Blindsided by a Billion: Amazon's Data Center Project Leaves Gilroy Residents Reeling
A $2 billion data center is under construction in Gilroy, California. At 56 acres and 438,500 square feet, it's a massive project that has blindsided many residents who found out about it by accident.
The project was publicly available in official records for years, but it wasn't until bulldozers arrived on the scene that people began to take notice. The data center is part of Amazon Web Services and will provide power-hungry backup systems, including 25 emergency diesel generators rated at 2.5 megawatts each.
Gilroy officials are projecting around $40 million in new city revenue over the first decade from property taxes and utility user tax on electricity. However, this has raised questions about land, power, water, and whether small cities can handle such large-scale projects.
The project's approval process was technically legal, but many residents feel that they were not adequately informed or involved in the decision-making process. The city held a public open house once the questions kept piling up, but some argue that it should have been done earlier.