'We're not going to stop': Osawatomie data center opponents go door to door to gather signatures for petition
Community members in Osawatomie, Kansas, are actively opposing a proposed data center project by Alcove Development. They are collecting signatures for a petition to either prohibit the data center through an ordinance or put it to a voter ballot question. Residents raised environmental and community impact concerns at a recent city council meeting.
Residents of Osawatomie, Kansas, are actively mobilizing against a proposed large-scale data center project by Alcove Development. The opposition emerged following the city's announcement of the project, dubbed Project Catalyst.
A city council meeting on May 28 saw numerous residents voice environmental concerns and worries about the data center's impact on their community. In response, opponents, led by Troy Harp, have launched a petition drive. The petition seeks to compel the city to either enact an ordinance prohibiting high-impact data centers or allow the matter to be decided by a public vote via a ballot question.
Harp stated that the group needs 187 signatures, representing 40% of the last election's voters, but believes they have the support of at least a thousand residents. Volunteers have been going door-to-door and setting up at John Brown Memorial Park to collect signatures, vowing to continue their efforts until they gather as many as possible.