A Michigan farming town becomes the latest battleground in America’s AI data center boom
The $16 billion Stargate data center promises jobs and innovation, but residents fear water shortages, higher costs and the loss of their rural way of life.
From Michigan Avenue, Saline Township looks like a typical farming community, with fields of corn and soybeans, grain silos and rural roads stretching across the landscape.
Just down the road, however, cranes rise above towering security fences at the site of a $16 billion project that has transformed this town of 2,400 residents into the latest U.S. flashpoint in the fight over artificial intelligence infrastructure.
Known as “The Barn” by its developers, the Stargate data center is being built by a consortium that includes Oracle, OpenAI, Related Digital, Blackstone and Walbridge. The facility is expected to cover more than 250 acres.
Construction is moving forward despite fierce opposition from residents concerned about the project’s impact on local water supplies, the electricity grid and the township’s rural character.
“Most people aren't interested in some massive development here,” said Tammie Bruneau, who has helped lead the local opposition. “They're interested in protecting the farmland.”
In a deeply polarized United States, resistance to data centers has become one of the few issues capable of uniting voters across ideological lines. Only about one-third of Americans approve of the current pace of data center construction, according to a June Reuters/Ipsos poll, while just 14% said they would support a data center being built in their own community.
That tension is increasingly visible in Michigan, where at least 13 data centers are currently planned or under development. Communities in Saline and elsewhere have begun pushing back against projects they see as arriving too quickly and without sufficient local input.
Developers withdrew a proposed data center in Washington Township after residents mobilized against it, while opponents in Augusta forced a public rezoning vote that delayed another project.
As resistance spreads, the debate over data centers is moving beyond town halls and zoning boards, forcing politicians at the state and national levels to confront growing public anxiety over AI’s expansion.
Michigan Democrats confront AI backlash
With Michigan’s Democratic Senate primary approaching on August 4, candidates are attempting to balance support for technological development with concerns from voters who fear the costs of rapid AI expansion.
For many Americans, opposition to data centers is part of a broader unease about the growing power of large technology companies and whether local communities have enough influence over billion-dollar projects.
“It seems like the big tech companies are kind of steamrolling the citizens,” said Jeff Samoray, a Democrat from Huntington Woods, outside Detroit.
Haley Stevens, a Democratic candidate for the Senate nomination, has positioned herself as a technology optimist, describing AI as “a revolutionary technology.”
During a recent debate, Stevens argued that data center investments could create jobs and help position Michigan “at the forefront of innovation and manufacturing,” while also calling on technology companies to cover their water and infrastructure costs.
Abdul El-Sayed, her progressive challenger, has called for greater government oversight of AI companies and proposed requiring them to operate as public-benefit corporations.
While he has not supported a nationwide moratorium on data center construction, El-Sayed said local restrictions may sometimes be necessary.
“Too often local communities just don't have the capacity to withstand the pressure that huge corporations can put on them,” he told Reuters, arguing that stronger safeguards ultimately need to come from the federal government.
Samoray, however, believes neither candidate is going far enough.
“It’s nice rhetoric, but I don't know if that stuff will really happen,” he said, describing the AI industry as “a runaway train.”
Even Washington is responding
The political backlash has reached Washington, including the Trump administration, which has made rapid AI development a national priority in its competition with China.
Reuters reported on July 13 that the White House was working with utility companies and data center developers on a voluntary agreement aimed at preventing taxpayers from absorbing the costs of AI infrastructure expansion.
Politicians from both parties are “all over the map” on the issue, said Lisa Wozniak, president of the Michigan League of Conservation Voters.
The dispute in Saline highlights the challenge facing communities across America: balancing the economic benefits of AI infrastructure with concerns about its local consequences.
After months of contentious public meetings, the Saline Township board voted 4-1 in September to reject the rezoning needed for the Stargate data center. Two days later, the developers and landowners sued the township.
Facing expensive litigation, officials reached a settlement in October that allowed construction to proceed.
The agreement included roughly $14 million in community benefits, including funding for farmland preservation and fire services, along with limits on water consumption and noise. Opponents have challenged the agreement in court.
Construction officially began on June 1, with Michigan Governor Gretchen Whitmer and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman attending the groundbreaking ceremony.
Developers say the project will create more than 2,500 union construction jobs, 1,500 additional countywide jobs, more than 450 permanent positions and billions of dollars in tax revenue.
But opposition remains strong.
“We really just didn't think it was fair that our board got forced into this position,” said Bruneau, who had never previously been involved in local politics.
She said residents remain concerned about groundwater contamination, higher electricity costs and the long-term impact on the community.
The opposition, she said, crosses political boundaries.
“We've met people from the extreme right and left, and all the way in the middle,” she said.
Beverly Kincaid, a 56-year-old Republican who lives nearby, said data centers will influence her vote in November.
“In Saline, big money pushed their way around,” she said.
Developers defend the project
Related Digital said it was committed to responsible development, including protecting Michigan’s water resources through closed-loop air-cooling systems and preserving 750 acres of farmland, wetlands and woodland.
Oracle said it would fund the energy and infrastructure required for the facility, ensuring that local utility customers would not face higher bills or reduced grid reliability.
Sandy Baruah, president of the Detroit Regional Chamber, said critics were overlooking the broader economic opportunity.
“For those of us who are involved in efforts to grow Michigan’s economy, to create more jobs, it is truly puzzling,” he said.
Laura Dennison, a 42-year-old resident of Royal Oak, sees the debate from both perspectives. She worries about the impact of data centers on agriculture, but she also sees the potential benefits of AI research, including efforts to better understand her son’s rare medical condition.
“It doesn't matter if you're the person running for office or you're the person impacted by it,” she said. “There’s so many unknowns.”
