MASON, Mich. (Mid Michigan Gazette) — More than 100 people filled the Sycamore Room at City Hall in Mason on Monday night during the city council meeting to weigh in and voice their concerns with proposed Ordinance 266.
The initial efforts were posted to the City of Mason’s social media on Nov. 19 and are “designed to set clear standards for data centers and other advanced technology uses in Mason.” The amended proposal outlines requirements, including berm heights, building setbacks, fencing around the building, and more.
Dozens of people took part in the public comment portion of the meeting, which lasted more than two hours. A majority of those who spoke are concerned with the fear of increased electrical rates, contaminated waters, and what some said is a lack of transparency, which they say would come from data centers.
Pam Oliver, who has lived in Mason for more than 35 years, echoed these fears.
“The environmental repercussions are serious, and we need to think of the health of our children and grandchildren,” she said. “These data centers will impact our electricity, causing a rise in our electric bills, and will also cause increased traffic, light, and noise pollution. The citizens of this community, including those affected within the Mason zip code, must have a voice.”
Jessica Tramontana works at Consumers Energy and stated during public comment that the City of Mason had asked the group to come to the meeting to talk about rates and supply.
“In the instance that a data center were to come to Consumers’ territory, that it would not increase rates for our customers, and we have enough energy supply,” Tramontana said.
City Manager Deborah Stuart said she appreciates the overwhelming support for the community of Mason and said that it has been a rough couple of months in the area due to the controversial nature of the initiative. Stuart added that she and her staff have researched these data center instances extensively in other areas and wanted to reiterate and clarify some things for those in attendance
“No staff member or councilmember has signed an NDA; [nondisclosure agreement] that’s just not true. No end user has been defined; that’s just not true. There is no eminent domain on the part of the city; property owners will make the choice if they want to sell. We can’t control that. If a property owner wants to sell their property, we have no oversight over that,” Stuart said.
But Stuart added that Ordinance 266 is aimed at setting requirements for data centers, should any come to the City of Mason.
During further discussion, Mayor Pro Tem Leon Clark moved to table the ordinance, create a temporary moratorium, and create a citizen-advisory commission.
After a contentious back-and-forth between the city council and the mayor, a vote was taken, with a vote of 4-3 in favor of yes. Ordinance 266 was tabled, a 90-day moratorium is in the works to be implemented, and a citizen-advisory commission is also set to be in the works.
