Oregon residents push charter amendment to limit data center size
Residents in Oregon, Ohio, are pushing for a charter amendment to limit the size of data centers to 25 megawatts and restrict their placement to brownfield sites. This initiative, driven by concerns over quality of life, environmental impacts, noise, light pollution, and electricity rates, involves collecting voter signatures by an August 5th deadline. A parallel statewide petition to restrict data centers is also underway in Ohio.
Residents in Oregon, Ohio, are actively campaigning to amend the city's charter to control the development of large-scale data centers. The initiative seeks to limit new data centers to a maximum size of 25 megawatts and mandate their construction on brownfield industrial sites, rather than greenfield areas.
Petition organizer James Davis and resident Travis Colette, a homeowner, expressed concerns that uncontrolled data center growth could negatively impact the community's quality of life. They cited potential issues with the environment, noise, light pollution, and increased electricity rates for residents, emphasizing that local taxpayers should not bear the cost of higher utility bills for large corporations.
Organizers are currently collecting voter signatures for the proposed charter amendment, facing a deadline of August 5th. In addition to this local effort, a separate statewide petition is also underway in Ohio, aiming to introduce similar restrictions on data center development across the state.