Data center debate: Family TURNS DOWN $26 million to keep farmland

Ida Hudson and her family in Mason County, Kentucky, rejected a $26 million offer from an unnamed AI company to purchase approximately 600 acres of their 1,200-acre farmland. The family expressed concerns about losing their land, potential water scarcity, and pollution if a data center were built. Land in Mason County is valued at about $6,000 per acre, making the offer roughly ten times the market rate. Dozens of other landowners in the area have also been approached by a major AI company regarding land purchases for data center development. Despite the Huddleston family's refusal, the company revised its plans to use land from other owners who agreed to sell, indicating the data center project is still likely to proceed in Mason County. The family stated they are not "stupid farmers" and understand the implications of disappearing land, water, and potential environmental harm.