Daily Digest — March 31, 2026
Festus, Missouri Approves $6 Billion Data Center Despite Strong Public Opposition
The Festus City Council voted 6-2 to approve a development agreement and ordinance for a $6 billion, 365-acre hyperscale data center project by CRG, a subsidiary of Clayco, according to STLPR. The vote took place during a special meeting at Festus High School, where hundreds of residents voiced opposition through public comments and jeers before Mayor Sam Richards cut off comment after two hours.
Key terms of the approved agreement, as reported by KSDK, include:
- CRG-funded infrastructure upgrades for water, sewage, and streets
- Annual payments of $3 million for five years, then $5 million for five years, for community development
- Voluntary buyouts for homeowners within 1,000 feet of an active data center building
- A cap on daily water usage
- Arrangements with Ameren Missouri for energy costs and infrastructure improvements
- An estimated $80 million in annual tax revenue for Festus and surrounding districts, even with a five-year tax abatement
- Utility taxes projected at $8 million annually, rising to $22 million by 2031 at full power usage
Council members Staci Templeton and Brian Wehner voted against the ordinance, according to STLPR. Following the vote, council members and CRG representatives exited the building under police presence as angered residents looked on.
The opposition group Wake Up Jeffco, which held a meeting of over 120 residents the day before the vote, has vowed to continue fighting the project, according to Leader Publications. Attorney Steve Jeffery, who represents the group and similar anti-data center organizations elsewhere in Missouri, raised transparency concerns, citing Sunshine Law requests that allegedly showed city officials arranging closed-door meetings with CRG representatives while avoiding quorum requirements.
Separately, residents have raised concerns that the proposed site near Highway 67 and County Road CC may contain unmarked graves, as reported by KMOV St. Louis. A historic preservationist confirmed that ground depressions photographed by a resident are consistent with abandoned or unmarked graves. The city manager stated officials were not aware of any unmarked graves on the site but affirmed that any discoveries would be handled in accordance with legal requirements.
Photos: Festus approves massive $6 billion, 365-acre data center over some residents objections
STLtoday.com
Festus approves development agreement for $6B data center
KSDK
Festus council approves $6 billion data center plan despite massive public pushback
STLPR
Festus data center opponents vow to continue fight to stop project
Leader Publications
Ahead of vote to develop data center, Festus residents say grounds suggest graves are on site
KMOV St. Louis
Op-Ed Criticizes Lansing, New York Handling of TeraWulf Data Center Proposal
Ken Wolkin, president of the advocacy group FLX Strong, published an op-ed in The Ithaca Voice criticizing the Lansing Town Board's approach to TeraWulf's proposed AI data center on Cayuga Lake, according to The Ithaca Voice. Wolkin alleged a double standard in the treatment of board members, noting that a newly appointed Planning Board alternate was admonished for prior critical comments about the data center while the Zoning Board of Appeals chair's public support for the project went uncriticized.
The op-ed accused the ZBA of effectively rewriting the zoning code to facilitate TeraWulf's development. Wolkin also highlighted a broader trend of municipalities responding to data center proposals:
- Oneonta has enacted a moratorium
- Dryden is considering a ban on data center development
- State Assemblymember Anna Kelles is co-sponsoring a statewide moratorium bill
FLX Strong is currently involved in litigation against the Town of Lansing Zoning Board of Appeals.
Janesville, Wisconsin Weighs $8 Billion Data Center on Contaminated Former GM Site
Viridian Partners, a Colorado-based firm working with Virginia-based Abbleby Strategy Group, has proposed an $8 billion, 800-megawatt data center campus on a 250-acre former General Motors brownfield site in Janesville, Wisconsin, according to E&E News by POLITICO. The project would require electricity equivalent to the entire Milwaukee metro area and involves partnerships with Alliant Energy and American Transmission Company for a new electrical substation and infrastructure upgrades.
City officials, including City Manager Kevin Lahner, largely endorse the project, citing 600 permanent jobs and 13,000 construction jobs. The proposal aligns with a Trump administration initiative to repurpose blighted industrial sites for the AI industry, with the EPA promising expedited environmental reviews. The Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources would oversee an estimated $30 million cleanup of soil contaminated with hydrocarbons, heavy metals, and PFAS.
However, residents have raised concerns about health impacts, noise, property values, and increased electricity costs. A ballot initiative to halt the project will go before Janesville voters in November, and at least two city council candidates are running on anti-data center platforms. Wisconsin Assemblymember Francesca Hong (D) has advocated for a statewide data center moratorium. Janesville city officials are also pushing for statewide legislation requiring data centers to cover 100% of their infrastructure costs.
Separately, a director of data center development for an Appleton-based construction firm, speaking in Janesville, stated that the data center industry needs to improve transparency and communication with affected communities, as reported by GazetteXtra.
Dorrance Township, Pennsylvania Zoning Hearing on Data Center Challenge Continued to May
The Dorrance Township zoning hearing board held a standing-room-only hearing on a substantive validity challenge filed by Brewster Land Company LLC, which owns a 155-acre parcel at South Main and Yeager Roads, according to Times Leader and Fox 56. The company argues that the township's 2007 zoning ordinance, amended in September 2025, unlawfully excluded data centers by failing to include provisions, definitions, or a clear development path for such facilities.
Expert witnesses for Brewster, including planning consultant Erik Hetzel and civil engineer Justin Moceri of Kimley-Horn, testified that the ordinance did not reasonably accommodate data centers and that the industrial zone where data centers are now permitted has limited developable land. Approximately 100 residents attended, with several expressing skepticism about the exclusion claim, noting the ordinance predates the prevalence of data centers.
The hearing is the first step in a two-part process:
- The board must first determine whether the zoning ordinance unlawfully excluded data centers
- If upheld, a subsequent decision would address site-specific relief for six data center buildings on Brewster's parcel
- If denied, Brewster could appeal to the Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas
The board postponed its decision until May 6.
