The City of Port Washington’s Common Council is taking up plans to leverage $458 million in tax incremental financing for the $8 billion artificial intelligence data center campus project.
On Oct. 21, the Common Council reviewed terms for the TIF district (No. 5), which would reimburse Vantage, a Denver-based data center operations and development company, for fronting $175 million in infrastructure improvements, along with interest, consulting fees and other costs associated with the project.
The TIF district was negotiated as part of a development agreement between the city and Vantage approved by the council on Aug. 20. The council did not take any action on the TIF district on Oct. 21. It will consider the measure again on Nov. 4 for final approval by the Joint Review Board on Nov. 18.
That’s right around the time when Vantage said it planned to break ground on the first stage of the project, building four data centers utilizing 1.3 gigawatts on 672 acres of the total 2,000-acre site scoped for the project.
At every step of the way, the proposed TID, or tax increment district, has seen a growing number of opponents seeking to stymy the project and its forward momentum, as well as a growing number of supporters from union workers who would help build the project and were tapped to publicly support the project.
Here’s what to know about the TIF district and what those speakers say about it:
How would the TIF district work to help fund the data center campus, according to the city?
As negotiated in the development agreement, Vantage would pay up front for up to $458 million in infrastructure costs needed to support the project, including construction of a new energy station, a new water tower, repairs and extensions to the city’s water and sewer utilities, consulting fees and payments to the Town of Port Washington for allowing the city to annex the site.
The city would collect incremental property tax value from the campus’ development to repay Vantage for those costs, along with interest at 7%, using a pay-as-you-go structure. This would start on Jan. 1, 2026, with an estimated base value of $121 million.
Overall, the reimbursement amounts to under 6% of Vantage’s total $8 billion investment.
How would the TIF district benefit the city of Port Washington?
When Vantage is repaid and the TIF closes after a projected 18 years or maximum of 20 years, the expanded tax base would return to the city’s general tax rolls. Once the TID closes, the city would receive an influx of new tax revenue each year, relieving resident taxpayers who currently bear around 80% of the city’s tax burden, according to city estimates.
Vantage is assuming the risk, city leaders have sought to assure residents concerned about the long-term viability of the project or the chatters of an AI bubble. If the project falls through or is unable generate enough incremental tax revenue, Vantage won’t be paid back.
Both the city’s Joint Review Board and the Plan Commission unanimously recommended approval of the new TIF district on Oct. 16.
Overall, the city estimates the $8 billion project would likely increase Port Washington’s valuation by up to $120 million, an amount equivalent to over a decade of new development in the city, Port Washington Mayor Ted Neitzke has previously said.
Port Washington’s data center campus project continues to see persistent pushback
Since it was proposed in January, the project has seen persisting criticism from a few dozen local residents who regularly attend city meetings.
But starting in October, the project has seen a growing number of opponents hoping to stop the project, reaching into the hundreds, as more neighbors of the project and residents from nearby suburbs where proposed power lines for the project would run.
And their criticisms of the project’s enormous energy needs, the scale of new energy infrastructure that would be built (including 100 miles of transmission lines), possible environmental impacts, and the lack of scrutiny toward AI have only grown fiercer.
The Oct. 21 meeting was no different with at least a hundred in attendance, over 20 speaking against the project.
But the last few meetings have also seen a smaller but growing number of union workers tapped to publicly support the project and speak to its temporary job creation benefits. Around five of them spoke at the meeting, though around two dozen total attended.
It’s why the city decided to hold the Oct. 21 meeting in a banquet center at a nearby Holiday Inn Express, according to a notice sent the day before. It’s also why the city has placed around a dozen police officers at several of these meetings.
What do meeting attendees have to say about the project and the TIF district?
Echoing concerns expressed at previous meetings, several attendees beseeched the council to seek an independent environmental impact study that does not rely on Vantage’s self-assessments.
Among them was Cedarburg resident Lucille Henson, who asked how the council could move forward with such a massive project without examining its long-term environmental impacts. Port Washington resident Mike Jenkins criticized city officials for asking residents to simply trust Vantage studies.
“Every action creates ripples,” Port Washington resident Scott Lone said. “Every decision sends out concentric circles that reach far beyond the moment.”
Others were critical of the TIF district. Port Washington resident Sarah Eischen-Cullen asked, “Why should Vantage be reimbursed for infrastructure upgrade costs when these costs are because of their data center project? We have what they want. We have the land. We have the water. And we have the say so. Why should we be giving them a break?”
Attendees like Cascade resident Dan Jones, Port Washington resident Caleb Tydrick and West Bend resident Roxanne Ramirez criticized the project’s expressed purpose of advancing AI, which they said is being used to surveil American citizens, sell their data, and cut jobs.
Union workers from engineering and construction groups spoke in support of the project, emphasizing the estimated 4,000 temporary jobs the project would create and the economic boost that would give to the city. Many of them said the utility upgrades required by the project would only improve Wisconsin’s energy infrastructure and local communities.
“This is a huge opportunity for us,” said Scott Kenoki, president of Sheet Metal Workers Labor Union 18.
At the close of the meeting, several opponents called from the crowd for a referendum, echoing the comments of speakers like Saukville resident Katie Beilfuss. During her comments, she said she was surprised by the council’s constant unanimous support for the project, in spite of attendees’ mounting concerns.
“This is not how local government is supposed to work,” she said. “Residents are begging you to stop, and not a single one of you, has made any dissenting votes.”
(This story was updated to change or add a photo or video.)
Contact Claudia Levens at clevens@gannett.com. Follow her on X at @levensc13.
This article originally appeared on Milwaukee Journal Sentinel: Port Washington considers $458 million TIF for $8 billion AI data center project
Reporting by Claudia Levens, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel / Milwaukee Journal Sentinel
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