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Frenchtown residents voice concerns over possible data center
It was a packed house at the Frenchtown Township Community Center as people came out to learn about this proposal and speak out against it. They listened to a presentation by the company Cloverleaf Infrastructure, which is looking to build a data center at I-75 and Dixie Highway on the site of the former ProMedica Hospital.
FRENCHTOWN TWP, Mich. (FOX 2) - Another day, another data center debate in Metro Detroit. This time it’s in Monroe County and as you can imagine, reaction is split there too, as more Michigan towns consider adding large buildings with rows and rows of computers to process our daily lives.
Big picture view:
It was a packed house at the Frenchtown Township Community Center as people came out to learn about this proposal and speak out against it.
They listened to a presentation by the company Cloverleaf Infrastructure, which is looking to build a data center at I-75 and Dixie Highway on the site of the former ProMedica Hospital.
The Frenchtown Charter Township government recently acquired the land, and they say anything can go there, adding that a data center is one of many ideas.
It would go on a couple of hundred acres of land and would process all types of information we use in daily life — from health care records to banking information and some AI.
What they're saying:
Many neighbors voiced concerns over water and power usage along with noise. The would-be builders say these types of centers are common, and a township leader says many officials are still in fact-finding mode before a decision is made.
Cloverleaf says the data center would not use more water than a small office building. They say the noise would not be any louder than I-75 nearby and that measures can be taken to reduce light pollution.
As of now, there’s no decision to build it, let alone a timeline.