Residents Raise Concerns About Data Centers, WGN Site
Residents of Elk Grove Village voiced concerns at a village board meeting regarding a proposed data center on land previously owned by WGN. Concerns included noise, wildlife impacts, and water usage. Mayor Craig Johnson addressed these issues, explaining the village's strategy to promote data center development over trucking facilities for the site.
Residents of Elk Grove Village expressed significant concerns about a proposed data center development on a site currently owned by Nexstar/WGN during a recent village board meeting. Residents, including Martinique Pozniak, specifically cited potential issues with continuous low-frequency noise, environmental impacts on wildlife, and water usage. Pozniak played a recording of background noise she claimed was from Microsoft's nearby Oakton Street data center, urging the village to commission studies on these effects.
Mayor Craig Johnson, accompanied by a Journal reporter, later visited both the Microsoft campus and the T5 Data Center, reporting minimal operational noise. Johnson addressed the residents' concerns, stating that modern data centers employ closed-loop recirculating systems for water, reducing reliance on municipal supplies, and clarified that the village's facilities are not the massive AI hubs seen elsewhere. Trustee Jeff Franke also noted existing hum from ComEd power lines.
The mayor explained that the village is steering development on the Rohlwing Road property towards a data center to prevent a previously opposed trucking and logistics operation that would have brought up to 850 trucks daily. While some residents suggested residential housing, Johnson indicated that data center developers offer superior land prices. Elk Grove Village is a significant data center market, currently hosting 20 operational facilities with several more underway, and the mayor warned that inaction could lead to Cook County or Schaumburg overseeing the site's development.