A local official in Kansas City, Missouri, has spoken out against tax breaks given to a recently announced data center campus.

As reported by Fox, Platte County Presiding Commissioner Scott Fricker has said he “can’t support Project Kestrel” because it will give “massive property and sales tax subsidies to the world’s largest and richest corporations” at the expense of Northland residents.

“Instead of handing out billions of dollars in subsidies to massive out-of-state corporations on projects that don’t benefit the people of Platte County, let's focus on sustainable growth that strengthens our local services, supports small businesses, and protects households,” he said.

The Port KC (Port Authority of Kansas City) government announced plans for a $100 billion data center campus in the Northland area of the city in August. The development is known as Project Kestrel, with the company behind the Shenandoah Computing LLC affiliate.

Planned on 379 acres of land within an existing industrial mega site, KCI-29, the project will consist of six data centers totaling up to 1.8 million sq ft (167,225 sqm) upon full build-out. Construction on the first phase is set to begin in 2026.

“This data center represents more than just a technology investment—it’s a long-term partnership with our community,” said Jon Stephens, CEO of Port KC, at the time. “From strengthening workforce development and education programs to improving infrastructure and creating high-value jobs, this project will help power both the digital economy and local opportunity for decades to come.”

The Port Authority of Kansas City has granted the project a 35-year tax abatement for the development.

The operator behind Project Kestrel hasn’t been named, but has been described by Port KC as a leading global technology company.

BizJournal reports the development may be linked to Google, which already has a presence around Kansas City. Google did not provide comment to the publication about its involvement.

“The problem is, there is just no information,” Commissioner Fricker said in an interview with FOX4. “Port KC has no obligation to tell us anything, and we’re just left guessing.”

Earlier this year, Google-linked Project Mica was granted $10 billion in bonds by the Port Authority of Kansas City. The 500-acre site, off the northeast corner of Interstate 435 and 169 Highway in Clay County, is set to host five data centers totaling 1.56 million sq ft (144,928 sqm). The site will total 700MW, according to Port KC.

Google also owns another plot of land in Northland where it is planning a data center campus. October 2023 saw the company file (and later gain permission) to develop up to 1.435 million sq ft (133,316 sqm) of data center floor space on 315 acres in the Hunt Midwest Business Center. The land, located northeast of Parvin Road and Arlington Avenue, was purchased in two transactions, one in 2019 and another in December 2021.