While technically a data center could go on a property like this, it’s not the highest and best use for that property,” Osborne said. “A data center could potentially go there, [but] I don’t anticipate a data center ever going there primarily because we’re trying to put the highest and best use for properties.”
Stephen Sanders, one of the organizers of the petition, spoke to the council and encouraged members to listen to their humanity.
“If you approve this, tomorrow morning, I believe LEDA will take a permit out for a data center,” Sanders said.
Sanders also said if the council does approve a data center, the citizens will “have to recall you.” His statement was met with applause and cheers from the crowd.
Speaking with The Tribune, Osborne said he did not know about the timeline of the petition or when it was going to get turned in. The land annexed is not being marketed to data centers, he said, and they submitted the request to the council before Tuesday. However, LEDA owns the 377 acres around the property, and is allowed to have utilities go through the site. The annex brought the land into city limits so LEDA can use the city’s utility services.
“We’re not trying to market this property to data centers. We’re trying to market it to manufacturers that need rail service,” Osborne told The Tribune. “I don’t understand all the major concerns being presented because that’s not our intention. Our intention is to bring the manufacturer here because that’s the highest and best use of it.”
…
Brayden Rose, an outgoing council member, said the city can help with some resources that people are concerned about, such as providing water. He reiterated that a data center would not be going up in that location.
“We’ve already come up here and said a data center is not going here,” Rose told the crowd, who began talking back to him.
Sanders said the annexation approvals do not stop the purpose of their petition since it is aimed at the possible hyperscale data center. He said the meeting Tuesday was an opportunity for people to see how LEDA and city leaders operate.
“We are still on the right path,” Sanders said. “We will be able to stop those big massive hyper-scale projects, and that is a blessing.”
…
On Tuesday night, hours after the council meeting ended, a local news station revealed a partnership between LEDA and CORVA, a data center company. The deal was approved last month to put a small data center in East Lubbock. The plan for “Project Infrared” is for a 50,000-square-foot inference data center within city limits. Osborne confirmed it is not connected to the zoning cases debated Tuesday.
deleted by creator