Developer sues Kings Mountain over alleged trespassing on data center property

An artificial intelligence data center developer, HB2K, is suing the City of Kings Mountain, North Carolina, alleging trespassing and an attempt to unlawfully take its property. HB2K, a Miami-based limited liability corporation, owns approximately 80 acres near I-85 and the Kings Mountain Energy Center. The lawsuit, filed last week, states that the property is approved for a 150 to 300-megawatt AI data center campus. The developer claims the city is "attempting to take a portion of the property without due process of law and without just compensation." The dispute centers on public utilities infrastructure that HB2K alleges is unlawfully placed on its land. The developer, who declined an interview but communicated through its attorney, is seeking the removal of these utilities in the lawsuit. Kings Mountain is currently observing a six-month moratorium on new data center projects, and it remains unclear whether this specific data center falls under its scope. Queen City News reached out to Kings Mountain officials for comment but received no response. The report also briefly noted a Redfin-Ipsos survey indicating that nearly half of Americans oppose data center construction near their homes, with 47% not wanting such centers in their neighborhoods.