‘We do not need these’: Dozens speak out against data centers in Sedgwick County

Hundreds of Sedgwick County residents – many in neon yellow “No Data Center” shirts – showed up at the county’s listening town hall Thursday evening.

Residents spoke out against the data centers for a variety of reasons: energy costs; soil, water, and air pollution; excessive water use; damage to infrastructure; noise and more.

“I’ve learned to distinguish a need from a want, and I can tell you, we do not need these data centers,” Hollie Martin, an Andale City Council member, said. “This is about survival, and our way of life.”

Sedgwick County is in the middle of a temporay moratorium on data centers.

The moratorium would allow the county time to craft policy and regulations about possibly bringing the centers into the county. It’s set to expire on June 11, but commissioners signaled it could last longer than that.

“We’re going to take our time to do this right,” Commissioner Jim Howell said.

And although the county said the planning department didn’t have any applications for data centers, many residents in the western part of the county fear technology companies are buying land nearby for that purpose.

Those residents showed out in force Thursday night, urging commissioners to either not allow the centers into the county or to create strict regulations for them.

“Take your time,” Colwich resident Mike Betzen said. “Let’s do it right, because this is the next 20 years to set the stage forward,”

Some residents suggested having a public vote on whether to allow data centers in Sedgwick County.

“We are people who care about what happens in our county and in our city,” Wichita resident Josie Bahr said. “We are people who vote. I think you should put this to a vote for people who live in Sedgwick County.”

More than 50 people spoke during the listening session. Five spoke in favor of data centers.

At one point, a resident asked people who were in favor of data centers to raise their hands. Only one shot up.

The resident who raised his hand, Jeremy Wheeler, said data centers are necessary to meet the demands of technology.

The crowd booed.

“If you use modern banking, cell phone, social media, internet, streaming, anything, email, text messaging, remote work, supply chain, emergency services, utilities, data services, healthcare, electronic data, give them all up.” Wheeler said. “Because they wouldn’t exist without data centers.”

Sedgwick County will host another data center town hall at 4:30 p.m. March 31 at the Sedgwick County Extension Center. The town hall will have a presentation from the planning department about data centers.

“How you decide to handle these data centers will have a profound effect on what our state looks like moving forward,” Andale resident Jordan Ungles said. “Once Pandora’s box is opened, there will be no going back.

“You’ll either have to explain for the remainder of your life that you completely changed the face of Sedgwick County, Kansas for the better, or that you’re responsible for the complete breakdown of everything that we will do.”