Frederick City and County News of Interest VOL. 4, NO. 12 | December 4, 2025

 

VOL. 4, NO. 12  |  December 4, 2025 Frederick City and County News of Interest Please join our monthly email list by clicking here. Learn more about CRG at the bottom of this newsletter. CRG Editorial: Data Centers December is THE month for data center deliberations and decisions that will impact our future for decades. Problematic are pro-business misleading (and erroneous) statements that: hundreds of electrical worker jobs are at stake, jeopardizing salaries exceeding 5 figures (from an International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers [IBEW] mailed flyer delivered to residents); a new estimate of $215M gross in revenues to the County (FNP 11/11); a recent Chamber of Commerce editorial touting huge gross revenues and hundreds of salaried positions, associated incomes, and recovered taxes (FNP 12/1); a FNP Board of Contributors editorial suggesting our County regulations are the most rigorous and protective in the country (FNP 11/22); a US Mail-delivered flyer from the Maryland Tech Council strongly arguing that a much larger portion of the County should be opened to data centers beyond the current limit approximating 1% of the County’s area; a just-delivered survey in a flyer from the Data Center Alliance of Maryland on the benefits of data centers; regional television ads espousing the huge community benefits from data centers; and now a City of Frederick Council initiative to revise the Land Management Code to allow data centers within City limits. CRG accepts that data centers are coming to the County at the Eastalco site, but STRONGLY disagrees with the assertions above because they ignore the well-documented costs generated by data centers in the U.S. and abroad. These costs are not included in any of the revenue projections but must be documented in an INDEPENDENT, UNAFFILIATED cost-benefit analysis that, so far, the County and City Councils have not supported. As well, and disturbingly, data centers are under consideration with no identified sources of power or water. private properties in Baltimore, Carroll, and Frederick counties, including long-term agriculture and businesses, are being lost through eminent domain for the proposed $424M Maryland Piedmont Reliability Project (MPRP) transmission line construction that powers N. VA data centers. Maryland residents will cover the majority of the MPRP transmission lines costs. connecting the Doubs electric substation to a new substation for a permitted data center in the County has a total cost of $33M, with the data center picking up only 8% of the cost, and residents the remainder. electricity costs are projected to increase for residents from 5% to >20%. nearby property values decline reducing property tax revenue and resale value. noise controls are inadequate. there is neither adequate emission control nor protection from hazardous spills. stormwater impacts are ignored for recharging groundwater that fill neighbor wells and baseflow for local streams. impervious surface runoff threatens flooding of neighboring properties and stream erosion, and damage to shrub and down-slope tree buffers and floodplains will occur. And electronic waste (e-waste) is a growing problem that is made far worse by the equipment turnover required in huge, hyperscale data centers. CRG would be on board IF these issues were addressed in comprehensive fiscal analyses and regulations that ensure our new Eastalco industrial neighbors will guarantee protections needed above. However, the smokescreen created in ignoring the threats and easily-adopted regulations must be countered. An option for the County would be to conduct an assessment of the above-noted threats, by gathering information for a year from the first data center built, and using those collected data to determine whether data centers create these issues, or if the business community’s claims are supported. Our County and City are for residents: Our living expenses and quality of life must be first and foremost. Protect those, and data centers might be considered good neighbors! It's critical that you show up at the 12/16 and 12/23 County Council meetings where the final ordinance and subsequent amendments will be decided — details below. Please attend or send comments to councilmembers@frederickcountymd.gov  and copy: CountyExecutive@frederickcountymd.gov PlanningCommission@frederickcountymd.gov Upcoming Meetings and Events Council Legislative Meeting, Tuesday, December 16 at 5:30 pm — Winchester Hall, First Floor Hearing Room Council Workshop, Tuesday, December 23 at 5:30 pm — Winchester Hall, First Floor Hearing Room

See the CRG blog at: responsiblegrowthfrederick.com Contributors: P. Gallagher, R. Huber, S. Jakubczyk, E. Law, R. Robey, M. Rosensweig, K. Sellner. CRG is a grassroots coalition of Frederick residents who prioritize responsible growth, expanding infrastructure, and a functional natural environment. We advocate for development that accommodates projected population increases while fostering a strong and diverse community fabric and increasing economic opportunities. Our comprehensive approach emphasizes public safety, traffic mitigation, increasing school capacity, and housing for all members of our community. Many Frederick residents want to know — but cannot find — information about how to participate in discussions of important local issues. The City and County generally hold meetings from 3–10 p.m., making it impossible for most of us to attend meetings or weigh in on issues of interest. Our mission with this monthly newsletter is to highlight City and County activities so you can learn more and, with your limited time, weigh in on areas of growth and development, City and County policies, and other local activities. Occasionally, opinions or longer stories will be offered by knowledgeable experts/readers. We welcome suggestions for articles focused on specific topics. Contact Kevin Sellner (kgsellner@gmail.com), Marge Rosensweig (marjorierosensweig@gmail.com), or Steve Jakubczyk (jakubczyksteven@gmail.com) for consideration of your issue. We're on Instagram... follow us! Check out our Facebook page!