This week’s Zoning In makes one thing clear: transparency is no longer a side issue in data center development — it is quickly becoming the issue. From Ohio lawmakers weighing an NDA ban after secret local talks, to Microsoft publicly abandoning NDAs, to residents in places like Columbus, Leavenworth County, and Charles County demanding basic information on power, water, noise, and tax impacts, the pattern is the same. When communities feel shut out or underinformed, […]
Navigating the surge in local coverage, investigative reporting, and public scrutiny around AI infrastructure By Adam Waitkunas Just a few years ago, data centers rarely appeared in local headlines. Coverage of the industry was largely confined to trade publications, the occasional regional business journal, and national business outlets reporting on major announcements from large technology companies. Most communities learned about projects only after construction began, and the facilities themselves attracted little public attention. Today that […]
This week’s Zoning In highlights how data center development is increasingly colliding with local politics and regulatory scrutiny. In California, the city of Monterey Park moved forward with a ballot measure to ban data centers citywide. In Utah, the Provo City Council denied a zoning change that would have allowed a new facility, while Michigan’s Gibraltar adopted a one-year moratorium to give officials time to establish development standards. Across several other communities—from Wisconsin to Pennsylvania—packed […]
This week, the data center backlash picked up an unlikely amplifier: Comedian Charlie Berens, who is headlining a citizen-led town hall opposing a proposed facility in Beaver Dam, WI. It’s a signal that what were once niche zoning fights are spilling into the broader public conversation. Elsewhere, the pressure kept building — Birmingham imposed a pause on new applications, a major project collapsed in Apex, Missouri, residents protested a closed-door meeting, and lawmakers from Ohio […]
This week’s Zoning In underscores a credibility problem the industry can’t afford: when developers skip town halls (Denver) or table hearings at the last minute because filings aren’t ready (Pacific, MO; Upper Macungie, PA), the takeaway in the room isn’t “process”—it’s avoidance, and it hardens suspicion that projects are moving faster than the facts. Meanwhile, grassroots coalitions are rallying and litigating (Farmington; Columbia County), and local governments are moving quickly on moratoriums and tighter zoning. […]
By Adam Waitkunas When it comes to data center development, most projects are not decided by the loudest critics. They are decided by the middle. In nearly every market, there is a segment that will oppose large infrastructure projects on principle. There is also a segment — often business leaders, trades, and technology-aligned residents — that tends to be supportive. But outcomes frequently hinge on the persuadable middle: homeowners, parents, small business owners, civic volunteers […]
Welcome to this week’s edition of Zoning In. The biggest signals this week came from San Marcos rejecting a $1.5B rezoning after a marathon public hearing, Illinois Gov. Pritzker proposing a two-year pause on new data center tax credits, and a broader tightening of the rules of engagement, from Washington’s push for stronger utility/ratepayer protections to Minnesota’s one-year ban and small towns like Columbiana, AL, codifying stricter zoning standards. At the same time, the process […]
This week’s Zoning In shows the data center debate moving decisively from city halls to statehouses. New York lawmakers introduced a three-year moratorium to study grid, ratepayer, and water impacts—while other states are floating similar “pause and prove it” approaches. Referendums (Janesville), lawsuits (Hobart), and even NDA backlash in Michigan signal that process and transparency are now just as combustible as power and water. At the local level, timelines and trust are everything. Fermi’s permitting […]
A guide to planning effective community information and listening sessions By Adam Waitkunas In today’s permitting climate, a data center town hall isn’t just an information session. It’s a pressure test. It’s often the first time residents meet the people behind a project—and the first time rumors, fears, and assumptions collide with facts in the same room. We’ve seen plenty of projects where a poorly planned meeting accelerated opposition, fueled headlines, and hardened positions overnight. […]
This week’s Zoning In shows the data center debate continuing to shift into a more overtly political phase. From Sand Springs to Monterey Park, communities are signaling that opposition is no longer just about individual projects. It’s about process, trust, and transparency, with residents increasingly willing to escalate fights beyond planning boards and into ballot measures, recalls, and sustained organizing. Across markets, three forces keep converging: local control, fiscal exposure, and infrastructure accountability. Cities are […]
