The arrest of a data center protester is drawing public attention to a rural town in northwestern Illinois, where a roughly 400-acre plot of land is being pitched as a “data center development opportunity.”
Harley Delander of Dixon, a small city about two hours west of Chicago, was arrested on Wednesday outside his home after the local police department accused him of making threats against former state representative Tom Demmer. Demmer is now the head of a local business association that’s trying to attract a data center operator into the region.
About 10 miles west of Dixon, a 387-acre plot of farmland is being pitched to potential operators as a “prime data center development land” by the Lee County Industrial Development Association (LCIDA). Demmer, the former state representative, is the association’s president.
Delander posted a TikTok video of his encounter with local law enforcement on Thursday. It has garnered a quarter of a million views, along with a slew of commenters who have thrown their support behind the Dixon resident.
The Dixon Police Department said on Thursday that Delander was charged with two felonies, intimidation and stalking, after it received information about his communication with the former lawmaker. The department alleged that Delander “knowingly and willfully communicated threats and engaged in a course of conduct that caused concern for the safety of Demmer and his family.”
In an interview with Business Insider, Delander said he started organizing a protest on Facebook on Wednesday that would take place near Demmer’s house, using an address he found on the internet. He also said he sent an email to the former representative asking him to recuse himself from his position, along with the wording “if you know what’s good for you and your family.” Business Insider did not review the email.
“What I meant by that was, the sentence prior to that, I said, ‘Your address is public information and I can protest in front of your house all day and night until you gain humanity and ban this data center.'” Delander said.
Delander said he was arrested about 12 hours later at his home.
“We’ll be carefully evaluating the important First Amendment issues that stem from a case of this nature,” James Mertes, a Sterling-based civil attorney who is representing Delander, told Business Insider. “Cases involving data center opposition are going to be more prevalent as more and more data centers pop up.”
The case is another example of how the recent proliferation of data centers amid the AI boom has sparked heightened tensions between developers and local communities — often in small towns or rural areas — where the facilities are being built.
It’s not immediately clear if a data center operator has expressed interest in the site. A brochure for the plot of land from a real estate firm, Peoples Company, maps nearby sites where hyperscalers like Meta and Microsoft are also developing computing facilities.
Demmer and a representative for Peoples Company did not immediately return a request for comment.
Nationwide data center backlash
The prospect of data centers coming to the backyards of communities has drawn intense clashes with residents and local officials who are often responsible for approving development plans.
Residents have expressed concerns about rising utility bills, water usage, environmental impact, and ambient noise. Operators and proponents of data centers have pointed to the economic development potential and water efficiency of the facilities, while also saying that data centers are essential infrastructure.
In a small New Hampshire town of about 5,300, a developer abruptly withdrew plans for a data center after residents opposed the project and a Change.org petition drew more than 25,000 signatures.
Utah Gov. Spencer Cox on Friday issued an executive order establishing a standard for developing data centers in the state after community members protested a massive data center project backed by “Shark Tank” investor Kevin O’ Leary.
The growing opposition has also drawn attention from local and federal law enforcement groups: Wired reported that an intelligence report from the New York Intelligence and Counterterrorism Bureau highlighted “anti-tech violent extremist activity” resulting from the rise of AI technology.
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