RDA receives update on Flint Hills Digital Campus during monthly meeting following submission of protest petition earlier in the week
Emporia Neighbors United submitted a petition with 1,400 signatures opposing the proposed Flint Hills Digital Campus. The Emporia City Commission is scheduled to review and potentially approve rezoning, a Digital Infrastructure Overlay, and large volume water/wastewater policies related to the project. City leadership stated the petition will not alter the current process, which is proceeding as planned.
Emporia, Kansas – The Regional Development Association of East Central Kansas (RDA) received an update on the proposed Flint Hills Digital Campus following the submission of a protest petition earlier in the week. City Manager Trey Cocking informed the RDA Board of Directors that the petition, filed by Emporia Neighbors United with 1,400 signatures, will not currently alter the city's process for the project.
The Emporia City Commission is set to review five key items related to the digital campus at a rescheduled meeting on July 22. These items include the establishment of a Digital Infrastructure Overlay, rezoning 11 tracts of land for a potential data center, applying the DIO to those tracts, and policies for large volume water and wastewater use. If these are approved, the next step would involve identifying an end user and a development agreement to clarify details like job creation and environmental impacts.
Emporia Neighbors United's petition aims to place the data center question on the November 3 ballot or halt the project outright. Lyon County legal counsel Molly Priest and the Lyon County Clerk’s Office are currently reviewing the petition's validity. Despite the public opposition, City Manager Cocking affirmed that the review will not disrupt the ongoing process.
The digital campus has been a focal point of debate, with many residents speaking against it at public meetings. RDA and city leadership acknowledge the opposition but also report support for the project's fact-finding phase, though supporters have been less vocal publicly. The July 22 city commission meeting was rescheduled to allow commissioners to attend a Kansas Municipal Utilities class on data centers.