KAUKAUNA — At least for now, Kaukauna has not been approached with any proposals for a data center, according to Mayor Tony Penterman.
Penterman made the comment in response to a question posed in the Kaukauna Community News Facebook group that asked if a data center developer was looking to purchase land in Kaukauna.
But Penterman said the council is hopinig to get out in front of the issue.
Following discussions with the Common Council and the Plan Commission, Penterman says city staff are proposing an update to the municipal code that would require an extra layer of review if a data center should want to build in Kaukauna’s Industrial District.
Those additional restrictions could include electric and water usage.
That would give the city the ability to thoroughly vet any requests to ensure that there are no negative impacts to the community, Penterman said.
There will be a public hearing at the common council meeting on Tuesday, Jan. 20, at 7 p.m. to hear from residents who wish to speak for or against the amendment to the ordinance.
Kaukauna Community News has requested a copy of the proposed ordinance amendment and will share it as soon as it becomes available.
This past Monday, data center developer Cloverleaf said it had pulled its proposal for Greenleaf outside of Wrightstown following community backlash.
Greenleaf is just one of many communities throughout the state and country grappling with the rapid expansion of date centers fueled by the the potential economic windfall of artificial intelligence.
But the windfall comes at a price.
Data centers are expanding rapidly across the country as demand for AI and cloud computing booms, but residents have been pushing back.
Data Centers typically use vast amounts of electricity as well as water for cooling. However, the centers employ relatively few workers considering the size of the investment.
