Is an AI Data Center Coming to Your Backyard? What It's Like in Retirement

From Virginia to California, more than 3,000 data centers are operational across America, with an additional 1,500 coming online. These data centers power people's digital lives worldwide and make the AI revolution possible. They bring jobs and, in many cases, revitalize communities.

But at what cost to the retirees who live there? Are the improvements worth the side effects — disappearing farmland, noise and air pollution, excessive water waste and higher utility rates?

That's what residents in towns across America are asking, and for now the answer seems to be no. A recent Gallup poll found that seven in ten Americans oppose building an AI data center in their local area. These findings were consistent across age groups.

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Turning down $10,000 checks

Take the residents of Hazle Township, Pennsylvania. NorthPoint Development, a real estate development firm, wants to build a 1,300-acre data center campus, arguing it will bring jobs and boost the local economy. Most in town oppose it, including the Board of Supervisors, which previously voted to enact a temporary moratorium on new data center construction.

NorthPoint Development is undeterred, challenging the moratorium in court and even offering a $10,000 check to each of the roughly 4,500 households if the data center gets built. Nonetheless, it isn't winning any favor.

Then there are the residents of Box Elder County, Utah. They are fighting to stop a massive 40,000-acre data center project from going ahead, arguing that it will drain precious water resources, create relentless noise pollution, cause health issues and leave locals with the environmental fallout — all while the tech giants receive tax breaks.

They've heard the stories — towns running out of water or electric grids failing — and don't want to see their way of life disrupted, too.

"Data centers are bad for the people in the surrounding areas," says Breena Williams, a retiree who lives in Box Elder County, where the massive Stratos Data Center is being built. "If you look at the experiences of other people, that's my understanding."

This map shows whether a data center is nearby.

Living near a data center: the common complaints

When it comes to living near a data center, residents, environmentalists, lawmakers and consumer advocates point to several side effects that can negatively impact the quality of life. Some of them include:

Air pollution
Data centers emit hazardous pollutants, such as nitrogen oxides and fine particulate matter, increasing the rate of respiratory diseases and cardiovascular risk. These emissions are from two sources: the data centers themselves and their backup (often diesel) generators, and the energy required, usually from the electric grid, to power these centers.

U.S. data centers are projected to contribute to nearly 1,300 deaths in 2030, resulting in a health burden of over $20 billion for Americans, according to Cornell University research.

Air pollutants concern residents of Box Elder County. The proposed Stratos facility is expected to hasten the evaporation of the Great Salt Lake, which could in turn create a heat island, according to the Salt Lake Tribune. The more lakebed exposed, the more arsenic and other heavy metals can enter the air.

"I have grandchildren with asthma. I'm really worried about them," says Williams.

Noise pollution
The sound of the generators and the heating and cooling systems creates a constant hum that can be heard hundreds of feet away. Day and night, residents complain of noise pollution that is not only annoying but potentially harmful to hearing.

That was the case for people living next to a data center in Brittany Heights, in Chandler, Arizona. The never-ending high-pitched buzz coming from the data center reportedly rattled windows at night.

It got so bad that residents complained they couldn't sleep and that the noise caused health issues, including vertigo and anxiety. The outcry eventually prompted the city to change its zoning laws to include sound mitigation ordinances.

Water consumption
Data centers need water to keep the computer equipment cool, with a large data center using as much as 5 million gallons of water a day. They tap local resources for that water, draining what is left for residents. It can become a problem when the data center is located in a region with limited water.

Residents of The Dalles, Oregon, learned that the hard way. Thanks to its energy infrastructure, water availability and vast land available for development, the community had become a favorite of many major tech companies looking to set down roots for data centers.

But when Google wanted to expand and wouldn't disclose how much water it consumes, it sparked a 13-month legal battle. When Google finally released its water consumption, it showed the data center used almost 40% of the city's water supply.

Higher utility prices
Data centers need a massive amount of electricity, but critics contend they don't pay full price for that. Residential customers must pay more as a result.

A study by Carnegie Mellon University projected that, by 2030, data center growth will drive regional demand by 20% to 30% annually. That will increase electricity bills by an estimated 8% nationally and up to 25% in some regions.

"These large data centers use so much energy, put so much pressure on the local utility systems, they have to invest in a ton of infrastructure upgrades," says Jenn Jones, vice president of financial security and livable communities at AARP. AARP is backing legislation that protects consumers when data centers come to their neighborhoods. "We don't think those costs should be borne by consumers, especially older adults living on a fixed income."

Older adults seem to agree. A national AARP survey found 78% of adults age 50+ believe large data centers should pay their own way, and 75% agree that state policymakers should act to protect consumers from rising utility costs tied to data centers.

Property value pressures

The jury is still out as to the impact living near a data center has on the sale of your home. In some areas, it can boost property values; in others depress them.

A 2025 George Mason study of Virginia, a state with a high concentration of data centers, found that they increased property values. The reason: Data centers tend to be located in areas that already have good roads, reliable utilities, and are close to airports — attributes that homebuyers also want.

But that isn't putting residents at ease. Williams of Box Elder County is worried that Stratos could make the land near it uninhabitable, which would drive property values down.

"I think after this goes into effect, people won't be able to sell their homes, and people will be stuck," says Williams, who is worried enough to consider putting her house up for sale. "Something away from a data center, if we can find it."

Source: DataCenterMap

Can the benefits really be overlooked?

There are reasons to be concerned about the impact of data centers, but they also bring significant economic upside. After all, these data centers pay taxes, create jobs and build infrastructure to support them. That can revitalize a community that would otherwise struggle. Tax revenue can fund community upgrades, support schools and provide services retirees rely on.

According to the Data Center Coalition, an industry trade group, in 2024 the U.S. data center industry supported 5.5 million jobs, contributed $927 billion to the U.S. GDP and generated $204 billion in federal, state and local taxes.

"The trade-off of having data centers is they bring jobs, tax revenue, infrastructure and economic development," says Sanjay Patnaik, a senior fellow and director of the Center on Regulation and Markets at Brookings. "You need some economic activity in a county, otherwise you don't have tax revenue."

There's also the potential national security risk that Shark Tank's Kevin O'Leary — one of the investors behind the Stratos data center in Box Elder County, Utah — points to. He reportedly says the U.S. needs more data centers like Stratos to stay ahead of China in the AI "arms race."

Time will tell

Data centers will continue to pop up, and residents will lose some battles and win others in their fights to stop them.

But whether you support one coming to your retirement community boils down to a cost-benefit analysis. Are the economic benefits more important than the environmental and health risks?

"I would advise people to look at what the alternative is," says Patnaik. "Do they want to have a data center in their backyard and get some economic growth, or do they want nothing in their backyard?"

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