School board waits for more data on data centers
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WHEELING -- A concerned parent urged the Ohio County Board of Education to take a proactive approach toward proposed data center development in the county, particularly the project being considered at the former Centre Foundry site in Warwood.
The board, however, said it is taking a wait-and-see approach as more information becomes available about the proposed developments.
Amanda McWhorter, an Ohio County Schools parent, addressed the board for the second time on Monday regarding her concerns about the potential impacts of data centers on students, schools and district operations.
"I say data centers, but what I really am is a parent who is concerned and believes in public schools," McWhorter said.
McWhorter said she was not appearing before the board to criticize its members but to encourage them to prepare for potential challenges facing the district.
"I am doing so that everyone who has been elected to this board can take a proactive approach at what is coming to our county and to our state because our teachers, our administrators have so much going on," she said. "The last thing they need to worry about is the effects of a data center that is going to be a mile or less potentially from some of their schools."
McWhorter said she previously asked the board to consider two actions: taking a public stance on proposed data center developments and creating a countywide plan to evaluate possible health, safety and learning impacts.
She said she reached out to board members after her previous appearance but received limited response.
"Two weeks ago, I stood in this same spot and asked the board for two things," McWhorter said. "The next day, I followed up by writing in an email to every one of you. I offered to meet in person, to talk on the phone, I gave you all my personal cell phone number."
McWhorter said she wanted to share concerns and research she had gathered but felt frustrated by the lack of communication.
"I want to be clear about something. I don't doubt that everyone on this board cares about children," she said. "You wouldn't be doing this job if you didn't. I have never suggested otherwise, but caring about children and what is coming and what your administrators and your staff could be facing are two different things."
McWhorter specifically referenced the proposed technical park at the former Centre Foundry & Machine Co. property in Warwood, which was recently acquired by Silicon Foundation Energy LLC.
The company has described plans for a phased GPU data center and energy technology campus at the site, though company officials have said the initial plans involve infrastructure development and manufacturing of data center modules rather than construction of a large-scale data center immediately.
McWhorter said the project's proximity to schools requires attention from district officials.
"That technical park at Centre Foundry is coming. There is already work there," she said. "I said last time I spoke 'fast deployment and no barriers' -- that's not my language. That's the state's own marketing pitch to developers."
She also raised concerns about House Bill 2014, a state law that establishes oversight rules for high-impact data centers.
She said the legislation could limit the ability of local communities and school districts to benefit from future data center development.
Under House Bill 2014, property tax revenue generated by high-impact data centers is not distributed entirely through the traditional local process. Instead, the state auditor determines how the ad valorem property tax revenue generated by qualifying data centers is divided between local entities and the state.
McWhorter said that could reduce the amount of revenue available locally for public services, including schools.
"If all these data centers come in like the state is trying to attract, this board of education will only see a small portion from that, if anything," she said.
Concerns about House Bill 2014 have also prompted legal action from some Warwood residents seeking to stop the proposed data center development at the former Centre Foundry & Machine Co. property.
A civil complaint filed in Ohio County Circuit Court alleges that portions of House Bill 2014 are unconstitutional and seeks to prevent the construction and operation of the proposed Warwood Data Center by Silicon Foundation.
The plaintiffs argue the law limits the authority of counties and municipalities to regulate certain aspects of high-impact data centers, including zoning, noise, lighting, permitting and other local regulations.
The proposed Centre Foundry project has generated public debate in recent weeks, with residents asking Wheeling officials to consider a moratorium on data centers and calling for additional review of potential impacts.
Silicon Foundation officials have said the company is not currently planning a large-scale data center at the site and has instead described plans for an infrastructure and technology campus that would include manufacturing data center modules.
BOE member Jerry Ames said he responded to McWhorter's previous communication and emphasized that board members share concerns about student safety.
"I don't think you are going to get a disagreement from anybody on this board," Ames said. "And I just want you to know that and we do care, each and every one of us."
Ames said the board is limited in what action it can take while details about the proposed projects remain unclear.
"It's pretty hard as a board to say we are going to do or do that because we don't really know ourselves, just like you, what's going on," he said.
Ames, who lives in Warwood, said he has been monitoring the situation and communicating with state lawmakers.
Board member Andy Garber echoed Ames' comments, saying individual board members must speak from the perspective of the full board.
"What we think about the data centers personally is not what we can do as a board," Garber said. "We have to act as a board, and to comment back to you, if I were to comment back to you, I am speaking from a board perspective and there's a lot of people on this board."
Garber thanked McWhorter for sharing her concerns and said student safety remains a priority for the district.
"We are very concerned about student safety," he said.
However, Garber said the board does not yet have enough information about the proposed data centers to determine what action may be necessary.
"We don’t know where this is going right now, the data centers," he said. "Maybe when more relevant information can be rendered, and maybe if it applies to schools, that is something we can consider. But at this point I feel as if we are kind of putting the cart before the horse right now. We just kind of sit back and see what happens. See what comes out of the proposed data centers. For right now, we are going to just kind of sit back and see what happens."