Hyperscale Data Centers
The Boston Globe published an article today, titled, “Amid boom in data centers and AI, Massachusetts towns are pushing back”
Link: https://www.bostonglobe.com/2026/05/18/business/data-centers-lowell-massachusetts-towns/
Basically the takeaway is that the new hyper scale data centers are bad for communities due to noise and environmental pollution, water usage, utility costs, etc, and that other MA towns are preemptively banning them.
Waltham already has data centers, but they are “dot com boom” era data centers which are much smaller and less intensive than the “hyperscale” data centers used by AI today. However, I’m concerned that because of our local zoning which already allows for data centers, Waltham will have new data centers soon.
My particular concern stems from that our Mayor, who is business friendly (which can be a reasonable stance in many cases) will be inclined to simply allow this to happen. I’m worried about a fait accompli where we end up with a new Hyperscale center with no public input. We’ve been surprised recently with things like Flock cameras, and the city councilors seem completely out of the loop and powerless.
Our town already bears a huge burden of regional industrial capacity. Nobody will be building a data center in Lexington, Weston, Newton, Lincoln, Belmont etc. Usually we’ve been OK with this because our tax burden is lighter due to our industries. But according to this article, the costs of water, utility buildouts and energy will all rise for town residents due to hyperscale data centers.
What can Waltham residents do to ensure that our town also protects itself from this industry? As other towns in MA fight the data centers, I’m sure one will come knocking here soon. Curious to hear others thoughts. Maybe people will disagree with me and I’d be curious to hear those takes as well.