Jun 9, 2026
A mayor in Indiana is facing backlash after he was caught on camera suggesting that residents opposing a massive data center project were mostly poor renters living in “sh—y houses.” In a video posted to Facebook, Shelbyville Mayor Scott Furgeson can be seen holding a “No Data Centers” sign while speaking with an unseen group of women. The exchange, recorded during what appears to be a public conversation on June 1, has since spread widely on social media.
“I’ve seen a lot of these all over the town, but I only see them in sh—y houses,” Furgeson says in the clip.
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When one woman responds that he’s seeing the signs at “working-class houses,” Furgeson replies, “Most of them are rentals so…” The woman pushes back, saying, “It doesn’t matter if they’re rentals or not, they’re still human beings.”
Furgeson later says the properties are “very, very unkempt.”
The remarks quickly drew criticism online and from local residents. In a statement distributed to media outlets a few days later, the mayor said he regretted his comments.
“The mayor regrets that his choice of words may have caused offense,” it said. “His comments were intended to reference property maintenance and not the character, value, or importance of any resident, homeowner, or renter in our community.”
A growing fight over data centers
The proposed data center project in Shelbyville was already drawing growing pushback from residents before Furgeson’s comments. The plan would take about 429 acres of farmland and turn it into an 11-building complex — a major shift for a largely rural area.
It comes as Indiana sees a surge in data center development, with tech companies drawn to available land, existing infrastructure, and local incentives designed to attract investment.
Locally, though, the reaction has been intense. More than 2,000 people signed a petition calling on city leaders to reject the project. Despite that, the city council moved it forward in April.
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Residents have pointed to concerns like noise, heavier truck traffic, environmental strain, and the longer-term impact of carving up that much farmland. And it’s not just Shelbyville — similar tensions have popped up in places like Virginia, Texas, and Georgia, where communities are grappling with how quickly data centers are expanding.
Supporters argue the projects bring jobs and new tax revenue into towns that want growth. Others say those gains don’t always reach residents in a meaningful way, especially when weighed against what changes like this mean for the local landscape.
That underlying tension likely fed into the reaction to Furgeson’s comments, with his remarks about “sh—y houses” landing especially poorly in a community already divided over the data center proposal.
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The hidden cost of the AI boom
What’s happening in Shelbyville is part of a bigger story playing out across the country, driven by the rapid rise of artificial intelligence and the massive infrastructure needed to keep it running.
AI doesn’t run on its own. Training and operating these systems takes massive amounts of computing power, and that means equally massive amounts of electricity to keep everything running and cool.
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According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), electricity demand from data centers worldwide could more than double by 2030, largely because of AI.
That kind of growth has started to raise an uncomfortable question for consumers, especially in regards to who actually pays for all of it.
Data centers often require upgrades to the local power grid — things like new transmission lines, substations, and other behind-the-scenes infrastructure. While utilities typically strike deals with large companies, critics say some of those costs can still show up indirectly on regular customers’ electricity bills over time.
Then there’s water, which has become another major concern. Many data centers rely on water-based cooling systems to prevent servers from overheating. Depending on the size of the facility, that can add up to millions of gallons of water used every year.
For affected communities, that’s starting to feel like something worth questioning — especially when the long-term job gains can be relatively limited. Construction can bring hundreds of temporary jobs, but once the buildings are up and running, the number of permanent positions is often much smaller than with factories or corporate campuses.
For many people in places like Shelbyville, the question isn’t whether AI is on its way, but rather whether the benefits are worth the pressure it can put on local power grids, water supplies, and land use.
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Laura Grande is a freelance contributor with nearly 15 years of industry experience. Throughout her career she's written about and edited a range of topics, from personal finance and politics to health and pop culture.
