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Residents ask county to address AI data centers and criticize assemblyman’s speech
Summary
During public comment residents asked whether county plans account for AI data centers and urged the board to publicly respond to a state legislator’s speech they called hateful and election-denying.
During two public-comment periods at the May 5 meeting, residents raised land-use and civic concerns ranging from AI data centers to the public conduct of a state legislator.
Judy Rolfe of Raritan Township asked whether Hunterdon County has taken a position on AI data centers and whether the county growth plan can be amended to address them, saying the growth plan predates rapid expansion of data-center development. The chair directed her to county staff for follow-up information.
In a longer exchange, Guy Citron of Tewksbury Township and other speakers criticized remarks delivered by Assemblyman Peterson at a statewide rally, describing parts of the speech as hateful and alleging it included election denialism and anti-immigrant statements. Citron said he sought leadership from the board after his prior request and urged the commissioners to publicly confront the issue.
"Public confrontation of difficult issues is essential to a democratic republic," Citron said, pressing the board to act. Ron Levy, who said he had watched video excerpts of the speech, characterized it as "hate speech" and said he was shocked by the remarks.
Board members did not issue a formal statement at the meeting; the chair said he had not seen or listened to the speech and suggested staff would review materials citizens provide. The public remarks on both topics were noted by commissioners and will be part of the record for future deliberations.
