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The Washington County Commissioners signed a NDA re: a data center in Waterford Township. I did not sign an NDA so I am going to share some information as well as my opinions, concerns and questions.
Hashworks Powered Land Waterford LLC has assembled 449 acres of former farmland from two owners: Douglas McCutcheon (Waterford Township Trustee) and Eric Bauerbach. Mr. McCutcheon's 275.1 acres were purchased for $20,000,000 while Mr. Bauerbach's 173.9 acres sold for $8,796,760. Another parcel of land has been purchased by Hashworks for $1,113,500.00. These prices are certainly not what farmland is normally worth so the building of a data center appears to be moving forward despite concerns of the public. The local office address for Hashworks Powered Land Waterford LLC is given as 465 Clark Hill Road, Waterford, Oh. 45786.
Cipher Digital appears to be linked to the Waterford Data Centers. These projects are primarily built as hyperscale facilities - for major AI and high performance computing HPC tenants including Amazon Web Services (AWS), Google and Fluidstack.
If a data center is going to be built I expect our County Commissioners to do their due diligence and ensure that residents of this county and especially of Waterford Township are an integral part of any negotiations with the owner of the Data Center. We need to ensure there are long-term benefits for our county through the use of a legally binding Public Benefits Agreement (AKA Community Benefits Agreement). We need to maximize community benefits and ensure local people aren't left holding the bag while data center developers and AI companies reap all the benefits.
Questions I have include: Will sales tax be charged and paid on all materials used to construct a data center? How big is this proposed
project: number and size of buildings and total square footage?
Data Centers are heavy users of water. How much water will be used and will any residents with wells be adversely impacted? What steps will be taken to provide water security? Will my cost and access to clean and safe water be adversely affected by this data center?
Data Centers require massive amounts of power - will new transmission lines, substations etc. be required and who pays? Will our electric rates increase as a result of the data center?
Data Centers run 24/7 and create never-ending noise, light and air pollution — what mitigation solutions will be offered?
How will local roads be maintained when subjected to increased traffic by heavy machinery and vehicles and who will be responsible for paying for maintenance and repairs?
How many construction jobs will be created and for how long? Which roles will be hired locally (electricians, fiber technicians, etc.?) Will the developer offer paid apprenticeships and/or partner with local colleges to invest in a strong local workforce pipeline? Will there be provisions to "buy local" for suppliers and contractors.
There are many other questions that need to be answered whenever the developers/owners finally decide to meet with the public.