GREELEY — The fight over what is set to be Colorado’s largest data center may have less to do with citizen concerns and more to do with competing real estate developers.
Last month, Weld County commissioners voted 5-0 to approve Global AI’s 41-acre data center on the former Eastman Kodak and Carestream Health campus outside Greeley. Now a new coalition, Protect Our Water and Energy Resources (POWER), wants voters to weigh in on that decision and on every future one like it.
While POWER purports to be the voice behind the effort, the names on a citizen-initiated petition tell a different story. As Complete Colorado has learned, the conflict over Global AI appears to be more of a contest between big-dollar developers.
A familiar Weld County activist — Patricia Garcia-Nelson – is at the front of the effort, but the second name on the referendum petition – Dean Brown — belongs to a Windsor resident who may have more to lose if Global AI moves forward than anyone.
Brown is senior vice president of industrial development for Broe Real Estate Group, which recently annexed land adjacent to the Global AI property into Greeley. Broe hopes to build residential and commercial development that would back up to the data center.
If Global AI moves forward, securing space on the electric grid, along with prospective sales issues could be a challenge for Broe, but a successful repeal of the data center permit could clear the way for its multimillion-dollar project.
Brown did not return a request for comment. Global AI also did not respond. It’s unclear whether commissioners will challenge the measures before or after an election. County officials would only confirm the petition was filed.
The Global AI approval was a quasi-judicial use-by-special-review, so it will likely fall under the same Weld County District Court ruling that recently overturned a zoning-repeal election on a west-side Greeley entertainment district anchored by a professional hockey arena.
In that case, a judge found the zoning approval was an administrative decision, not a legislative one, and only legislative decisions can be referred to voters. Legislative decisions create broad laws or policies. Administrative decisions, called quasi-judicial at the county level, apply existing rules to specific cases.
But POWER is moving forward regardless. The Weld County Clerk and Recorder approved two petitions for circulation:
Each petition needs 9,103 valid signatures, which is 5 percent of votes cast in Weld’s last general election. If either measure qualifies, the county charter requires a special election within 60 days.
Global AI says the facility would start at 27.5 megawatts, powered by Poudre Valley REA, and could grow to a gigawatt. The company projects 1,500 construction jobs and 200 permanent jobs. Its closed-loop, air-cooled system would need about 65,000 gallons of water to fill and another 6,500 gallons a year after that. The permit caps noise at 65 dB(C) at the property line and requires continuous monitoring and a decommissioning bond.
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