Recently, the wind in Mason County, Kentucky, carried the smell of fresh crops. Rumors that an anonymous data giant is offering huge dollars in exchange for land in the county have local farmers on alert. Target? Paving the ground for large-scale artificial intelligence data centers for generations.Ida Huddleston, 82, and her daughter Delsia Bare, 54, have been offered up to $26 million for their neighboring property in Mason County, LEX 18 reports. Huddleston owns 71 acres and said her bid was $60,000 per acre, for a total of $4.26 million. She told the outlet she repeatedly turned down the offer and accused the elusive company of “emotional harassment.”Bare owns a 463-acre farm quoted at $48,000 an acre, or about $22.2 million. She said the lack of transparency made it difficult for residents to understand what the development would mean for their community. “When they don’t reveal who they are, if you’re stuck here, or even if you get out of here, it’s going to have a big impact on you for the rest of your life,” she said.
feed a country
An offer scam
The proposed data center would be built near Big Pond Pike in Mason County, and many other property owners in the area have been contacted about selling their farmland for the project. Some locals say the facility could bring significant economic benefits to the area. Tyler McHugh, economic development director for the Maysville-Mason County Industrial Development Authority, said the data center could create about 400 full-time jobs and more than 1,500 construction jobs. McHugh told LEX18, “They are certainly in the top three, if not our largest employer, in terms of job opportunities.”However, Huddleston said the entire project was a “scam” and she “stands by” her decision. Bell would rather stay, sustain and feed a nation. “If this was my way, I would stay and support and feed a country. 26 million means nothing.”
The rise of U.S. artificial intelligence data centers
