Wichita Falls mayoral candidates debate residency, Skybox, Sikes
Wichita Falls mayoral candidates Tim Short and Scott Poenitzsch debated the proposed Skybox Datacenter project and the city’s role in supporting it. Poenitzsch opposes hyperscale data centers and said the project has been delayed, while Short said it could generate tax benefits and that the city cannot stop it.
Wichita Falls Mayor Tim Short and challenger Scott Poenitzsch clashed over the proposed Skybox Datacenter project during a televised mayoral debate. Short said a local nonprofit paid for a flight carrying city officials to Austin to meet with the Electric Reliability Council of Texas about electric power permitting, while denying that Skybox funded or participated in the trip.
Poenitzsch said he opposes hyperscale data centers in Wichita Falls and reported that Skybox representatives had described the project as delayed by at least two or three years. Short defended the development, saying construction in the city’s business park could provide a 20% to 40% tax benefit for homeowners and that Skybox paid for its property without receiving city tax abatements.