VOTE

There are no formal data center proposals on Defiance City Council’s desk right now, but
citizens don’t need them to voice concern. In fact, by the time plans are available, it’s often too
late.

Data center developers are good at making things happen behind closed doors, under non-
disclosure agreements, without voter input, or in some cases (as in Saline, Mich.) in direct
contradiction to voters, all in the name of “necessary” progress.

But these data centers aren’t always necessary; basic cloud computing doesn’t require the
massive expansion we’re seeing. The scramble to build new centers is almost exclusively to fuel
AI speculation. It could be the next industrial revolution, or it could also be the next housing
bubble that will burst, leaving average Americans holding the bag.

I grew up near the steel mills in Cleveland. I remember when the promise of an economic boom
was enough to justify the chronic sinus infections and cancer diagnoses the pollution caused.
Then the industry fell apart and we were left destroyed in its wake.

Countless towns across America are in the same boat; struggling to bounce back from being too
quick to say yes to coal, steel, shopping malls, or now … data centers.

Residents near existing data centers cite noise concerns, new asthma or cardiovascular issues,
and soaring utility bills. Many sites promised hundreds of jobs and revenue that never
materialized once construction ended.

This highly unregulated industry is too unstable to be able to make promises. The state has yet
to settle on tax abatements or wastewater discharge policies. Data center technology is always
changing, and no long-term health impact studies have been conducted. The fact is: there are
far too many unknowns to make a permanent decision on this for Defiance any time soon.

All we know is thus far, the data center industry has proven predatory, and citizens can call on
city council now to protect us from it. You don’t need site plans to ask that any future ones be
required to submit independent third-party impact studies. We don’t need to be voting on a
specific project to demand that our representatives refrain from signing nondisclosure
agreements. We can ask for transparency and a voice now, before it’s too late.

I did at city council, and I would encourage other concerned citizens to attend their meetings on
the first, second and fourth Tuesday nights of each month at 7 p.m. to do the same.

Rebecca Rupp
Defiance