A crowd of about 50 Grand Rapidians gathered in Calder Square on Saturday to protest a proposed artificial intelligence data center in nearby Dorr, Michigan.
Tech giant Microsoft in 2024 purchased 700 acres of land in West Michigan and later announced it was eyeing the sites for potential construction of an artificial intelligence data center. The move drew the ire of many West Michigan residents, who believe the data center represents a waste of resources.
Attendees at Saturday’s protest hoisted signs decrying data centers as a hazard to nature and a poor use of taxpayer dollars.
Former Kent County Commissioner and activist Ivan Diaz addressed the crowd, saying data centers pose a threat to the community and could lead to heightened utility costs. Diaz, who is running for state Senate, called for each attendee to contact their representatives and demand they push back against the proposal.
“The topic of data centers and AI has been top of mind for me for over a year now,” Diaz told The Grand Rapids Herald at the event. “We’ve got to make it clear to politicians that we’re not just going to let them do whatever they want.”
Diaz also dismissed arguments in favor of data centers as “corporate talking points,” saying data centers are detrimental to small towns and rarely live up to their promises.
“I’ve noticed the conversations around these things often talk about how many jobs that are going to be created in the short term, but the conversation rarely shifts to the long term,” he said. “I think it’s important to talk about whether we want to have our democracy making these decisions or whether we want these decisions in the hands of a handful of billionaires.”
The demonstration was part of a statewide effort against data centers in Michigan. Similar protests took place in Ann Arbor, Detroit, Lansing and Traverse City.
Backing the event was Michiganders for Money Out of Politics, a ballot initiative which would ban utilities companies and government contractors from donating to state politicians. A representative at the protest called on attendees to give their signature to put the initiative on the ballot later this year.
Write to jackson@grherald.com.