Liberty welcomes AI data center with $200 million in tax breaks. Here's what we know

The city of Liberty, Missouri, has announced a $1.4 billion AI data center project by Los Angeles-based Metrobloks, which will receive $202.7 million in tax abatements over 25 years and involves $1.4 billion in bonds. Liberty Mayor Greg Canuteson expressed that this is a foundational step for the city's high-tech economy, with Metrobloks CEO Ernest Popescu calling Liberty a "rising digital economy and innovation hub." The project is expected to create 30 jobs and features a "very low water use design and low impact operations. In nearby Independence, however, a $6 billion data center project by Nebius faces significant opposition. Independence City Council had approved a 90% tax break for Nebius over 20 years, but three residents have sued the city after their petition to allow voters to decide on the project was denied. The future of this development now rests with a Jackson County judge, who is expected to rule this week, while residents continue collecting signatures. Broader concerns about data centers' environmental impact, particularly their substantial electricity and water consumption, are central to the opposition. This sentiment is also relevant to three other proposed data centers in Wyandotte County, which, if built, would necessitate the Board of Public Utilities to nearly triple its current electricity generation capacity.