HomeMy WebLinkAbout01 26 2026 Public Comment - Data Center - Britt SmithCAUTION: This email originated from an External Source. Please use proper judgment and caution when opening
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From:Britt Smith
To:City Clerk; Public Comments
Cc:stopgilroydatacenternow@gmail.com
Subject:EXTERNAL - Public Comment: Gilroy Data Center
Date:Monday, January 26, 2026 11:48:01 AM
Attachments:BSmith_012626_PublicComment.pdf
Hi there,
Attached is my statement for Public Comment at today's City Council meeting. Please let me
know if there are any issues with accessing the document.
I look forward to seeing you this evening.
Britt
Good evening to my neighbors on the council, in the gallery, and watching online. I’m Britt
Smith, a community organizer with Stop Gilroy Data Center Now—a group of concerned citizens
representing 1,670 petition signees—who are eager to collaborate with councilmembers, city
staff, and the project applicant to better understand the timeline, economic impact, and
environmental risks associated with the Amazon Web Services Data Center.
I stood before you earlier this month with three questions:
1. What is the projected daily water usage for this facility in gallons?
2. What are the risks associated with water safety, including human health and agricultural
productivity?
3. How would the City of Gilroy be responsible for an emergency should one occur on the
site?
Following our comments on January 5, city staff promptly compiled a 7-page online document
called Gilroy Data Center Fact Sheet. I want to express gratitude for the timely reaction, quickly
condensing thousands of pages of reports, studies, and communications into a concise
resource.
We recognize that involved parties followed the letter of the law in review and approval of this
project. However it is clear, and has been reinforced by members of this council, that our city’s
ordinances are outdated.
The community is now looking to you, our representatives on the council, to ensure your
constituents feel educated on the project as it stands, understand how risks will be mitigated
should AWS require additional resources, and ensure our ordinances are amended to bring
transparency and accountability to community development projects in the future.
Our hometown continues to grow beyond its agricultural roots, welcoming economic expansion
that will boost employment and tax revenue, but we believe that development must be managed
responsibly and in partnership with residents.
We ask the council to now hire a third party expert to liaise between project applicant,
community, and city staff to write comprehensive regulation that will apply to this
project’s expansion and any future projects of similar complexity.
Thank you for your time and we look forward to collaborating.