Your Voice: Lawrenceburg utility worker offers insight on proposed data center
Residents in Lawrenceburg, Tennessee are raising concerns over a proposed 5-megawatt cloud storage data center, citing a lack of transparency from city leaders. Key issues include the project's water usage, potential impacts on utility costs, and the process by which a rezoning ordinance was passed without initial public mention of a data center. The city mayor has reportedly cancelled multiple interviews regarding the project.
Residents of Lawrenceburg, Tennessee, are expressing significant concerns and demanding transparency from city leaders regarding a proposed 5-megawatt cloud storage data center. The project involves a 60,000 square-foot facility, and a rezoning ordinance was already passed several months ago, changing land on Flatwoods Road from residential to light industrial. Residents like Kolby Willis and Elle McCann criticize the perceived secrecy surrounding the data center, noting that other local developments, such as an Aldi or Waffle House, received extensive public communication, while the data center's initial rezoning notice in the Lawrence County Advocate in December did not even mention the phrase "data center".
Concerns among the 11,000-person city's residents primarily revolve around the data center's potential environmental impact, especially its daily water usage, given that many in the area rely on well water. Mayor Blake Lay's office stated the facility's closed-loop system would use 10,000 to 15,000 gallons per day, while Lawrenceburg Utility Systems claims capacity to treat up to 9 million gallons daily. Cameron McCanless, Director of External Relations for Lawrenceburg Utility Systems, confirmed the utility has available capacity but acknowledged resident concerns about potential impacts on power and water costs for existing customers. Mayor Lay has reportedly cancelled multiple scheduled interviews to discuss the project with reporters.