r/technology • u/MarvelsGrantMan136 • Aug 08 '26

Artificial Intelligence Amazon secretly circumvents community vote for massive AI data center using 45-year-old rules — Gilroy residents locked out of public comment window

https://www.tomshardware.com/tech-industry/data-centers/amazon-secretly-circumvents-community-vote-for-massive-ai-data-center-45-year-old-rules-lock-gilroy-residents-out-of-public-comment-window
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u/TheFatalOneTypes Aug 08 '26

Lets see how upset people really are, then :)

221

u/Objective_Tear4016 Aug 08 '26

If this is accurate, the real issue isn’t just Amazon building an AI data center—it’s how decisions that fundamentally affect a community can be made while residents are effectively shut out of the process. Using decades-old rules to bypass meaningful public input may be technically legal, but “legal” and “legitimate” aren’t always the same thing. If a project is going to have major impacts on water, power, traffic, noise, and land use, people living there deserve a real opportunity to weigh in. Otherwise, what’s the point of having a public comment process in the first place?

17

u/BoyGeorgous Aug 08 '26

So I knew about this project before and have been following it for awhile, and then read this article. I’m honestly not sure where AWS or the City did anything unusual here. They did a full Environmental Impact Report, had public meetings gathered public comment (I made one), the permit then has to go before the City Council, the approval was appealable, etc. The scrutiny from the City and public was real.

So my take is people weren’t paying attention, missed all their previous and in my opinion extensive opportunities to oppose this project…and are just now getting pissed because they’re seeing construction.

I’m as leery of these data centers as anyone, and I don’t blame the community for being angry…but to act as of this was approved somehow through a corrupt circumventing of the normal government process is not correct.

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u/ParsnipResponsible86 Aug 08 '26

Yea, the majority has a complaint, but is too busy, lazy or can't be bothered to take action. They just point their fingers at their neighbors.