This week is going to be a big one in the life of the Howell Township data center proposal.
But that seems fitting for this data center proposal, which is gargantuan for the community. It’s the biggest project ever pitched in Livingston County, and if it moves forward, it will encompass over a thousand acres of farmland, and the $1 billion initial capital investment of the unnamed tech company (said to be Meta by one township official) will immediately make it Livingston County’s largest taxpayer. This project, if it becomes reality, would also open the door for similar projects down the road. (Click here for our initial story on the project.)
Howell Township Board meeting
The biggest meeting of the week is the last. The Howell Township Board meeting, set for 6:30 p.m. Thursday at the Howell High School Auditorium, will consider a moratorium on the data center. If it passes, the moratorium will allow the township to “implement additional performance standards specific for data centers,” and determine whether they “require additional local regulation.”
The meeting was rescheduled from Nov. 10 at the township hall to Thursday at the Howell High School auditorium to comfortably accommodate what is certainly going to be a whopper of a crowd.
Click here to read the proposed ordinance that the Howell Township Board will consider Thursday.
Town hall
The first meeting of the week is not associated with any unit of government. Called “A Civil Discussion” and billed as a town hall, and held outside of any organization, it sounds like it’s going to be more a strategic planning sessions with easels, markers, and, of course, colorful sticky notes. It’s set for 6-11 p.m. Monday at the Howell High School Auditorium.
Hosted by Aaren Currie, a county Realtor, and facilitated by Deb Drick, chair of the Livingston County Republican Party, the meeting is intended to “create a formal list of potential issues resulting from the data center”; as well as “brainstorming possible solutions to issues,” and “possible outcomes to actions taken,” according to the meeting advertisement.
The flyer says there won’t be any votes, debates, or attempts to change minds. “Disruptive or uncivil behavior will result in immediate removal from premises,” according to the flyer.
The end result is supposed to be gathering and recording concerns and ideas about the proposed data center, information organizers say they will aggregate and provide to the public.
I’m guessing this meeting will be nothing more than Republican Party members and data center supporters, but I could be wrong.
Planning commission meetings
Opponents of the data center are basically ignoring it, instead marshaling their numbers and power to where they think they can make a difference:
• The Howell Township Planning Commission is meeting at 6:30 p.m. Tuesday at the Howell Township Hall, 3525 Byron Road.
While the data center does not appear on the agenda, there is a call to the public.
• The Livingston County Planning Commission is meeting at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday in the Livingston County Administration Building, 304 E. Grand River Ave., next to the Historic Livingston County Courthouse.
The agenda had not been posted online as of this writing, but a Data Center Rezoning and Text Amendment is reported to be going before the commission.
