman & Wakefield, noted that discussion often centers on activity inside the facilities. “Our research shows there is also a significant economic story unfolding beyond the data center itself.”
From the air the transformation looks stark. The New York Times published aerial analysis on October 5, 2026, revealing 180 new data center buildings completed in 2025 alone. That total marked a 170% increase from 2021 levels. Another 88 buildings finished in the first part of 2026. Projects spread across 22 states, with nearly 50 new structures in Virginia.
Annual AI-related construction investment could exceed 3% of U.S. gross domestic product between 2025 and 2032. Economist Stijn van Nieuwerburgh of Columbia Business School calculated that share surpasses historical spending on railroads, the electric grid, or highways. In Loudoun County, Virginia — known as data center alley — equipment taxes are forecast to generate more than $1 billion in local revenue.
Scale defines the moment. A single gigawatt AI campus in places like Abilene, Texas, can cost around $30 billion. Bloomberg reported those figures on October 12, 2026, breaking down land, power infrastructure, shells, cooling, and hardware. Hyperscalers including Meta, Amazon, Microsoft, and Google plan roughly $750 billion in combined capital expenditures this year.
Yet not every community welcomes the influx. Opposition groups have more than doubled to 833 across 49 states. Concerns center on power draw, water use, noise, and land consumption. The Stratos Project in Utah, backed by Kevin O’Leary, originally spanned nearly 20,000 acres — an area rivaling Manhattan. Public pushback has already halved that footprint. Residents continue to fight further expansion despite promises of thousands of jobs and billions in investment.
Power remains the binding constraint. New facilities increasingly include on-site generation. Some campuses approach several gigawatts and require dedicated plants. Bain & Company projected $5 trillion to $6.5 trillion in global data center spending by 2030 to add 150 gigawatts or more of capacity. Most growth concentrates in the U.S.
Food service giants see parallel gains. Bank of America analysts estimated a nearly $70 billion U.S. market opportunity during the construction phase for integrated workforce services including meals, housing, and facilities management. Post-build operations could sustain a $20 billion annual market. Aramark, Compass Group, and Sodexo pursue these contracts. Bloomberg noted on September 29, 2026, that catering alone represents a $3 billion chance for these firms.
Microsoft has cited its Washington state experience to argue that each direct construction job creates another in security, maintenance, retail, or food service. Local firms in rural areas stand to gain most from individual projects. The smarter bet, however, involves building repeatable models that travel with the workforce.
Wall Street has taken notice. Blackstone launched a public REIT focused on stabilized data centers. Other firms package exposure through private vehicles and infrastructure funds. Risks abound — from grid delays to community resistance to bond market pressures that have already dented some REIT performance. Still, many view long-term leases with deep-pocketed tech tenants as attractive in an era of structural digital demand.
Industrial suppliers benefit too. Manufacturers of electrical gear, cooling systems, and power infrastructure lease additional warehouse space. Engineering firms, telecom providers, and specialized contractors follow. The multiplier extends to wholesalers and logistics operators.
One catering operator described the shift in simple terms. A single project might support 15 local kitchen, delivery, and distribution roles. Scale that across hundreds of sites and the numbers mount quickly. And the workers keep coming. Projections show data center construction spending hitting record annualized rates above $75 billion.
The ancillary economy shows few signs of slowing. Hyperscalers need speed to power more than ever. That urgency favors companies that can mobilize fast, operate efficiently at remote sites, and adapt when projects wind down. Parking lots become gyms. Empty fields turn into cafeterias. Modular housing springs up overnight.
Entrepreneurs who master these logistics stand to capture lasting value. The data centers themselves will run with small staffs once complete. The real employment and business boom lives in the years of preparation that precede them. This parallel economy, built on meals and mattresses and asphalt, may ultimately prove as durable as the concrete shells it supports.