The mayor of Shelbyville, Indiana, says only people who live in ‘shitty houses’ oppose data center

A small Indiana town is having a very big fight about AI infrastructure. Shelbyville's mayor, Scott Furgeson, got caught on video trash-talking residents who oppose a proposed $2 billion data center, claiming the "No Data Center" signs only show up at "shitty houses" that are "mostly rentals."

Someone in the video immediately pushed back, pointing out these are "working class" people and that renters are, you know, still human beings. It's the kind of comment that instantly becomes a campaign ad.

The controversy highlights a tension playing out across rural America. Tech companies need massive data centers to power AI models, and they're targeting smaller communities with cheaper land and power. But locals often see industrial-scale facilities that promise tax revenue and jobs while bringing noise, traffic, and strain on utilities.

For anyone tracking AI infrastructure, this is part of a larger pattern. The computing power needed for training and running AI models requires physical space somewhere. That means more fights like Shelbyville's as the AI boom collides with local politics.

A mayor dismissing opposition as coming from poor people in rentals probably isn't the best way to build consensus on a $2 billion project. But it does illustrate how high the stakes have gotten in these data center debates.