<body><div><figure><img src="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?type=thumbnail_580x000&amp;url=1RUfOg_1DwLyhkL00" alt="https://img.particlenews.com/image.php?url=1RUfOg_1DwLyhkL00" width="1920" height="1080" ><figcaption>The community had a mixed reaction to a new $100 billion data center in Paducah, Ky.</figcaption></figure>PADUCAH, Ky. (Heartland News) - A multi-billion dollar data center backed by multiple investors is drawing mixed reactions from Paducah-area residents, with some welcoming the economic opportunity while others raise concerns about potential rising utility rates, noise and water use.Resident Tony Estes said he views the project as bittersweet.“Right now, we all have mixed feelings on what it’s going to do,” Estes said. “We have fear on how it’s going to change the community, how it’s going to change utility rates, but we also have this expectation that it’s going to bring economic boom to the county too.”Estes said he is aware of the possible negative impacts but is focusing on the positive, including potential growth at local schools.“My wife’s a teacher at Ballard County Elementary School and they are talking about how it’s going to change and increase employees, bringing more teachers and students, so I see that aspect,” he said.Teresa Campbell, who has lived in the area for years, said she believes the community needs the development.“It’ll bring workers in, housing industry will have another boost, I think it’ll be a big boost for the economy in that area,” Campbell said.Campbell said she previously worked at the plant the data center is replacing, which was formerly used for uranium enrichment during the Cold War. She said she does not believe the new facility will be more environmentally dangerous than the old one.“Having worked out there, I just don’t feel like it’s that big of an issue,” Campbell said. “People who haven’t worked out there are probably more skeptical than those who have.”Several people said they worry about rising utility rates, increased noise and water usage. None agreed to speak on camera.U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright addressed concerns from those opposed to the project.“Data centers, there’s a big scare campaign,” Wright said. “You don’t have to have a data center everywhere, but if you push that data center out, then it goes somewhere else, and then that power generation goes somewhere else.”For Estes, the debate comes down to a larger question of global competition.“I’m glad that we are keeping up with China and Russia, and you have to do these things to be competitive in the world and for our freedoms,” Estes said. “I just think that it’s a necessary evil.”A portion of the data center is slated to open in 2028. Currently, crews are in the middle of the site cleanup process ahead of development.</div></body>

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PADUCAH, Ky. (Heartland News) - A multi-billion dollar data center backed by multiple investors is drawing mixed reactions from Paducah-area residents, with some welcoming the economic opportunity while others raise concerns about potential rising utility rates, noise and water use. Resident Tony Estes said he views the project as bittersweet.

‘It’s a necessary evil’: Paducah residents react to multi-billion-dollar data center

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PADUCAH, Ky. (Heartland News) - A multi-billion dollar data center backed by multiple investors is drawing mixed reactions from Paducah-area residents, wit

‘It’s a necessary evil’: Paducah residents react to multi-billion-dollar data center

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