Most major infrastructure projects do not break down because the strategy was wrong. They break down because community impact was addressed too late. Today, communities are actively speaking out about new projects coming into their areas, halting those they see as threats. If your organization is planning a major expansion, a strong community relations program is not optional.

Growing protests against data centers provide a perfect example. Recent reporting shows that large-scale U.S. data center projects have already been delayed or blocked, in part due to community opposition, affecting tens of billions of dollars in investment.^[1] On a positive note, the anti-data-center rebellion provides a blueprint for getting community relations right.

“Property tax benefits and construction jobs used to be enough,” said Doug Scott, Chairman of the Illinois Commerce Commission. “They’re not anymore. Communities want to know what happens to their utility bills, their water supply, and their neighborhood. If you can’t answer those questions early and clearly, you’ve already lost ground you may not recover.”

From Planning to Outcome

To protect yourself from a financial and public relations crisis, develop a community outreach plan at the start of project planning. The data center experience proves that community impact needs to be considered alongside financial, regulatory, and operational decisions, not after those decisions are set. That change of priorities affects how projects are developed and how risk is understood.

ICC Chairman Scott provided four tips for developing a community outreach plan:

1. Anticipate community concerns

Community impact planning starts with going into communities before project plans are final. The first task is to understand what questions will be asked. Scott was specific about which questions come up first: “How close is it to residential areas? What are the water implications? Is this going to affect the quality or cost of water in my community?” Those questions will arrive regardless of when the developer shows up. Proactively providing answers before the questions arise changes the dynamic entirely.

2. Engage stakeholders at the start

Scott recommends engaging stakeholders before starting the permit process, not alongside it. It is critical to identify who needs to understand what and construct an early sequence for outreach. Scott drew a direct line between late engagement and community pushback. “Because of non-disclosure agreements, project plans fall into a black box,” Scott said. “By the time the community hears about it, the deal is already done. And people go, ‘Well, wait a minute, maybe not.’” Once that reaction sets in, the project has stopped moving forward, and your to-do list takes the shape of a crisis communication plan.

3. Prepare a financial impact report – what it will, and won’t, cost residents

Defining what the project delivers locally requires specificity, and it requires an honest accounting of what it does not cost. Scott was direct about the financial dimension: “People are stretched financially. When they hear that their utility bills might go up to support a data center owned by some of the wealthiest people on the planet, that does not sit well.” Developers need to be able to demonstrate, in concrete terms, that the project will not raise utility bills, will not strain water supply, and will not degrade neighborhood quality. The property tax case and the construction jobs matter, but they are not sufficient on their own to carry community support anymore.

4. Address the unique issues of your project

Scott also noted that not all data centers present the same set of issues, and communities respond differently based on the specific project in front of them. “Data centers are not all the same. Different sizes, different needs, different community footprints. Understanding local concerns at the earliest possible level is essential. These projects carry a set of issues that most other developments simply do not.” A developer putting up a mid-size facility on industrial land is facing a different conversation than a hyperscaler proposing a 200-acre campus next to a residential subdivision. Treating them the same way in community engagement is a structural mistake.

The Long Game

The organizations that get this right do not just avoid disruption; they move faster and spend less on recovery. The ones that get it wrong spend more time and money managing a situation they could have shaped.

Communities that once accepted development on good faith are now asking harder questions earlier, and they are getting organized before the first public meeting. Waiting for that pressure to arrive before addressing it is no longer a viable strategy.

The decision about when to engage is, in practice, a decision about how much control you keep over the outcome. Organizations that engage early enough are setting the terms. Those that wait are inheriting someone else’s.

Reference

^[1] Reuters, “AI data center growth faces local opposition and infrastructure constraints,” reporting on delayed or blocked U.S. projects, 2025–2026.