BizNow published an article on June 29th that recaps a discussion on data center development held during Bisnow’s Data Center Investment Conference & Expo in Ohio earlier in June. The article, titled “Big Tech Says Data Centers Must Change To Survive Local Opposition,” delves into how executives with companies utilizing data centers and how developers and the end users must address concerns over the data centers and their impact on communities.

From the article:

But this line of thinking is a mistake, one the industry continues believing at its own peril, Microsoft and Oracle executives said at Bisnow’s Data Center Investment Conference & Expo in Ohio this month. 

While some opponents of data center projects exaggerate their environmental impacts and some of the backlash may reflect broader anxiety about AI rather than a specific proposed project, the industry’s critics aren’t wrong to voice concerns, said Tyler Riegle, senior program manager for land development at Microsoft.

Cooling systems and generators often make noise that can be disruptive. AI campuses bring large-scale industrial buildings and transmission infrastructure to areas where nothing of that kind existed previously. They use massive amounts of power and, in certain cases, water. 

Rather than instinctively dismissing opponents as misinformed NIMBYs, the industry needs to invest in redesigning data centers and changing development practices to proactively address local concerns, Riegle said. 

Please note that this article doesn’t directly reflect the conditions for the former steel plant in Conshohocken, as that was an existing industrial property, and plans to maintain the facades of the existing buildings that have been in place for decades. However, there are similarities in concerns over the environmental impact, noise, etc.

You can read the full article here.

Photo – (©)Petrovich9 from Getty Images Signature via Canva