CALEDONIA, Wis. — Residents packed the Caledonia Village Hall to voice concerns and ask questions about plans for a Microsoft data center near the Milwaukee-Racine County line.
Developers are calling it 'Project Nova.'
PREVIOUS COVERAGE | EXCLUSIVE: Microsoft behind newly proposed Caledonia data center
The village held a neighborhood information meeting on Wednesday regarding a request for a Land Use Map Amendment and Rezone on approximately 244 acres of land near Douglas Avenue and Botting Road. Those changes would need to be approved by the Village of Caledonia for the development of the data center.
The farmland, wildlife and quietness drew Cindy Tapp to move to Caledonia a few years back.
"We just decided we need to come up here and find some peace," Tapp said.
Her home's new next-door neighbor could soon be Microsoft's third data center.
"Does anybody want 250 acres covered in asphalt, big old data center buildings with parking lot lighting cooling systems that hum in your backyard? Of course not, I'm horrified," Tapp said.
Watch: Caledonia residents bring concerns directly to developers behind data center plans
She's part of a growing group of residents against the proposal, asking questions to those spearheading the project as well as elected officials about why this is needed.
"I don't trust what they're throwing at us," Tapp said.
Microsoft builds their data centers in threes for geo-redundancy in case of disaster or site failure. This data center would be used for data processing and storage for the Microsoft Cloud.
Representatives for Microsoft listened to feedback while talking about the benefits for local communities like adding to the tax base and job opportunities.
In a statement, they also addressed some environmental concerns.
"When Microsoft joins a community, we make a pledge: to contribute to a sustainable future, advance prosperity and well-being, and operate responsibly as a good neighbor," read the statement.
But residents like Kathi Bogucki aren't buying all of it.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE | Caledonia residents oppose Microsoft data center during village meeting
"It's just more exasperating than it was even before I could do it," Bogucki said.
She feels like this is already a done deal, despite representatives insisting these are the early stages of the process.
"It feels like we don't have any power. And that's ridiculous, because we're the people that live here," Bogucki said.
Representatives from Microsoft declined to comment, providing this statement instead.
Both Kathi and Cindy hope by speaking out, they can convince their local leaders not to approve land usage changes and rezoning for the 244 acres.
PREVIOUS COVERAGE | What Caledonia neighbors really think about Microsoft moving in as new data center proposed
"It's just very peaceful. It's a very nice place to live and just exist. And we'd sort of like to keep doing that in peace," Bogucki said.
The plan commission in Caledonia will consider land changes as well as rezoning for this project. A decision could come as soon as Monday, September 29 at 6:00 p.m. where a public hearing on the proposal will also take place. The village board will also need to approve of those changes.
"This story was reported on-air by Mike Beiermeister and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy."
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