Beale Infrastructure announced Wednesday afternoon its withdrawal of a proposed 300-acre data center in Gardner.
The California-based company, which is also spearheading another data center project in De Soto, decided to scuttle its Gardner application after the city told the company no incentives would be granted, according to a Wednesday press release from the city.
"Based on the City of Gardner communicating that no incentives would be granted for the proposed data center, Beale Infrastructure decided to withdraw its application and will no longer pursue development of the project in Gardner, Kansas," the city stated in the release.
For rural Spring Hill resident Nacole Boan, who lives less than a mile from where the proposed data center would have been built near the northeast corner of 191st Street and South Clare Road, the announcement came as a relief.
"I came out of another meeting — I'm out of town for work right now — to like 173 text messages, my phone was blowing up," Boan said. "I'm ecstatic. I think it shows the power of community. It shows the power of organizing, and I am immensely grateful for the city of Gardner for listening to the people Monday."
The announcement comes just two days after Monday night's Gardner City Council meeting, where about 100 people attended and more than 30 people spoke against the proposal during public comment, including state Sen. Doug Shane, who represents Kansas Senate District 37.
While the city council took no action on the proposal Monday night, it did adjourn into executive session at the end of the meeting "to discuss attorney-client privilege related to the data center," said Mayor Todd Winters.
'They're telling you where they stand'
Shane urged the city council to halt the process, saving the city and Beale Infrastructure time and money doing work on something the community doesn't want.
"I'm quite confident that all of you have spent time looking at this issue, have already spent time looking at mitigation measures," Shane told the city council. "But tonight, our constituents are wearing their hearts on their sleeves, and they're telling you where they stand."
If Beale Infrastructure had not pulled its proposal, then the Gardner Planning Commission would've considered the measure later this month, which would've then led to a possible city council vote in June.
One of the residents in attendance Monday night, Kyle Eisenbarger, said he's relieved Beale pulled the proposal. He lives right across from the site in unincorporated Johnson County.
"It's been a ton of work up to this point, and it just feels great to be able to let off the gas and take a breather," Eisenbarger said.
City officials said they're thankful for the community's engagement.
"The governing body would like to thank community members who engaged in discussions related to the project," Winters said in a press release. "We stand committed to pursuing responsible economic development opportunities for our community."
Beale promised to use less water than other large data centers
The now-withdrawn proposal would've transformed the 300-acre site into a closed-loop, air-cooled data center, with initial plans to bring in 50 full-time employees and expand the staff as the facility grew.
The company also stated on its website that the facility would have generated substantial tax revenue and brought in construction jobs, both of which residents expressed doubt about on Monday.
"Beale Infrastructure is committed to delivering projects that create real tangible value for communities," a Beale spokesperson said Wednesday. "We appreciate the input from the Gardner community and city leaders. We will not be moving forward with the project at this time. We look forward to continuing to grow our investments and community partnerships across other locations in Kansas."
Though Beale said the system wouldn't have consumed as much water as other large data centers — only 15,000 to 20,000 gallons of water per day, compared to other large data centers that use up to 5 million gallons per day, according to the Environmental and Energy Study Institute — residents expressed concern on the harmful effects from pollution, noise and on property values.
"I'm really grateful for kids in the area that will get to continue to experience schooling without the air pollution and the sound and the impacts on their learning," Boan said. "There's just a lot of gratitude in this moment."
While she's thankful Beale withdrew the Gardner proposal, Boan said she's preparing for similar proposals in the region. Beale Infrastructure's proposal outside Gardner is the second time in the past six months a data center was proposed in southern Johnson County, only for the company to withdraw.
De Soto data center still breaking ground
Beale Infrastructure is set to break ground later this month in De Soto on a $3.1 billion data center off Kansas Highway 10, near the Panasonic EV battery plant.
That facility will have four buildings, totaling 1.14 million square feet, with the first building completed by the end of 2027, according to the company.
Another data center developer, Bullock Capital and Colossus Advisors, withdrew an application a couple of months ago for a 316-acre facility at 191st Street and Renner Road in Spring Hill, about 5 miles from the proposed site in Gardner.
"I need to stay plugged in and pay attention to the corridor," Boan said. "I think a lot of what I've said about the types of communities that companies like Beale are looking at, it's not just this area. The concerns that I've raised are going to be real in a lot of areas in this corridor. I am committed to continuing to look at that."
Similarly, Eisenbarger said he's preparing for more data center proposals to pop up.
"We're hoping that this is the end," Eisenbarger said. "We're also just ready to help anyone who needs help as well. It's a very stressful situation, and we learned a lot along the way."
This story was originally published by the Johnson County Post.
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