Maryville residents press council on data centers, tax projections and services during packed public-comment period
Loading...
Summary
Public commenters raised parallel concerns about prospective data centers, tax abatements in neighboring towns, and possible revenue shortfalls while department heads reported routine operational updates including stormwater maintenance and police staffing needs.
Residents at the Jan. 27 Maryville town-council meeting spent significant time addressing two additional substantive topics: proposals for data centers and the town’s fiscal outlook and services.
Multiple residents raised transparency and economic-consequence concerns about potential data-center development. A commenter who identified herself as Marcela (transcript wording garbled) said the town’s advisory committee has met since 2024 and that prior notes and minutes mention possibilities of up to nine buildings yielding roughly 30 jobs per building—figures she said residents should scrutinize rather than accept without wider public engagement. Other speakers warned that tax abatements in nearby Hobart (cited as a 10-year, 100% abatement) and the resource demands of large data centers (electricity, water, noise) could burden residents and municipal services.
Clerk-Treasurer Eric January delivered the treasurer’s report, noting the town’s total cash balance of $84,120,339.51 as of Dec. 31, 2025, and a general-fund unencumbered balance of about $5,000,922.83. He cited Legislative Services Administration projections that a pending state tax change could reduce Maryville revenue by as much as $831,240 in a single year on a high-end projection (a lower-end figure of roughly $110,000 was also cited). January said the town is planning options to address the forecasted shortfall.
Departmental reports covered routine services and current projects. Stormwater staff described installation and maintenance of trash racks at regulated drains to reduce debris clogging and reduce localized flood risk, and reported work on GIS mapping and value-engineering efforts that have trimmed project costs. Police leadership reported 2,450 calls for service in December, 77 adult arrests and an active recruitment drive with an upcoming hiring event.
Councilors did not make any land-use decisions about data centers at the meeting; speakers urged the town to hold broader public meetings, and several asked that information and advisory-committee minutes be made readily available through the town’s app or website.
