By Unanimous Vote, East Fishkill Town Board Passes 3 Year Moratorium On Data Centers
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On Thursday evening, after the East Fishkill Town Board voted on a 3 year moratorium on data centers, Mike Schade wrote into A Little Beacon Blog as a followup to our earlier article about the anticipated vote to pass the moratorium, to report in that the Board voted unanimously to pass the moratorium. He CCed Fran Caracappa, who said: “I live in East Fishkill, and the site is in my legislative District 21 - for which I am running for County Legislator. We will see how the town prepares its review during the moratorium.”
This action to pass the 3 year moratorium is sparked by interest in Treetop Companies inquiry to East Fishkill to build a data center instead of the 1,161,515 SF warehouse they are currently planning for.
News12 Hudson Valley reported that Town Supervisor Nick D'Alessandro “has been reminding the community that Treetop has never submitted a formal application for the project nor a site plan, and that current zoning laws do not allow standalone data centers.” Nick acknowledged to his constituents and to News12 that “any landowner and/or developer is free to explore new uses for their land, but that exploration is far from any approved project.”
During the Town Board Meeting, recent college graduate, James Quinlin, was quoted by News12 as being concerned about Treetop’s interest, and appreciated the early backlash. The media outlet reported: “He is glad opposition has started early, even before the company submits any site plan or zoning law requests to the town,” News12 stated.
Mike Schade’s statement that he presented during the meeting has been printed in full below. Mike is also running for Dutchess County Legislature, District 17.
“My name is Mike Schade. I live in neighboring Fishkill. Thank you for the opportunity to comment.
“I want to recognize that no formal proposal for a massive data center has been submitted to the Town of East Fishkill. At the same time, the fact that a project of this scale is being evaluated by the New York Independent System Operator raises serious questions and concerns.”
“The AI data center being evaluated by the New York Independent System Operator (NYISO) in East Fishkill should serve as a wake-up call not only for this community, but for communities across the Hudson Valley.
“I have worked to safeguard communities in New York and across the country from environmental health hazards for more than 25 years, including right here in East Fishkill. Going back to 2004, I worked with residents in Hopewell Junction whose drinking water was contaminated by TCE, a cancer-causing chemical from the Hopewell Precision site.
“I was here then, and I would be here now regardless of whether I was running for office. I am committed to protecting the health, water, and well-being of communities throughout the Hudson Valley.
“I want to recognize that no formal proposal for a massive data center has been submitted to the Town of East Fishkill. At the same time, the fact that a project of this scale is being evaluated by the New York Independent System Operator raises serious questions and concerns.
“I want to thank the Town Supervisor and Town Board for listening to residents and considering a three-year moratorium. Given the scale of this facility being evaluated and the questions it raises, that is a prudent and responsible step.
“According to the Times Union, the East Fishkill AI data center being evaluated could require as much electricity as approximately 800,000 homes. To put that into perspective, the facility could require more than six times the electricity used by all homes in Dutchess County combined, and roughly 80 times the number of homes in East Fishkill.
“I want to thank the Town Supervisor and Town Board for listening to residents and considering a three-year moratorium.”
“That’s simply staggering. No community should be expected to absorb that kind of demand without asking very tough questions first. When one project requires more than six times the electricity needed to power every home in Dutchess County, we’re not talking about neighborhood development anymore. We’re talking about a massive industrial-scale facility operating 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with impacts that could extend far beyond East Fishkill.
“At a time when families are struggling to pay their utility bills, residents should not be asked to shoulder the costs of infrastructure upgrades needed to serve some of the largest and wealthiest corporations in the world.
“The Hudson Valley should absolutely welcome economic development. But development should strengthen communities, not strain infrastructure or diminish quality of life. Responsible growth means planning for the future, not gambling with it.
“I strongly encourage the Town Board to adopt this moratorium. In closing, I want to thank the Town Board for considering for this important measure.”
Town Supervisor Nick stressed to News12 that the moratorium “alone would halt an application. Bbut I think that those large data centers — I don't see a future for them in the Hudson Valley. We just don't have the space."
