{"componentChunkName":"component---src-templates-insight-jsx","path":"/insight/what-data-center-developers-should-do-during-new-yorks-data-center-moratorium","result":{"data":{"prismic":{"insightByUID":{"title":[{"type":"heading1","text":"What Data Center Developers Should Do During New York’s Data Center Moratorium ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"}],"category":{"__typename":"PRISMIC_Category","name":"In-house Experts"},"author":{"__typename":"PRISMIC_Person","name":"Freeman Klopott"},"feature_image":{"dimensions":{"width":5500,"height":2972},"alt":null,"copyright":null,"url":"https://images.prismic.io/marino-pr/S8RjBm4_U_cA53To_iStock-2227509596.jpg?auto=format,compress"},"related_case_study":null,"body":[{"__typename":"PRISMIC_InsightBodyText","type":"text","primary":{"content":[{"type":"paragraph","text":"New York’s moratorium on large-scale data center development is hampering industry growth, but it also presents an opportunity for developers to do a reset in the communities where they’re trying to build by strengthening community engagement, addressing concerns about energy and water use, demonstrating local economic benefits, and ultimately building public support before projects move forward again. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"Across New York, data center projects have faced organized opposition, packed public hearings, petitions, litigation and disputes over public subsidies. Securing approvals will require more than demonstrating that a project is technically or economically viable. Developers need a community engagement and public affairs strategy that shows why a specific data center belongs in a specific community and what that community will gain from it. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"With the moratorium in place, now is the time to re-engage with communities where projects are proposed.  ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"heading3","text":"Data Center Community Engagement Should Start With Stakeholder Mapping ","spans":[{"start":0,"end":70,"type":"strong"}],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"The first step in a successful data center community engagement strategy is understanding who and what matters locally. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"Developers should conduct, or revisit, stakeholder mapping to identify elected officials, community and neighborhood leaders, environmental groups, organized labor, business organizations, educational institutions, and other influential voices that can play a role in the project approval process.  ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"Developers who mapped stakeholders when projects were first proposed should do it again. Months of public debate have clarified positions as opposition groups have organized and elected officials have weighed in. The context in which these projects were first introduced has changed. The approach to community engagement and the message that’s being delivered should change with it.  ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"Remapping can identify who supports a project, who opposes it, who remains persuadable, and what is driving those positions. It can also help determine which messages and messengers will be most credible with different audiences. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"heading3","text":"Meet With Community Stakeholders and Listen ","spans":[{"start":0,"end":43,"type":"strong"}],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"Once stakeholders have been identified, developers should begin direct outreach. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"Start with influential community stakeholders individually or in small groups to understand their priorities and concerns. Then expand the engagement to the broader community through listening sessions where residents can raise concerns and ask questions. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"It’s critical that these are actually listening sessions and not presentations designed to sell the project. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"From these listening sessions, developers can gain a deeper understanding of what is driving opposition locally. Is it electricity demand or water consumption? Utility rates or tax incentives? Environmental or construction impacts? Or skepticism that the project will produce enough economic benefit to justify those impacts? Most likely, it’s a mix of all of these though each community will have its own priorities that must be understood. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":" Effective data center communications should respond to what a community actually cares about rather than repeat messages a developer has already been delivering. And it should go a step further to actually demonstrate through communications and the actual project plans that they’ve truly heard stakeholders and are responding accordingly. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"heading3","text":"Build the Data Center Messaging Strategy Around Community Concerns ","spans":[{"start":7,"end":66,"type":"strong"}],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"What developers learn through community engagement should determine what they communicate next. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"If water consumption is driving opposition, explain how technology, such as closed-loop cooling, is being used to reduce it. If electricity demand is the concern, explain how the project will protect existing ratepayers and where the power will come from, particularly if it’s from carbon-free energy generation. If residents question the economic benefit, show how the project will expand the tax base, support construction activity, create permanent jobs, and generate local economic activity. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"Some New York data center developers already have compelling environmental or economic stories that have been overwhelmed by controversy. Some proposed facilities are designed to significantly reduce routine water consumption. Others are being developed near carbon-free electricity or can reuse former industrial sites and existing infrastructure. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"The opportunity is to connect those facts to the concerns residents are raising and translate them into tangible community benefits. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"heading3","text":"The Best Data Center Public Relations Strategy Starts Before Approvals Resume ","spans":[{"start":0,"end":77,"type":"strong"}],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"New York's data center moratorium gives developers time to strengthen their positions before the next round of land-use and regulatory approvals. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"The strategy should start with stakeholder mapping and direct community outreach. Developers should identify potential supporters, engage opponents, hold listening sessions, and determine which concerns are driving local opinion. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"Then they should build their communications strategy around what they learned. There is no single data center messaging strategy that will work everywhere because communities have different priorities. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"But there is one principle developers can apply everywhere: listen first and communicate second. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"},{"type":"paragraph","text":"The data center developers best positioned when New York's moratorium ends will be those that use this period to understand their communities, build local support, and demonstrate in concrete terms the environmental and economic benefits their projects can deliver. ","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"}],"alignment":"Left"}},{"__typename":"PRISMIC_InsightBodyCustom_html","type":"custom_html","primary":{"content":[{"type":"preformatted","text":"<script charset=\"utf-8\" type=\"text/javascript\" src=\"//js.hsforms.net/forms/embed/v2.js\"></script>\n<script>\n  hbspt.forms.create({\n    portalId: \"46082381\",\n    formId: \"a01501c4-d8ad-417b-bead-b37a626373a7\"\n  });\n</script>","spans":[],"direction":"ltr"}]}}],"related_insights":[{"insight":null}],"get_in_touch_heading":null,"social_title":null,"social_description":null,"social_image":null},"allSite_settingss":{"edges":[{"node":{"get_in_touch_heading":"Everything starts with a conversation."}}]}}},"pageContext":{"rootQuery":"\n  query InsightQuery($uid: String!) {\n    prismic {\n      insightByUID: insight(uid: $uid, lang: \"en-us\") {\n        title\n        category {\n          ... on PRISMIC_Category {\n            name\n          }\n        }\n        author {\n          ... on PRISMIC_Person {\n            name\n          }\n        }\n        feature_image\n        related_case_study {\n          ... on PRISMIC_Case_study {\n            client_name\n            tagline\n            feature_image\n            area {\n              ... on PRISMIC_Area {\n                name\n              }\n            }\n            _meta {\n              uid\n            }\n          }\n        }\n        body {\n          ... on PRISMIC_InsightBodyText {\n            type\n            primary {\n              content\n              alignment\n            }\n          }\n          ... on PRISMIC_InsightBodyCustom_html {\n            type\n            primary {\n              content\n            }\n          }\n          ... on PRISMIC_InsightBodyQuote {\n            type\n            primary {\n              quote {\n                ... on PRISMIC_Quote {\n                  content\n                  name\n                  title\n                }\n              }\n            }\n          }\n          ... on PRISMIC_InsightBodyContent_block {\n            type\n            primary {\n              image\n              caption\n              rubric\n              content\n            }\n          }\n          ... on PRISMIC_InsightBodyCallout {\n            type\n            primary {\n              callout\n              rubric\n              content\n            }\n          }\n        }\n        related_insights {\n          insight {\n            ... on PRISMIC_Insight {\n              _meta {\n                uid\n              }\n              title\n              feature_image\n              category {\n                ... on PRISMIC_Category {\n                  name\n                }\n              }    \n            }\n          }\n        }\n        get_in_touch_heading\n        social_title\n        social_description\n        social_image\n      }\n      allSite_settingss {\n        edges {\n          node {\n            get_in_touch_heading\n          }\n        }\n      }\n    }\n  }\n","id":"anuLoREAACsAEqCM","lang":"en-us","uid":"what-data-center-developers-should-do-during-new-yorks-data-center-moratorium","type":"insight","alternateLanguages":[],"cursor":"YXJyYXljb25uZWN0aW9uOjE5Ng==","paginationPreviousMeta":{"id":"anuGqhEAACsAEpjB","lang":"en-us","uid":"how-vanessa-cuccurullo-is-building-leilala--watson","type":"insight","alternateLanguages":[]},"paginationPreviousUid":"how-vanessa-cuccurullo-is-building-leilala--watson","paginationPreviousLang":"en-us","paginationNextMeta":null,"paginationNextUid":"","paginationNextLang":"","lastQueryChunkEndCursor":"YXJyYXljb25uZWN0aW9uOjE3OQ=="}}}