Independence council holds full public hearing on Nevius data center Chapter 100 abatement as residents press for answers

The Independence City Council on Feb. 16 conducted a full public hearing on a Chapter 100 tax-incentive package tied to the proposed Nevius AI data center, hearing more than 50 citizen comments split between organized labor and business supporters and residents and community groups opposed to the deal.

Bond counsel David Martin of Gilmore & Bell outlined the Chapter 100 plan to the council and public, saying the campus under review spans "approximately 398 acres" with roughly "2,100,000 square feet" of enclosed space and incentives that, under the assumptions presented, amount to "a little over 90% abatement" for the project. Martin described several contract-enforceable protections included in the lease and ordinance drafts: a requirement for closed-loop cooling or a similar technology to avoid continual use of city water, compliance with city noise and lighting codes, a $2,500,000 deposit dedicated to Little Blue Parkway repairs, quarterly meetings with a Citizen Advisory Board for the first five years, and a decommissioning requirement to remove data-center-specific systems within two years of cessation of operations.

The applicant, represented by local counsel and development partners, reiterated technical points about operations and mitigation. Local counsel Mark Holter said the project team is designing closed-loop cooling and stated in the hearing record that "there are no emissions from the chips" and that "there are no air emissions from the cooling system" for routine operations. He also told the council the company has selected Arco as general contractor and that Arco has engaged local union contractors for a substantial portion of the work; the applicant described Phase 1 staffing targets of about 43 on-site technical employees and a longer-term target of roughly 130 high-tech roles, with a projected average salary figure discussed in the presentation.

Speakers for the project — construction-union leaders, Chamber representatives and economic-development officials — emphasized jobs, local purchasing and a projected multi‑million‑dollar annual revenue stream at buildout. "This is what these centers and some of these projects are gonna be able to do," the Mid America Carpenters’ representative said during public comment, urging the council to "move this project forward."

Residents and environmental advocates urged caution. "You are not just voting on tax breaks for a data center, you are voting on whether the people of Independence can still feel that their voices matter more than corporate interest," said Rachel Gonzales, a resident and organizer. Other speakers raised concerns about water use, possible chemical treatment of closed‑loop systems, constant noise, light pollution, proximity to schools and trails, the scale of on‑site power generation, and the size of the proposed tax abatement. Several speakers asked for specific clawback provisions, independent environmental and noise studies, and public release of full contract terms before any final vote.

Much of the technical discussion centered on water and power. The applicant described options for filling and maintaining closed‑loop systems, including treating and hauling initial fill or flush water off-site in accordance with EPA rules; bond counsel and the applicant said the city code and ordinance language would require compliance with applicable environmental and nuisance standards. Multiple speakers asked whether an escrow or bond would be required for decommissioning; counsel said no escrow amount is currently built into the draft leases but that an escrow or bond is a negotiable option.

The hearing did not culminate in a final council vote on Chapter 100 that night. After closing the public hearing, the council read several ordinances on first reading related to the project, including a bond-authorizing ordinance placed on first reading (document references in the record). Several unrelated second-reading ordinances were approved earlier in the meeting. City staff and the applicant committed to additional follow-up meetings to answer outstanding technical questions raised by residents and council members.

What happens next: The council advanced Chapter 100‑related ordinances to first reading and received the full public record; any final legislative action on the tax abatement or bond authorization will occur in a later council meeting after staff and the applicant supply additional materials and negotiated changes, as requested by council members and some speakers.

Sources and provenance: Public testimony and presentations occurred throughout the meeting record, including the initial public‑comment block on the data center (public comments began in SEG 580 and the Chapter 100 full public hearing opened at SEG 3127 and closed at SEG 4338). Direct quotations and figures are drawn from the hearing record as cited there.

Notes on names and transcript variants: The project applicant is referred to in the transcript with multiple spellings (e.g., Nebius, Nevious, Nevius). For clarity this article uses the standardized form "Nevius" while noting the transcript contains spelling variants; all quoted text is attributed exactly as spoken in the hearing record.