Keep data centers out of Omro

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New decision maker response
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The Issue

Our request is simple, just say no to data centers.

While data centers may offer beneficial financial, infrastructural, and technological advantages, they are also the cause of a variety of problems.

These problems include water scarcity, and droughts in areas where data centers have been built, as they require millions of gallons of water to cool them down. We are fortunate to have the Great Lakes within a short drive of where many of us live, but why should our natural drinking water that sustains both our ecosystems and our people be put toward keeping machines running?

If  you’ve seen videos of firsthand accounts of people who could cannot afford to move away from a data center, you already know that it creates noise pollution 24/7, ruining sleep and quality of daily life. The hard-working people of Wisconsin need our sleep.

With many data centers relying on fossil fuels, natural gas, and diesel to power them, there’s also concern for the air quality in the area. People who have breathing issues should not have to negotiate our existing health concerns with additional issues stemming from a data center being built.

The University of Cambridge has a study indicating that data centers increase surrounding land surface temperatures significantly, which effectively kills off natural vegetation in the area, with no promise of it growing back. Not a good look for America’s Dairyland.

In closing, let us remember the case of Miley Kaczynski, a Beaver Dam resident who lives 1.6 miles away from a data center, and since the construction of the data center, has had so much property damage inflicted upon her that her stream, which was once clean and clear and good to drink, is now opaque and Milky Way, containing strontium, a dangerous metal, among numerous other problems. She has had so much property damage that she cannot leave because no one will buy her land because no one wants to live near the center.

Please sign our petition to keep data centers out of Omro, both city and town, and keep our community of Omro picturesque and proud.

The Decision Makers

Winnebago County Board of Supervisors
2 Members
1 Responded
Howard Miller
Winnebago County Board of Supervisors - District 36
I do chair the county planning and zoning committee. We will be taking up this topic of a temporary moratorium on new data centers at our meeting on Monday July 13, at 4:15pm. The meeting will in conference room A of the JP Coughlin Center. The agenda for this meeting should be posted on the county website later today. I would encourage you to attend the meeting and present your position during the public comment portion of the meeting. I have not reviewed your petition yet, but will do so before the meeting. Howie Howard Miller Winnebago County Supervisor, Dist. 36 [Note: The Change.org Civic Engagement Team reaches out to decision makers to let them know about petitions in their community and to help facilitate engagement with supporters. The above was an email response we received regarding this petition.]
Tim O'Brien
Winnebago County Board of Supervisors - District 34
Gordon Hintz
Winnebago County Executive
Responded
I was the first elected official to propose a data center moratorium in Winnebago County. It is expected to go before the Board of Supervisors in August. The major interest in being proactive with a moratorium was to spend the next year understanding what powers the county and other municipalities have regarding regulations, and what actions would require state action. And then understand what standards the county could establish that recognize society’s need for data centers with the appropriate protections on energy, rates, and the environment. The goal would be to work with other municipalities to develop uniform standards throughout the county as well as advocate to the state on what protections we can’t impose that would require changes to state statute. And then we would hold hearings or forums on the proposals several months from now, probably in 2027. I understand the public’s fervor and concern over the increase of data centers at a time there are few regulations in place. And I think pausing to get it right is the appropriate move. But I have also been disappointed by the level of discourse on all sides at times regarding misinformation and disinformation that has led to a circus like atmosphere that doesn’t benefit anyone. The public and economies around the worlds are increasingly dependent on large scale data centers and getting the regulations right matter. Outlawing or banning them outright without a plan B will lead to higher costs and a digital divide in basic technology that people rely on. And of course, globally the U.S. is competing with the rest of the world for the capacity to support AI and who knows what else in the future. No data centers as a policy has consequences. It is not surprising that both Russia and China are spending time and resources on misinformation and disinformation campaigns in the U.S. aimed at both further dividing the American public, but also to gain considerable economic and technological advantage globally. Best, Gordon Hintz Winnebago County Executive [Note: The Change.org Civic Engagement Team reaches out to decision makers to let them know about petitions in their community and to help facilitate engagement with supporters. The above was an email response we received regarding this petition.]
Omro City Council
4 Members
Amanda Zick
Omro City Council
Darin Treleven
Omro City Council
Dave Wiese
Omro City Council
Winnebago County: Omro Town Supervisor
2 Members
David Ruedinger
Winnebago County: Omro Town Supervisor
Jessica Bradley
Winnebago County: Omro Town Supervisor
Mary Berndt
Mary Berndt
Mayor, City of Omro

Supporter Voices

Petition Updates