Wisconsin Rapids: Require a Community Benefits Agreement Before the AI Data Center Gets It
The Issue
DC Rapids LLC / PCH WI Holdings LLC (PNK Group) has applied for a conditional use permit to build a data center campus on the former paper mill site at 950 Fourth Ave N. A public hearing is scheduled for September 16, 2026, 5:30 PM, at the Performing Arts Center, Lincoln High School.
This isn't a petition against the project. It's a petition for 10 binding conditions — grounded in the developer's own filings and recent Wisconsin precedent — attached to the permit before it's approved:
Ratepayer Protection — developer pays 100% of grid upgrade costs, not residents.
Environmental Assessment & Remediation Bond — full, independently tested cleanup of the closed landfill on the property, bonded by the City.
Compute Dividend — a share of facility revenue automatically offsets residents' utility bills.
Municipal Compute Access & Workforce Pipeline — 3% of compute capacity for schools, library, and small business, with real job training.
Local Vendor Mandate & Job Standards — 30% of contracts to Wood County businesses, scaling to 50% by Year 5, with wage and benefit floors for permanent jobs.
Noise & Setback Standards — 1,000-ft residential setback, enforceable noise limits including infrasound, binding on every future tenant.
Ownership Transfer & Decommissioning — protections survive any sale of the property.
Cranberry Marsh Water Access — the pump house serving 14 marshes and $25M in annual crop value stays protected.
Binding Public River Amenity — the developer's own proposed riverfront park becomes a surveyed, deeded public easement — not a vague promise — with full disclosure of the landfill and floodplain overlap already visible on the developer's own site plan.
Emergency & Public Safety Services Commitment — the $1.4 million PNK Group has already pledged to local emergency services becomes a binding, scheduled obligation, not a voluntary one.
Not a promise. Not a handshake. A contract.
Add your name to tell the Planning Commission and Common Council that approval should come with real, enforceable terms — before the permit is signed, not after.
323
The Issue
DC Rapids LLC / PCH WI Holdings LLC (PNK Group) has applied for a conditional use permit to build a data center campus on the former paper mill site at 950 Fourth Ave N. A public hearing is scheduled for September 16, 2026, 5:30 PM, at the Performing Arts Center, Lincoln High School.
This isn't a petition against the project. It's a petition for 10 binding conditions — grounded in the developer's own filings and recent Wisconsin precedent — attached to the permit before it's approved:
Ratepayer Protection — developer pays 100% of grid upgrade costs, not residents.
Environmental Assessment & Remediation Bond — full, independently tested cleanup of the closed landfill on the property, bonded by the City.
Compute Dividend — a share of facility revenue automatically offsets residents' utility bills.
Municipal Compute Access & Workforce Pipeline — 3% of compute capacity for schools, library, and small business, with real job training.
Local Vendor Mandate & Job Standards — 30% of contracts to Wood County businesses, scaling to 50% by Year 5, with wage and benefit floors for permanent jobs.
Noise & Setback Standards — 1,000-ft residential setback, enforceable noise limits including infrasound, binding on every future tenant.
Ownership Transfer & Decommissioning — protections survive any sale of the property.
Cranberry Marsh Water Access — the pump house serving 14 marshes and $25M in annual crop value stays protected.
Binding Public River Amenity — the developer's own proposed riverfront park becomes a surveyed, deeded public easement — not a vague promise — with full disclosure of the landfill and floodplain overlap already visible on the developer's own site plan.
Emergency & Public Safety Services Commitment — the $1.4 million PNK Group has already pledged to local emergency services becomes a binding, scheduled obligation, not a voluntary one.
Not a promise. Not a handshake. A contract.
Add your name to tell the Planning Commission and Common Council that approval should come with real, enforceable terms — before the permit is signed, not after.
The Decision Makers
Supporter Voices
Petition Updates
Share this petition
Petition created on April 28, 2026