SALINE, Mich. (WXYZ) — Dozens of protesters gathered in downtown Saline on Monday evening to voice opposition to a proposed 250-acre data center project in Saline Township, marking the latest display of public resistance to Michigan's growing artificial intelligence data center boom.
The multibillion-dollar, 1.4 megawatt data center planned by Related Digital for Oracle and OpenAI has faced community pushback since its inception. While Saline Township's board initially rejected the rezoning request, they later agreed to the project after Related Digital and landowners filed a lawsuit against the township, leading to a settlement that green-lit the development.
Watch Brett Kast's video report below:
"The entire process has been a billion-dollar company bullying a small rural town with limited resources," a speaker told the crowd gathered at the busy street corner protest.
"We looked at our options, and the legal options of a bunch of citizens with no money are pretty limited, so we decided to stage our first protest," said one of the protest's organizers, Josh LeBaron.
Community members expressed concerns about the data center's impact on their environment, water supply and electricity costs. Data centers require substantial amounts of power to operate.
"The sheer amount of power they need, we do not have the generation capacity," LeBaron said. "We don't believe DTE. They will raise rates; they do it all the time."
Jason Wakefield, who lives near the proposed site, shares similar worries about rising electricity costs.
"I'm really worried about the cost of our power going up," Wakefield said. "Our grid already is not great. We had to put a generator in because of all the power losses we've had with DTE, so I'm concerned about how this is going to tax our grid more."
In a statement issued last week, DTE addressed cost concerns, stating: "To be clear, these data center customer contracts will NOT create a cost increase for our existing customers. In its filing, DTE is asking for the Michigan Public Service Commission to approve additional terms of service that create safeguards to protect our existing customers."
However, Ayat Altamimi with Michiganders Against Data Centers, a newly formed group organizing against proposed data centers throughout the state, disputed DTE's claims.
"DTE has claimed that it won't, but the reality is that in every state there is a data center, electricity rates have gone up," Altamimi said.
Altamimi warned about broader implications for Michigan if the project moves forward.
"Once this precedent is set and once this door is open, it's just going to be a cascade effect and we are going to lose everything that we love about Michigan, which is our environment, our clean air, our clean water and our communities," Altamimi said.
Previous coverage: Michigan AG demanding transparency from DTE, state regulators over data center contracts
While Saline Township has reached an agreement for the data center, DTE still requires approval from the Michigan Public Service Commission to supply power to the facility. The commission is scheduled to hold a virtual public hearing on Wednesday at 6:30 p.m.
"That's kind of our only hope right now is slowing down the DTE process," Wakefield said.
Previous coverage: Data center divides Saline Township as DTE seeks to bypass public hearings
"We have seen people win these fights and that fight is winnable here in Michigan because it impacts every single person," Altamimi said.
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