Indiana’s early enthusiasm for an $11 billion Amazon hyperscale campus has flipped as residents now push back hard on new data center sites.
The latest fight killed a proposed third facility on 1,000+ acres near New Carlisle in a 7-2 county council vote after an all-night public meeting.
Locals are increasingly worried about land use, water, power demand, and limited job creation relative to the massive capital spend, even with “high-paying” roles on the table.
For AI infra planners, the lesson is that cheap land and friendly tax deals are no longer enough when hyperscale GPU farms stress local grids and community resources.
Operators will need more transparent power and water plans, clearer local economic benefits, and likely smaller or phased builds to avoid political blowback.
Indiana’s pushback is a warning sign for big tech hyperscalers counting on the Midwest as a frictionless AI data center growth corridor.
The full piece is worth a read to understand how fast public sentiment can turn against large-scale AI infrastructure projects.
Source: Data center boom is pitting Indiana residents against big tech
