STOP THE HERMANTOWN DATA CENTER FILES LAWSUIT AGAINST THE CITY OF HERMANTOWN
City’s lack of transparency in Google Hyperscale Data Center plans exposes City to numerous violations of Minnesota law.
HERMANTOWN, MINNESOTA, APRIL 29, 2026 : – Today, the non-profit citizen group, Stop the Hermantown Data Center (SHDC), served a Complaint on the City of Hermantown alleging the City has violated numerous state laws in its clandestine pursuit of the Google hyperscale data center development in the Adolph neighborhood. The City’s actions in drafting and approving the most recent Hermantown 2045 Comprehensive Plan and decisions regarding rezoning of the Adolph neighborhood have been arbitrary and capricious and taken with no regard for the Adolph Neighborhood Small Area Plan which was adopted in 2015 as an amendment to the City’s Comprehensive Plan – specifically to protect the rural character of the Adolph area.
The City took these actions in a clandestine manner based on the signing of NDAs by the City Administrator John Mulder and Assistant City Administrator Joe Wicklund with the developer. The Complaint alleges that these NDAs were signed without authority from the Council in violation of State law and City Code. The NDAs attempted to circumvent the Minnesota Government Data Practices Act and Minnesota Open Meeting Law by defining public data as confidential data and thereby keeping it hidden from the public.
Hermantown and other area residents overwhelmingly oppose the project- a 1.8 million square foot, 278-acre project in a rural, residential area of the City. The project abuts Midway, Solway, and Thompson township(s) and will affect residents of Proctor, Esko, Duluth, Cloquet, and beyond. The project is inappropriately sited, and includes an environmentally sensitive area surrounded by rural residential homes and agricultural lands. SHDC alleges in its Complaint that the City has violated spot-zoning restrictions and has otherwise improperly changed the zoning in the Adolph neighborhood. The project was developed over years of clandestine efforts by the City to secure the project without public knowledge, input, or adequate environmental assessment.
Emma Richtman explains that: “SHDC is a grass-roots coalition of committed area residents of Hermantown and greater St. Louis and Carlton Counties who want the City of Hermantown to honor its obligations of transparency and integrity when considering such a project. While we are disappointed that we needed to file a lawsuit to appeal the City’s actions and lack of transparency, we found it necessary to try and get a seat at the table to have a say in the plans for the development of a hyperscale data center in our community. We encourage Google to do the right thing by finding a site more suitable for a project of this size.”
To learn more about the efforts of SHDC visit https://Stopthehermantowndatacenter.org or visit SHDC’s FaceBook page: https://www.facebook.com/groups/796960939748436
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| Contact: | Emma Richtman |
| Phone number: | 651-338-2643 |
| Email: | stopthehermantowndatacenter@gmail.com |
| Website: | Stopthehermantowndatacenter.org |
