Group proposes pause in Cass County data center development

OMAHA, Neb. —

Cass County Data Center Watch is asking for an 18-month hold on data center development in the community at the Cass County Planning Commission meeting on Monday.

Cass County Data Center Watch is a group of residents sharing information and encouraging public participation on proposed data center projects. They’re asking for a pause on current data center proposals until the community is given the chance to voice their opinions.

This comes after Tenaska announced June 25 that they optioned 1,354 acres in Cass County along Highway 75 south of Murray and Beaver Lake for a proposed partnership with Google to build a 2,000-acre natural gas power plant and data center. Flatwater Free Press reported on this partnership in March 2026.

Edison McDonald is apart from Cass County Data Center Watch, and he is urging the county to adopt this proposal.

“We’ve got citizens who would rather see a moratorium, basically a pause to ensure that we can go through a quality process,” McDonald said. “We can get the information because there’s not a lot of information; there’s not a lot of specs about what this project is actually going to look like. So we’re trying to make sure that the community members’ voices are going to be heard, trying to make sure that we’ve got quality, thoughtful zoning.”

He says if these companies want to come to Nebraska, they need to be good neighbors and have thoughtful conversations with their communities.

“Family farmers are worried about water access. They’re worried about utility bills,” McDonald said. “They’re worried about low-caliber zoning and ensuring that their community’s going to be protected. And they’re worried about, you know, what is this going to mean for their land and for their future?”

State Sen. Machaela Cavanaugh has already created legislation at the state level requiring these companies to become invested in their communities.

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“Within my bill that was passed is the community benefit piece, which requires them to negotiate directly with the community to reach an agreement on what the data center can do to contribute to the community, to improve economic outcomes, health outcomes and environmental outcomes, and to mitigate any damage. But they have to work in partnership with those people,” said Cavanaugh.

She thinks taking a pause in these decisions for now is important.

“Right now, I think approving any additional data centers without having the data on the environmental impacts of those that we currently have would be, not prudent, in my opinion. I think that seeking moratoriums until we can fully understand the environmental impact is critical, especially as we have a critical need for water,” said Cavanaugh.

Both Cavanaugh and McDonald agree that community members need to have more of a say with these important decisions regarding data centers.

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