Target Hospitality, the company behind one of the nation’s largest Immigration and Customs Enforcement family detention sites, is racing to capitalize on the AI data center buildout by constructing and operating large temporary worker villages often dubbed “man camps.” The firm has inked contracts totaling $132 million to support a 1.6 gigawatt data center conversion in Dickens County, Texas, positioning itself as a go-to provider for the thousands of craft workers needed on hyperscale jobs.
AI Construction Surge Fuels Remote Workforce Villages
AI infrastructure is growing faster than local housing and labor markets can accommodate, especially in power-rich, sparsely populated regions. Developers are turning to purpose-built camps to keep projects on schedule and consolidate safety, meals, and transport. The International Energy Agency has warned that global data center electricity use could roughly double by mid-decade, driven by AI workloads, while U.S. brokerage research from firms like JLL and CBRE has chronicled record development pipelines and persistent labor bottlenecks across key markets.
Those dynamics are now migrating from server halls to job sites. At peak, a single hyperscale build can require well over a thousand electricians, pipefitters, ironworkers, and technicians. Centralizing lodging and amenities near remote campuses shortens commutes, reduces attrition, and helps contractors stage shift work around the clock—advantages that become decisive when AI customers demand aggressive delivery timelines.
Target Hospitality Bets On Dickens County
As a former Bitcoin mining operation in rural Dickens County is transformed into a 1.6 GW data center, workers are being housed in modular gray units with access to a gym, laundromat, game rooms, and an on-demand grill, according to Bloomberg reporting. Target Hospitality has signed multiple agreements worth $132 million to build and operate the camp, which could ultimately accommodate more than 1,000 people during peak construction.
The company’s chief commercial officer, Troy Schrenk, has called the data center pipeline “the largest, most actionable pipeline I’ve ever seen,” underscoring the firm’s pivot from energy patch lodging to digital infrastructure support. With AI operators racing to secure power and land, Texas—home to competitive electricity markets and ample transmission—has emerged as a focal point for these pop-up workforce hubs.
A Controversial Operator’s Expansion Into AI Projects
Target’s growth push arrives with baggage. The company also owns the Dilley Immigration Processing Center in Texas, which has housed families detained by ICE. Court filings have alleged substandard conditions at Dilley, including food contaminated with worms and mold and failures to accommodate allergies and special diets for children. Immigrant rights advocates say such allegations raise red flags as Target pitches itself as a steward of thousands of workers living on remote sites for months at a time.
Federal oversight of detention contractors has long drawn scrutiny from the Department of Homeland Security’s Office of Inspector General and watchdog groups, which have urged stronger compliance and transparency. That scrutiny is likely to follow Target into AI-adjacent operations, where the stakes include worker safety, wage standards, and community impacts in lightly regulated jurisdictions.
From Oilfields to Server Farms: The Camp Model Evolves
“Man camps” are not new. They proliferated during shale booms to house oilfield crews in the Bakken and Permian basins. The model—modular lodging, bulk catering, centralized medical and safety services—has been repurposed for data center construction, where the cost of schedule slippage can be measured in millions of dollars a day for delayed capacity.
For developers, camps can reduce pressure on local housing markets and win favor with officials wary of sudden rent spikes. For contractors, they offer predictable logistics and the ability to recruit nationally. Yet the approach also concentrates risk: outbreaks, safety incidents, or labor disputes can ripple quickly through a closed setting. Past oilfield booms showed that poor camp management invites reputational damage and regulatory attention.
Labor and Compliance Risks on Fast AI Buildouts
Texas construction has a history of wage theft and misclassification documented by organizations such as Workers Defense Project, making rigorous oversight essential on fast-moving mega-projects. Data center builds are heavy on skilled electrical and mechanical trades, where shortages can tempt corner-cutting on training, overtime, or safety practices. OSHA compliance, transparent subcontracting, and clear grievance channels are baseline expectations—particularly for an operator already under a public microscope.
Environmental and community issues are in the mix, too. AI campuses demand substantial power and, in some cases, water for cooling. Counties hosting both construction camps and the eventual facilities will face questions about infrastructure strain, emergency services, and long-term tax benefits versus short-term disruption. Clear community benefit agreements and local hiring targets can mitigate blowback and speed permitting.
What to Watch Next for AI Workforce Housing Deals
If the Dickens County project stays on schedule and within budget, expect Target and rivals in modular workforce housing to chase similar AI contracts across the Sun Belt and Midwest, where land and power interconnects are still obtainable. Procurement teams will look closely at operators’ track records from detention, oil, and disaster-response housing—and whether those practices can meet the quality, safety, and reputational bar AI customers now demand.
The big question is whether an enterprise associated with immigration detention can convince hyperscale buyers, communities, and labor groups that it can run high-standard, transparent, and humane operations at scale. With billions of dollars of AI capacity on the line, the answer will shape who gets to build the next wave of America’s compute infrastructure—and how those workers live while they do it.
