New data centers seem to be popping up with increasing frequency across the country. Are these facilities good or bad for the cities they're built in? Americans are divided on the pros and cons, leading to difficult decision-making by local government officials. A new University of Minnesota project aims to help municipalities with these challenging data center decisions. The project's principal investigator Elise Harrington, PhD, Assistant Professor in the Center for Science, Technology, and Environmental Policy (CSTEP), says the project does not intend to prescribe a single viewpoint but rather to equip leaders to make the best decision for their unique communities. The first phase of the project is focused on three towns in southeastern Minnesota — Byron, Lewiston, and Stewartville — and is supported by the Institute on the Environment (IonE). CSTEP and IonE are Consortium member centers.