Lifetime Citizen Portal Access — AI Briefings, Alerts & Unlimited Follows
Hermantown commenters urge full environmental review, warn of trout‑stream and water impacts from proposed data center
Loading...
Summary
Multiple residents told the Hermantown City Council they want a full Environmental Impact Statement and greater developer transparency for a proposed hyperscale data center, citing groundwater, trout‑stream protection, noise and municipal water use.
Several residents urged the Hermantown City Council on Wednesday evening to require a full environmental review of a proposed hyperscale data center, warning that the project could harm local groundwater, a brook‑trout stream and neighborhood life.
Joanne Bates, of 5369 Morris Thomas Road, told the council the data center "is using city water to run the plant" and said that choice could allow large users to avoid limits intended to preserve residential access to limited aquifers. Bates also said the facility’s planned air‑cooling would increase electricity use and noise and warned the project "will likely destroy a trout stream" that Minnesota Pollution Control Agency materials describe as among the region's best for brook trout.
The council heard similar concerns throughout public comment. Sarah Lofold (5502 Hermantown Road) contrasted a recently announced scoping document with an earlier AUAR process and called attention to a set of ordinances and resolutions the council approved in mid‑2025 that she said were related to the project; she argued residents did not have adequate notice to weigh in during earlier proceedings.
Bob Kollmeier (5757 Saint Louis River Road) and Tom Bates (5369 Morris Thomas Road) both urged the council to require a formal Environmental Impact Statement, with Kollmeier telling the council that an EIS is "the only study that can answer this question" about whether a large, heavy‑industrial facility belongs in or near a residential district.
Not all public commenters opposed the project. Nate Rickard (4878 Trails End Drive) said he supports the data center in principle but criticized what he described as poor developer communication; he asked that the developers appear at public meetings to explain plans for issues raised by residents, including the trout stream cited by others.
Several speakers also questioned who the city is listening to, naming Minnesota Power, Google and large investors as influential parties. Barbara Opel (Duluth) told the council it would be "no shame" to change course after reviewing the local costs and cautioned against seeming to listen only to corporate partners.
The council did not vote on environmental review during the meeting. Speakers asked that staff and councilors weigh public concerns, and several asked the council to slow the process and pursue a full EIS before any final land‑use approvals.
The council moved on after the public comment period to its consent agenda and resolutions; no formal direction to initiate an EIS was recorded in the meeting minutes for this session.
