Data Center Revolt Tour Stops in Brigham City, Utah
A national Data Center Revolt bus tour stopped in Brigham City to support public opposition to the proposed Stratos data center in Hansel Valley, Box Elder County. The project remains in pre-development, with studies underway, three lawsuits pending, and a county-approved 180-day moratorium on new data centers. Project executive Paul Palandjian said the development is moving forward despite backlash and threats of violence linked to misinformation.
The Data Center Revolt tour, organized by Humans First, visited Brigham City as opposition grows to the proposed Stratos AI-focused hyperscale data center in Hansel Valley. Humans First senior adviser Kylie Kremer and Texas director Cathy Latham called for greater public input, transparency and guardrails around AI-related development, while emphasizing that the group is not opposed to technology or data centers generally.
The project, led in part by O'Leary Digital CEO Paul Palandjian and associated with Kevin O'Leary, remains in the study and pre-development phase. Engineering, environmental, economic-impact and water-related work is underway, while three lawsuits remain pending, including a challenge by the Box Elder Accountability Referendum group after the county attorney rejected its request for a public vote. Box Elder County commissioners also approved a 180-day moratorium on new data centers in June.
Palandjian said the project is continuing and that local officials, ranchers and others connected to it have received threats of violence amid misinformation. The proposed facility could ultimately generate up to 9 gigawatts and use less than 900,000 gallons of water per day on average after recycling, intensifying concerns about Utah's power grid, water resources and the broader expansion of AI data centers.