Harwood backs data center expansion in rare pro-development election outcome
Harwood, a North Dakota town near Fargo, stands out from a broader election cycle in which most local ballot measures on data centers move toward tighter limits. Voters there reject a charter amendment that would have added new procedural hurdles for large industrial projects, including AI-related facilities.
Highlights
- Harwood is the only locality among 45 data center ballot measures this election cycle to deliver a pro-development outcome, according to Redbud Consulting data.
- Roughly 75% of 430 voters in Harwood opposed an initiative to tighten official oversight of industrial projects like data centers through independent reviews and public hearings.
- Applied Digital Corp. is constructing a 160-acre data center for Oracle in Harwood, scheduled to be operational next year with expansion potential up to 900 acres.
Ballot result follows fight over project oversight
As first reported by Fortune, Harwood is the only locality among 45 data center ballot measures in the latest election to produce a pro-development result, according to data cited from Redbud Consulting. Roughly 75% of the 430 votes cast on Tuesday oppose the initiative, which seeks to amend the town's Home Rule Charter to tighten how officials review, approve and administer major development projects.The proposed amendment calls for steps such as independent reviews and public hearings for industrial developments including data centers. The measure emerges after the groundbreaking of a 160-acre data center in Harwood overseen by Applied Digital Corp., with Oracle as the end-user, a project scheduled to become fully operational next year and with potential to expand to 900 acres.
Michael Swartz, a senior software developer who has lived in Harwood for nearly 20 years, says the election result does not settle longer-term concerns about the local impact of data center growth. Swartz leads the push behind the ballot measure and argues the expansion could harm the area, while his group, Voices of Harwood, gathers 91 signatures in three days to place the initiative on the ballot.
Our earlier article on U.S. AI data center expansion highlighted how the boom is increasingly colliding with real-world constraints, from higher financing costs and construction delays to limits on available power. We also noted that community pushback and tighter local scrutiny are becoming another key hurdle, raising doubts about how quickly large-scale projects can be delivered as planned.
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