Data Center Proposed for Harwood Prompts Anger

Applied Digital Vice President Nick Phillips. (Photo by Jeff Beach/North Dakota Monitor)

(North Dakota Monitor) – Residents from in and around Harwood lined up Monday to ask questions about a $3 billion data center planned for the town.

There were questions about noise, water use, jobs and utility bills for officials from data center company Applied Digital and Cass County Electric Co-op. But another theme was how the data center might change Harwood, a town of about 900 people on Interstate 29 north of Fargo.

It was the first meeting on what the company calls an artificial intelligence factory since the project was made public Aug. 18.

“We don’t want Harwood to turn into another Horace,” said Mark Kerkvliet, a 38-year resident of Harwood, referring to the community south of West Fargo that has experienced rapid growth.