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Data Center Plan Takes Center Stage on Eve of Newark Mayoral Election

Don Rush

On the eve of today’s Mayoral election in Newark around 350 union members rallied outside the old Chrysler plant on the University of Delaware Campus in support of construction of The Data Centers LLC data facility.

The company says the $1-billion project would bring 290 permanent full-time jobs.

Harry Gravel with the Delaware Building and Construction Trades Council tells the Wilmington News Journal that the project also means 47-hundred temporary jobs over the next three years.

But another rallied took place across town at the Deer Park Tavern held by neighbors who say they fear the 248 megawatt gas-fired power plant that is to be built on the site would damage their property values, health and quality of life.

The center has become a major issue in the campaign by the seven candidates seeking to succeed outgoing Mayor Vance Funk. 

Don Rush is the News Director at Delmarva Public Media. An award-winning journalist, Don reports major local issues of the day, from sea level rise, to urban development, to the changing demographics of Delmarva.