Residents urge pause on proposed data center, cite water and health concerns

Dozens of residents used the public-comment period at Rockford’s June 1 City Council meeting to press elected officials to slow or pause city review of a proposed data center and any associated Tax Increment Financing (TIF) actions.

Ren Medina told the council that the city “has a long history of profiting off the murder of children and innocent humans,” and said a data center and related industrialization near homes and farmland would threaten local water sources, birds and residents’ physical and mental health. “We want clean water. We want to hear the birds in the morning,” Medina said.

Patty Bremer said she had asked the mayor about an emergency or disaster plan for a data center and was told the city could not create such a plan without a formal proposal. Bremer cited a recent Illinois law she said requires developers to disclose catastrophic-risk studies for AI systems and argued the city must insist on transparency and industry-compliant risk assessments before approving land deals or zoning changes.

Robert Pace asked the council to impose a six-month moratorium on “all data center related reviews and votes,” saying the pause would give officials time to understand the facilities’ local impacts, including effects on privacy and community autonomy.

Councilmembers did not take a formal vote on any moratorium at the meeting. City staff and speakers noted that county and state officials have been involved in longer-term coordination around the proposal; Bremer said Wnebago County Chairman Joseph Gerielli described the project as the result of multi-year coordination between federal, local and state partners.

Why it matters: Council members will next consider zoning and committee schedules tied to the proposed development. Public commenters asked the council to withhold approvals for TIF or zoning changes until the city can review environmental, disaster-planning and transparency measures; those requests, if acted on, would change the timeline for staff and committee review.

What’s next: Councilmembers asked staff for scheduling information; city staff later indicated the South Industrial TIF and related items would be rescheduled to planning and development committee roughly three weeks from the meeting (around June 22), where council will have another opportunity to question staff and proponents.

Quotes: “Don’t give Rockford’s beauty to another smoke screen,” Ren Medina said during public comment. “We are begging you to stop,” Patty Bremer told the council.

Ending: The council heard several public pleas and noted the project’s multi-jurisdictional coordination, but took no formal action on a moratorium during the meeting. The matter is expected to return to committee for further review.