Farmer near Calgary fighting against proposed ‘data centre’ development
Posted Sep 5, 2025 4:31 pm.
Last Updated Sep 5, 2025 5:58 pm.
A landowner northeast of Calgary is fighting back against proposed plans to develop nearby land into a new data centre complex.
The land owned by Wayne Shuttleworth is in Rocky View County, just northeast of Calgary’s city limits. It’s been in his family for over 100 years, and it’s now next to plot of land that could be acquired by a large corporation.
That corporation, Kineticor, proposed an Area Structure Plan earlier this year. The plan would convert the land beside Shuttleworth’s 1,120-acre oat field into a large-scale technology infrastructure.
The site, north of Highway 566 and west of Range Road 281, is ideal, according to the planner. Citing its proximity to electrical transmission lines.
Shuttleworth is fighting back against plans to develop it with an application to the county.
“This particular data place is in the wrong place; it shouldn’t be here in the middle of agricultural land,” says Shuttleworth. “It shouldn’t have been pushed through in 84 days.
“It should be put where there are already businesses.”
With a decision pending, there is one last chance to reconsider, according to a statement from Rocky View County.
“The application will be considered at a public hearing on Tuesday, Sep. 9,” reads the statement. “Residents, the applicant, and administration will have the opportunity to provide input before council makes its decision.”
Shuttleworth says he realizes he’s fighting an uphill battle, but it’s a fight that he believes is necessary for farmers alike.
“We grow food, it’s food security,’ he says. “Makes you feel good when you’re growing food for society, and that’s part of it too.”
If approved, construction on the new data complex could begin as early as this fall.
