Mason County residents faced with buyout as AI data center campus goes up
Construction of a GigaScale AI data center campus in Mason County, West Virginia, is causing significant issues for nearby residents, including noise, tremors, flooding, and property damage. The company is offering buyouts, but residents feel coerced, and a legislative effort to give local communities more input on such projects was rejected by state lawmakers.
Construction of a hyperscale AI data center campus by GigaScale is fully underway in Mason County, West Virginia, just outside Point Pleasant. Residents in the small, mostly retired community report significant impacts from the development, including incessant noise, tremors, flooding, and property damage, stating they received little to no warning before construction began.
GigaScale has initiated a buyout program for neighboring properties, but many residents, some in their 80s, feel they are being pushed out of their homes of decades and are left with no choice but to sell, despite reservations. The company has stated its willingness to pay for property damage, though residents express a need for proof of causation.
During the past legislative session, West Virginia lawmakers voted down efforts to provide local communities with input on future data center projects. Phase one of the campus is not expected to be completed until 2028, with further expansion plans anticipated.