Brian Ingram thinks of himself as a typical family man. He lives with his wife, Chandra, and his son in the home they built from scratch.
“We have chickens right now, and we are looking to get some goats,” he said. “We built this house and we finished it around 2001. This is where I plan on dying.”
The Ingram family lives outside Sand Springs city limits in Osage County, not far from a proposed 827-acre hyperscale data center called Project Spring. The developer, White Rose Partners, says Google is the likely end user.
The City of Sand Springs annexed county land for the proposed facility last June — but Ingram’s family and their neighbors did not find out until November. The project has since caused a fury among the city’s nearly 20,000 residents for a long list of reasons, ranging from land usage to the fear of increased utility rates.
‘We don’t have a voice either’
Ingram approached city leaders about his concerns, but he says Mayor Jim Spoon told him residents outside city limits have no vote or say in what the city does next. Spoon said the same to the Flyer.
“They don’t have an elected official representing them,” Spoon said. “It kind of is what it is. The representation is in the county, not the city.”
In front of the Ingram family home, several large yellow signs aim to raise awareness. They say they feel voiceless and scared — stuck between a rock and a hard place.
“My biggest fear is someone coming in and changing my way of life that is not expected. Almost like we are being invaded,” Ingram said.
Across the street from the Ingrams are Neal and Lita Blevins. The couple is in the same boat.
“We can’t vote on the council or the mayor or anyone who is making these decisions for us,” Lita Blevins said. “So even though we are not represented out here, they have annexed this area out here where they are making the decisions because it is a part of Sand Springs now. But it is right in the middle of us.”
Even Osage County officials say they can’t do much. Commissioner Steve Talburt, who represents the area near the proposed data center, spoke with Ingram and several other constituents.
Osage County officials are included in decisions for potential tax agreements but otherwise have no say, Talburt told the Flyer.
“From where we stand, we don’t have a voice either,” he said. “Sand Springs City has all of the say on what happens with the data center. They went around us. They did not ask us anything when they went to do the annexation. It should have been brought to us as well, but they don’t necessarily have to.”
When news of the annexation spread before the holidays, it was met with pushback — and an eventual lawsuit. Protect Sand Springs Alliance, a grassroots anti-data center group, sued the city earlier this month to overturn the annexation. According to court documents, the group claims the city violated state annexation laws and ignored community input.
City officials have since rebutted those claims, saying they followed the necessary statues. The city filed a motion to dismiss the lawsuit Jan. 16.
‘Annexation without representation’
Other residents voiced similar complaints at a Jan. 20 Sand Spring city council meeting focused on the project.
Amanda Sellers lives two miles north of where Project Spring is planned. While Sellers’ home is outside of city limits, her children attend Sand Springs schools and she uses city water.
Sellers attended a number of community meetings and reached out to elected officials, but she says nothing has come of her efforts.
She and others like her are a minority in the community, Sellers said. They feel “silenced” and like their voices are small.
“When you say you have taxation without representation, basically we have annexation without representation,” she added.
Candace Slaten is another resident who lives in the county jurisdiction but teaches at Sand Springs Public Schools’ Pratt Elementary.
Slaten wants more answers from officials, but she’s not optimistic — and she’s worried about life after the data center moves in.
“It is extremely stressful, this is 200 feet off my property line,” Slaten said. “Just the thought of my kids not being able to sleep at night and or not being able to live the life we chose for them, and my voice does not matter because I can’t vote.”
What’s next
The City of Sand Springs held a special planning commission meeting Tuesday night where, despite heavy opposition from residents, commissioners voted to rezone the land from residential to light industrial, allowing Project Spring to move forward.
Another city council hearing is set for Feb. 3 where councilors will take a final vote on the proposal.
This story was updated.
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