Conversations about the data center that could take up nearly 2,000 acres of land in Port Washington are still happening. TMJ4 has heard concerns from residents for months.
TMJ4’s Megan Lee sat down with Mayor Ted Neitzke to get an update on the project and address some resident concerns.
Lee asked, “Why weren't there dialogues as soon as Cloverleaf [Infrastructure] came to you guys to talk?”
Neitzke said “That's just not how it works. And we moved as fast as we could, and Cloverleaf was very open to that. And my very first [few] conversations with them was we need to make sure the community sees what’s going on and have input.”
The lack of an organized open discussion about the potential data center coming to Port is a major complaint for residents that Lee has talked to over the past few weeks.
However, Neitzke said he talks to residents daily.
"There's constant open dialogue. I mean we're stakeholders and members of the community. Just because we don't have open dialogue on camera doesn't mean it's not occurring,” Neitzke said.
City leaders have been working with Cloverleaf Infrastructure about a data center development adjacent to I-43 near Lake Drive. The land is currently owned by 40-45 different owners.
"We're going to have technology centered in the north shore in Milwaukee. That wasn't on anyone's bingo card,” Neitzke explained.
Watch: Port Washington mayor updates community on potential data center project
He is excited about the opportunities it could bring to the area.
Pat Morrissey who lives in Port Washington thinks the project is moving along too quickly without resident input.
"If we're sitting at a table and we're talking and we're listening and saying things like ‘Oh I didn't think of it that way.’ Or different perspectives, but we haven't been given a chance to do that,” Morrissey explained.
Over the weeks, she has expressed frustration over the lack of open conversations about the project and the multiple letters she has sent to city leaders.
"I received nothing from the Common Council or the mayor. They did not get back; they did not write anything," Morrissey said.
Lee asked the mayor why he hadn’t responded to her letter.
Neitzke said, "Why didn't Mrs. Morrissey get a response from me? Just one that—I didn't know that I needed to respond to. It was really a suggested idea from her to do for us."
This is a project, he said, that the city gets to write the rules for.
"In meaning that we get to determine the zoning. We get to determine what that area will look like, how it will be landscaped, how it will be vetted," Neitzke said.
Neitzke said they are learning from other cities as data centers start to pop up around Wisconsin.
"We're sending our department heads into those communities to learn from them. So, for instance, our first two will be our police and fire chiefs, who are going to visit and ask, 'What was the impact? What did you have to prep for? Did you need equipment?' so we can be as proactive as possible," Neitzke explained.
Neitzke said he is planning to host a community session at the end of this month to hear from residents.
Here is a link to the city's website about the project.
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