Enemies to Cheyenne Data Centers Mulltiply As City Moves To Add Them

Opposition to Cheyenne data centers is growing as residents become more vocal and sign petitions against them. One councilman says development has happened so fast, it’s “completely outstripped the ability of the county and the city to plan.”

The fate of a nearly 1,260-acre parcel that includes a privately owned mausoleum is in question as the Cheyenne City Council considers rezoning the area for future use as a business park, including a data center. Representatives of Viawest Group told the Public Services Committee last week that developers are contemplating a data center on the property.

The annexation and incoming data center have prompted public outcry, with residents voicing fear and concern over water demand, electricity rates and long-term public health effects. A petition calling for a temporary moratorium on future data centers has circulated, though council members said petitions are often uninformative.

Residents of the nearby Rolling Hills neighborhood oppose the annexation, voicing concerns over increased traffic and water usage. Kay McAdams questioned what happens when the city is not considering 12 data centers, but 40. She noted that while data centers claim to use closed-loop cooling systems, “that does not mean zero water use.”

“We are losing the soul of our community to an unchecked explosion of growth,” added Patricia McCoy. “The plan to move west on Happy Jack Road is a line in the sand that should not be crossed. This isn’t just vacant land. This area is the gateway to our natural beauty. You are destroying the very landscape that makes Wyoming Wyoming.”

Councilman Larry Wolfe admitted the implications are complex. “What I tell people is I share a lot of these concerns personally,” he said. “Data centers are vast. They are remaking the landscape around Cheyenne and Laramie County. They are hugely resource-consumptive.” The growth is happening so fast, he said, that data center development has “completely outstripped the ability of the county and the city to plan.”

Betsey Hale, CEO of Cheyenne LEADS, has long supported data center expansion, noting they’re located in business parks for a reason. She addressed water concerns, saying data centers consume only 1.9% of Cheyenne’s total water supply. While she acknowledged fear, she said a temporary moratorium is not the solution. “The fear mongering needs to stop.”

However, a historic ranch sits on the parcel, and Gay Woodhouse, former Wyoming attorney general and attorney for the land’s former owners, said her primary concern is the fate of a family-owned mausoleum on the property. The mausoleum holds five caskets now but can hold up to eight. “It’s a horrible thought that that mausoleum could be removed or the access could be denied,” Woodhouse told the committee.

The Viawest Group representative said the company “100% supports however they would like to handle it” regarding the mausoleum. But Woodhouse said her clients thought the ranch would be preserved when they sold it. The current owner wants the land incorporated into the city for city water and sewer.

Hale suggested a postponement rather than a complete stop. “It’s better to hit a pause than it is to hit the brakes,” she said. Wolfe encouraged residents to voice their concerns. “I have no problems with the public coming and saying, ‘We don’t like this. We’re scared about the future,'” he said. “I’m scared about it, too. I think everybody is.”