Edgerton neighbors launch petition to have more say in data center development decisions

KSHB 41 reporter Isabella Ledonne reports on stories in Overland Park, Johnson County and topics about government accountability. She's been reporting on data centers in the KC metro extensively, including the recent developments in Johnson County. Share your story idea with Isabella.

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A small town in Kansas is fighting back against a data center development, launching a petition and a grassroots campaign to raise money for an attorney.

Edgerton recently denied a Dubai-based company's application for a data center, but that decision is up for appeal this week.

DAMAC's proposal for a data center has had a roller coaster of a journey. The company owns the building and land for the proposed site, which is currently zoned for a data center. It was originally tabled by the Edgerton Planning Commission and later denied after significant community pushback.

People in the community have expressed that they don't want a data center as their neighbor, but they have a bigger issue with not having a say in major developments.

Neighbor Carrie Schmidt spent her Sunday searching for signatures for a petition regarding a potential data center in Edgerton.

Brian Luton

"We are trying everything we can," Schmidt said. "What happens in Edgerton does not stay in Edgerton. It affects so many other people."

But the petition isn't to completely block data center development. It's to put the proposals up to a public vote in the small town of about 2,000 people.

"You can be for data centers, you can be against data centers, and you can still sign the petition," Schmidt said. "It's just to get it on the ballot for the citizens of Edgerton to decide whether or not they want to have a data center in their town."

Edgerton is one of several small towns in the Kansas City metro area that have expressed feeling a lack of transparency from city leaders on the data center development process.

Neighbor Kimberly Twente shared many of her concerns about data centers, such as water usage, heat production and disruption of the environment.

Brian Luton

"That's important to people in small towns. The wildlife is a big part of who we are and why we moved to small towns," Twente said. "All of this is about citizens having a choice."

On top of the petition, Edgerton neighbors launched a nonprofit, Public Trust Collective, to raise money with T-shirts and apparel to hire a lawyer.

"The attorney is to fight for transparent government but also to fight to prevent data centers from coming in," Twente said. "We're fighting for Edgerton, but we're also fighting for vulnerable communities everywhere."

The City of Edgerton launched a landing page for the DAMAC data center proposal to address some of the common concerns. According to the website, DAMAC has not asked for any tax abatements. The project isn't expected to contaminate water or raise electric bills.

Still, neighbors are skeptical of the unknown long-term impacts.

"We can have data centers, but we need to do it responsibly," Schmidt said. "That's all it is, to give the citizens their voice."

DAMAC is expected to appeal to city council regarding its data center proposal at a meeting on Thursday, July 16. The data center final site plan is scheduled for review at the planning commission's meeting in August.

DAMAC has not responded to KSHB 41 News' multiple requests for comments or answers on the project.

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