Hours of testimony: Salem residents urge pause on Verus data‑center plan, cite water, noise and transparency concerns

Residents, union representatives, health professionals, environmental advocates and students filled the council chamber and hours of public testimony focused on the Verus proposal’s secrecy and potential consequences. Speakers urged the council to pause processing until independent analyses of water use, noise, air and grid impacts are available and to require legally enforceable community benefits if the project proceeds.

Examples of testimony: Hannah Hendricks urged a pause on project processing until a task force and binding agreements are in place, saying "If Verus violates Salem's low frequency noise thresholds or exceeds its stated water targets, the city must have the explicit contractual authority to pull their permits instantly." Ben Corrado, an electrical engineer near the site, urged strict standards for noise studies and said his preliminary calculations showed generator placement and testing could raise ambient decibel levels substantially in nearby neighborhoods. Public health and nursing witnesses cited concerns about power quality, electromagnetic harmonics, and effects they say are associated with proximity to large electrical loads; a number of speakers also raised cultural and archaeological concerns about impacts to indigenous sites and oak trees.

Not all testimony opposed the project: representatives of local building trades and apprenticeship programs described the construction jobs and workforce training opportunities such a large development could bring to the region. Some private developers and contractors urged careful negotiation but argued that projects can be done well with appropriate conditions. After testimony the council returned to the agenda and later voted to direct staff to study NDA limits and to convene a task force to draft policy recommendations by year end.