TEMPLE, Texas (KXXV) — As the Temple Data Center continues and enter into construction, some residents are pushing for project information to be made public. As the projects enters early phases of construction, Rowan is investing in the community through nonprofits and the family farm next door.
What you need to know:
- Rowan announced community partnerships with local organization and a 15- year sponsorship for The Robinson Family Farm.
- The center started construction in January, but broke ground in March.
- Neighbors are wanting transparency in utility agreements to confirm how much water and energy the data center will use.
- Rowan is proposing a third data center site on industrial land in Temple with the same $700 million investment.
- Rowan is inviting residents to address them with concerns regarding the project.
Watch the story here:
BROADCAST TRANSCRIPT:
The Rowan Data Center is being built and investing in community organizations including a local family farm, but some neighbors are still concerned about the impact the data center will have.
Neighbors, like Joe Royer, are still pushing for transparency as the data center develop. He said he wants answers from both local leaders and rowan.
"They're making a lot of fantastic claims about resources and about how low the water usage is going to be. And if these things they're saying are true, then why aren't they backing it up with data, right? If they have nothing to hide, then why are they hiding?" Royer said.
Neighboring the center is The Robinson Family Farm. It is one of many local organizations getting financial support from rowan as they continue construction.
Co-owner Helen Robinson told 25 News she was skeptical of the center at first like many residents.
“We had those initial reactions, oh my gosh, how's this gonna impact water and electrical and our farm, um, and so there had been different conversations and it really was the beginning of the year that, uh, or end of last year as well that we really, we found the right people that we needed to speak with and to answer our questions and, um, you know, since then, it's definitely, uh, the tough questions have been answered,” Robinson said.
Nathaniel brown with rowan said they want the dialogue with residents to ensure transparency and be good neighbors.
"It'll start storing everyone's, uh, everyone's data. So, right, that your financial records, uh, your, your medical records, uh, your school curricula, your, uh, Netflix streaming, right? There's any, anytime you connect to the internet, you're using a data center, and, and so this facility will support that and, and support those services that all, all texans and, and everyone around the world, uh, relies on," Brown said.
The construction will be completed between 12-18 months as the company proposes a third center in the area. There is no exact timeline for when they will intake the one-time 1-2 million gallons of water for the closed loop system.
