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 and their impacts extensively in the ongoing series, Data, Dollars and Demand. Share your story idea with Isabella.
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As data center proposals continue to pop up in the Kansas City metro, so do community petitions pushing back on the massive developments.
Last week, Edgerton, Kansas, tabled a hyperscale data center proposal following pushback from the community, and Leavenworth County, Kansas, passed a three-month pause on developments.
On Monday, Tonganoxie residents submitted a petition for an 18-month moratorium to the city council.
"We really want to slow this mega data center down," said resident Rebecca Davis.
Across the small city of Tonganoxie, which is home to nearly 6,500 residents, you'll find signs opposing a recent data center development proposal. Project BlueStem, developed by Cloverleaf Infrastructure, would go on 1,000 acres of the former Tailgate Ranch in south Tonganoxie.
But as more communities push back against data center development, experts in Kansas City warn it could significantly slow down technology.
"We are reliant so heavily on what is produced in these facilities," said Kara Lowe, president and CEO of the KC Tech Council. "The collection of these decisions being made could slow down global competitiveness for the United States. This is the backbone of tech infrastructure."
AI is everywhere you look in 2026, which is pushing the need for bigger data centers across the country.
"Consumers and companies are alike demanding and needing the additional infrastructure to power the digital economy," Lowe said. "A lot of times we're using AI with maybe not even understanding that we're using AI."
But after learning about the millions of gallons of water and millions of watts of energy needed to power hyperscale data centers daily, neighbors across the metro are pushing back.
"We just want to keep an eye on these data centers," Davis said. "They're popping up so quickly in the state of Kansas."
Davis and other Tonganoxie neighbors gathered hundreds of signatures on their petition for a moratorium after Cloverleaf proposed a nearly 1,000-acre data center.
"We moved here because we want our slow, country lifestyle," Davis said. "We want clean air, clean water. We don't want this 1,000-acre mega data center."
Tonganoxie is not the first small town to push back against a data center. Many communities on both sides of the state line have voiced strong opposition to the massive institutions.
“There's constantly going to be understandable and good questions to be asked, but to stop entirely feels like a greater risk than to not be afraid to get into the nuance a little bit," Lowe said.
Lowe sees both sides of the data center debate but warns against moratoriums for the sake of digital infrastructure.
"I think it's a misstep. To slow down development across a lot of parts of the country isn't good for the outcome writ large of this new wave of innovation that we have," Lowe said. "That doesn't mean every project deserves to see the light of day. Let's take the time to consider [projects] thoroughly and ask good, hard questions.
That is the right of our community to do that."
Neighbors in some communities aren't adamantly opposed to economic development or even data center proposals, but they are concerned about the unknown long-term impacts.
"A computer used to take up the size of a large room, and now I have a computer on my wrist," Davis said. "I just don't feel like we should be the guinea pigs for data centers."
But the big question remains: If not here, then where?
"The projects will need to go somewhere, and that's because our industry will suffer if we don't have it," Lowe said.
Davis said she's pushing back for future generations.
"Ultimately, this is what we're handing to our grandkids," Davis said. "This will forever alter that land, that pristine, beautiful land."
The Tonganoxie City Council received the petition on Monday night, and more information about the next steps is expected in the coming weeks.
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