News

Bridging the Data Center NDA Trust Gap: Why Developers Need a New Transparency and Community ROI Playbook

Bridging the Data Center NDA Trust Gap: Why Developers Need a New Transparency and Community ROI Playbook

in Milldam Minute

-Adam Waitkunas As community opposition delays tens of billions of dollars in data center investment, developers are discovering that NDAs alone no longer protect projects—they often undermine trust. This piece explores how transparency, Community ROI, and executive visibility can be integrated into site selection and due diligence to reduce entitlement risk. For years, non-disclosure agreements have been treated as an unavoidable feature of data center development. NDAs protect competitive positioning, land negotiations, customer relationships, and […]

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Zoning In

Zoning In

in Client News, Milldam Minute, Milldam Monthly, Milldam News

Two weeks into the New Year, 2026 is already picking up exactly where 2025 left off—contentious, politicized, and increasingly unforgiving for data center development done on autopilot. This week’s Zoning In shows opposition accelerating across multiple fronts at once: environmental groups challenging utility planning at the state level, auditors undercutting economic impact claims, lawmakers floating moratoria, and local governments are hitting pause while they scramble to update zoning codes. What’s notable isn’t just the volume […]

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Zoning In

Zoning In

in Client News, Milldam Minute, Milldam Monthly

This week’s Zoning In highlights data center opposition shifting decisively beyond local zoning battles and into state policy arenas. As projects stall amid growing community backlash, governors and lawmakers are stepping in to recalibrate the rules. In Florida, the Project Tango fight highlights an unusual alignment between environmental advocates and Gov. Ron DeSantis around strengthening local authority and tightening siting standards for AI data centers. In Arizona, Gov. Katie Hobbs’ call to sunset data center […]

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Adam Waitkunas Catches Up With Bisnow on How Power, Politics, and AI Will Shape Data Center Development in 2026

Adam Waitkunas Catches Up With Bisnow on How Power, Politics, and AI Will Shape Data Center Development in 2026

in Client News, Milldam News

Milldam’s Adam Waitkunas recently spoke with Bisnow as part of its annual outlook on the forces shaping data center development in 2026. The wide-ranging piece explores how artificial intelligence, power constraints, capital discipline, and politics are reshaping where and how data centers get built. In the article, Adam highlights a critical shift underway across the industry: community opposition to data centers is no longer an isolated, local entitlement risk. Instead, it is becoming more organized, […]

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Zoning In

Zoning In

in Client News, Milldam Minute, Milldam News

Happy New Year! This week’s Zoning In captures a pattern that’s no longer emerging—it’s now the baseline. Across the country, data center development is colliding with a more organized and politically savvy opposition, as well as a growing chorus of scrutiny from state and federal policymakers. From proposals that quietly stall after securing incentives, to jurisdictions pushing projects forward despite intense public opposition, the dynamic is clear: communities are demanding transparency, elected officials are chasing […]

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Special Holiday Edition of Zoning In

Special Holiday Edition of Zoning In

in Client News, Milldam Minute, Milldam News

As we wrap up the year, we wish you a happy holiday season and a healthy, prosperous New Year. This abbreviated Holiday Edition of Zoning In includes year-end analysis from Adam Waitkunas on how data center community relations reached an inflection point in 2025—and what the industry must do differently in the year ahead. Data Center Community Engagement Comes of Age In 2025, community opposition to data center development crossed a critical threshold, evolving from […]

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Data Center Community Engagement Comes of Age: Lessons from 2025, Imperatives for 2026

Data Center Community Engagement Comes of Age: Lessons from 2025, Imperatives for 2026

in Milldam Minute

Annual review of rising community resistance—and how developers can de-risk site selection, build trust, and move projects forward Adam Waitkunas 2025 marked a turning point in the relationship between data center development and the communities asked to host it. What was once treated as a niche land‑use issue became a national flashpoint, driven by rising public awareness, political scrutiny, and organized opposition. Between March and June alone, more than $98 billion in projects across the […]

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Zoning In

Zoning In

in Client News, Milldam Minute, Milldam Monthly, Milldam News

This week’s Zoning In makes one thing clear: opposition to data center development is no longer just a local land-use fight; it’s becoming a durable political force that will carry straight into 2026. From city councils rejecting projects despite heavy lobbying to moratoria, lawsuits, recalls, and even candidate recruitment efforts explicitly aimed at stopping data centers, community pushback is reshaping elections and policy conversations at every level. What’s especially striking is how this resistance is […]

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Milldam’s Adam Waitkunas Attends 7×24 SoCal Holiday Party

Milldam’s Adam Waitkunas Attends 7×24 SoCal Holiday Party

in Client News, Milldam Minute, Milldam News

Milldam’s Adam Waitkunas, a board member of the 7×24 Exchange Southern California Chapter, joined colleagues at last week’s 7×24 SoCal Holiday Party by the Marina in Huntington Beach, celebrating another successful year with the Southern California data center community. Looking ahead, the 7×24 SoCal Chapter is planning a strong slate of educational events in 2026, along with its popular annual charity golf tournament on March 30.

Zoning In

Zoning In

in Client News, Milldam Minute, Milldam Monthly

This week’s Zoning In highlights how quickly the national conversation around AI infrastructure is shifting. Last night, Chandler made headlines with a unanimous vote rejecting a $2B AI data center after overwhelming community pushback. Next week, Nvidia will host a private summit to address the power shortages that are now slowing AI growth. Across the country, Palm Beach County has paused a major hyperscale proposal, Virginia lawmakers are moving to restrict siting and tax breaks, […]

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