Red Oak residents packed City Hall and waited outside Monday night to protest a proposal to rezone nearly 830 acres of agricultural farmland for a new data center campus.
The standing-room-only meeting drew more than 100 people as the Red Oak City Council considered the project on the east side of town in Ellis County. Residents raised concerns about constant noise from cooling systems, added strain on the power grid, increased traffic and the development’s proximity to Red Oak High School and the junior high.
Several speakers said the facility would permanently change the suburban character of the community, located about 18 miles south of downtown Dallas along Interstate 35E.
City officials told the crowd the data center would not draw on municipal water supplies for cooling and would bring millions of dollars in new tax revenue. Public comment was limited to one hour for opponents and one hour for supporters before the council went into executive session.
Red Oak residents turned out in record numbers to a heated City Council meeting to protest a proposed 800-acre data center project, citing concerns over noise, power usage, and the impact on local schools. https://t.co/EF2QTUuYCB
— FOX 4 NEWS (@FOX4) May 12, 2026
The emotionally charged meeting stretched nearly five hours. Late Monday night, the council voted 4-1 to approve rezoning the land for high-tech industrial use and granted a tax abatement for the project by Compass Datacenters. No injuries or other incidents were reported.
Red Oak has seen several data centers proposed or built in recent years, part of North Texas’s emergence as a major hub for the industry. Supporters point to economic growth, while opponents have formed grassroots groups calling for tighter limits on future developments to protect residential and agricultural areas.
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