There’s been a lot of chatter lately about Teresa Earnhardt’s plans to sell all or part of the 300-acre Earnhardt property- potentially for the construction of a new data center and technology park. If you haven’t heard, it’s caused quite a stir. The truth is, it’s her land, and she has every right to sell it to whomever she chooses. And if the town or county approves the project, the new owners have the right to use it as they see fit within those parameters.

Not knowing much about data centers myself, I decided to do a little research over the past few weeks.

Before I dive into what I found, let me be clear: I’m not taking sides here. I don’t have a dog in this fight. I have my own opinion, but I’ll keep that to myself. This is just what I’ve learned.

Before I get into the pros and cons I want to share a personal story. About eight years ago, I was invited to tour the Facebook data center campus in Forest City, NC and I jumped at the opportunity. I didn’t know what to expect but I was shocked by what I saw. At the time, the facility consisted of two massive buildings- now it has three I believe. Inside? Servers. Miles of them. Its almost indescribable. The rows stretched so far they disappeared into a vanishing point at times. There was no traditional air conditioning. Instead, the facility used a system of swamp chillers- huge fans that pull outside air through water-cooled filters. The cool air enters from the lower level, moves upwards through the server racks, and exits through vents on the top floor where the fans are.

The filters have water misters in front of them which is pulled into them by the fans above. The misting cools the air before it goes up though the servers. The filters need to be cleaned weekly. Why? Because the fans are so powerful that they pull BRAKE DUST from highway 74. So much so that it clogs the filters if not cleaned regular. Let THAT sink in. The fans are sucking brake dust from a highway half a mile away! I’m not kidding.

It was impressive

But the one thing that really stuck with me: The people- or lack of them. Despite walking through every square foot of both buildings, including the offices, I saw maybe 10 people total. Which would explain why there were only a few parking spaces out front.

Now, I’m not claiming that one tour makes me a data center expert, but I did learn a few things:

• They use a lot of power. The Forest City Facebook facility had its own substation.
• They use a lot of water, at least with the cooling system that was in place at this facility.
• And they don’t create many jobs– at least not once construction is complete.

So again, I’m not advocating for or against the proposed data center that might be built on the Earnhardt property. But here are the pros and cons I’ve come up with based on what I’ve learned:

Pros, Cons, And Real World Examples of Data Centers

Small Data Center

• Size: A few thousand square feet
• Jobs: 10–30 direct employees

Mid-Sized Data Center

• Size: 50,000–100,000 square feet
• Jobs: 30–100 direct employees (Not what I experienced during my tour)

“Hyperscale” Data Center (Which is Proposed for Mooresville)

• Size: 100,000+ square feet (Amazon, Google, Meta)
• Jobs: 100–300+ per site (during operation)
• Construction phase: May employ 1,000+ workers temporarily

Potential Benefits for Mooresville

1. Major Tax Revenue Boost (Long-Term)

• A hyperscale facility (usually $500M–$1B+) could:
• Generate millions in annual property tax once incentives expire.
• Add significant utility and business license tax revenue.
• Support bond-funded projects (schools, roads, police/fire).

2. Short-Term Construction Jobs

• 1,000+ temporary jobs during the 1–3 year build-out phase.
• Increased demand for:
• Local contractors
• Equipment rental
• Hotels and restaurants

3. Infrastructure Upgrades

• Potential for major investment in:
• Power substations
• Fiber-optic networks
• Water/sewer systems
• Improvements may benefit residents and attract other businesses.

4. Could attract more businesses and people from other areas

• Could help Mooresville attract:
• High-skill tech workers
• Satellite companies and vendors
• Remote workers who want high-speed infrastructure

5. Community Contributions

• Hyperscale operators often fund:
• Local STEM programs
• Environmental offsets (solar panels, tree planting, conservation easements)Nonprofit grants for schools and emergency services

Potential Negative Impact for Mooresville

1. Strain on Power & Utilities

Data centers require 30–100+ megawatts of continuous power. That’s equivalent to thousands of homes.
This could:

• Strain local power grid
• Lead to higher utility costs for residents and businesses
• Require new transmission lines
• Increase electricity costs for residents over time
• Delay or divert utility upgrades for residential areas
• Local utilities may need to build new substations or transmission lines, which can be controversial or costly.

2. Massive Water Usage

• Especially if using water-cooled systems like Forest City.
• Unless air cooled—studies show that data centers use millions of gallons of water per day.
• Could deplete or lower groundwater levels if wells are used or stress Mooresville’s water treatment facility.

3. Few Long-Term Jobs

• Hyperscale centers are highly automated:
• Often only 30–100 full-time staff.
• Skilled labor often imported from elsewhere.
• Minimal benefit to average local job seekers.

4. Zoning and Land Use Conflict

• Could alter the landscape of Hwy 3.
• Potential noise, fencing, and truck traffic could affect nearby property values.
• Community push back.
• Dale may turn over in his grave.

5. Tax Incentives Could Delay ROI

• Mooresville or Iredell County may offer decade-long tax breaks to attract the facility.
• That could mean little short-term revenue despite major infrastructure burdens.

6. Real Estate Values and Business Impacts

• Minimal boost to home sales given small long-term employment opportunity.
• Unlikely to boost surrounding property values—at least not home values.
• Unlike factories, schools, or shopping centers, data centers: Don’t bring much foot traffic and rarely attract complementary businesses.

Real World Examples

Facebook (Meta) – Forest City, NC

• Investment: $1 billion+
• Incentives: Property and sales tax breaks
• Local tax revenue: Estimated $500K–$1M annually (after incentives)
• Negative impacts unknown

Google – Lenoir, NC

• Investment: $600M
• Local benefits):
• $2M/year in utility and indirect economic activity
• Ongoing community grants and STEM education support
• Negative impacts unknown

Switch Data Center – Grand Rapids, MI

• Capital investment: $5 billion
• Estimated taxes (after incentives): $3M–$5M/year locally, plus state-level income and utility tax revenue
• Negative impacts unknown

Final Thought:

From what I understand, the planned data center would fall into the hyperscale category. Should the project move forward- For Mooresville, the key will be negotiating from a position of strength making sure the community gains real, long-term value, that environmental protections are upheld, and that infrastructure improvements benefit residents, not just the data center. Let’s not give away Dales farm.

Yes, millions in tax revenue sounds great, but not if we have to wait 10 or 20 years to see any of it.