Matthews residents concerned about proposed data center
MATTHEWS, NC — A big addition could be coming to an undeveloped part of Matthews.
“Matthews is such a such a charm. It’s such a gem of a town, we don’t want it to be Charlotte,” said Danielle Benham.
Benham believes that charm will go away if a proposed 123 acre AI Data Center off I-485 along E John St comes to her town.
“I’m 100% against it. Yes, there’s nothing they could say at this point,” Benham said.
She’s not the only one. A Change.org petition labeled “No Data Centers in Matthews, NC” has nearly 2,000 signatures as of Wednesday night.
Long term health effects, utility costs, and property values are some of the biggest concerns residents we heard from have. However, not everyone is completely against it.
“I’m excited to have something happen there. I don’t know if I need something quite on that scale,” explained Deborah Petoskey.
Petoskey works at Steady Eddy’s Pumphouse across the street from the proposed site. She tells WCCB she wants to know more about Project Accelerate before giving her approval.
“Kind of conflicted. You know, we’re excited if it brings a lot of jobs and we would love to have people walk across the street,” Petoskey said of adding new customers.
As a homeowner, small business owner and most importantly, a mother, Benham hopes developers move on to another location.
“I think these data centers popping up left and right need to be approached with caution anyways, because nobody knows the long term effects on our health,” explained Benham.
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a Project Accelerate spokesperson SAYS “…We are taking a thoughtful approach that results in minimal commuter traffic, limited environmental impacts, and full responsibility for Duke Energy upgrades required for this project.”
A Project Accelerate spokesperson sent us this statement:
“Project Accelerate, a proposed Matthews data center project, aims to bring a forward-thinking digital infrastructure facility that can provide a boost for the entire community, while achieving responsible and sustainable goals and initiatives.”
“Data centers are physical buildings that house digital infrastructure essential to the modern economy. Our goal is to position the Town of Matthews to benefit from this growing sector with Project Accelerate. We are taking a thoughtful approach that results in minimal commuter traffic, limited environmental impacts, and full responsibility for Duke Energy upgrades required for this project.”
“We continue to engage residents to share information and answer questions.”
A project developer will speak to residents at a town meeting on Thursday.
