Massive data center project in Yorkville prompts lawsuit from neighbors

Residents in Yorkville, Illinois, have initiated a lawsuit to block the construction of a proposed data center that would be located directly across from their homes and businesses. Chuck Casper, a Yorkville resident, whose home is 112 feet from the proposed site, is among several residents involved in the legal action. The lawsuit alleges that the City of Yorkville improperly rezoned over 1,000 acres of land from residential to industrial, facilitating the data center project with minimal public notice. While the Yorkville City Administrator stated the city had not yet received the lawsuit and thus could not comment on it, he confirmed that the City Council had approved the data center to be built by Pioneer Development LLC. The administrator did not comment on the adequacy of public notice for earlier meetings but indicated public meetings were held. Dorothy Flisk, who owns Legacy River Equestrian Center near the proposed site, expressed concerns that the noise from 20 years of construction and the operational noise from potentially 14 data center buildings would render her business unviable, as horses are intolerant of high noise levels. She also voiced concern that the proposed data center could be one of the largest in the world, excluding China, and believes such a facility belongs along a highway, not in a residential backyard.