Federalsburg residents push back against data center proposal

FEDERALSBURG – About 250 residents and elected representatives filled the Federalsburg Elementary School auditorium Monday evening, July 13, 2026, to hear preliminary plans for a proposed data center to be built within town limits. 

The 3-hour public information session that began at 6 p.m. became increasingly more raucous as residents objected to the proposed Fieldstone Technology Center, presented by strategic development advisor David Wright, founder and chief strategist of Seattle-based Landwright Power Strategies since March 2026. The developer and sponsor of the proposed project is Wright Road LLC.  

Community's Concerns 

Most of the public’s questions focused on water usage, noise, utility infrastructure buildout, fire suppression concerns, local jobs and housing, environmental impacts, as well as quality-of-life concerns in this rural community. And most comments expressed strong opposition to the project. 

Although the public information session ground rules were published on social media ahead of time and reiterated at the session, some attendees demanded answers and shouted objections several times, becoming increasingly more vocal as the meeting progressed. Caroline County Sheriff Donnie Baker intervened at least three times, walking to the back of the auditorium to address individuals as loud interruptions by a few frustrated attendees disrupted the session. 

Demands for concrete information were met by vague concepts and simple analogies that residents weren’t buying. The more the promoters failed to answer with facts, the more frustrated residents became. 

'Some really bold statements' 

State Sen. Johnny Mautz (R-37) attended most of the session and distilled what he heard at the end. “This is a huge thing for the town of Federalsburg to come in and propose something like this,” he told the developers. “And there's been some really bold statements. I think they're bold, saying that energy prices are going to go down. There's going to be no use of water. There are a number of statements that were made, and I just encourage you just to follow up with some proof and evidence of those statements.” 

Data Center Proposed at Previous Salmon Farm Proposed Site 

The proposed data center would occupy industrial property where a salmon farm had been proposed. In 2022, AquaCon withdrew its bid to build the facility after residents and environmental groups objected.  

According to land records, MIB Federalsburg LLC bought the former 94-acre AquaCon property on Wright Road in May 2023 for $1.65 million. Sheldon Blumenfeld owns the property and attended the session. 

"200 acres of town residents' 'sandbox'" 

MIB Federalsburg LLC also owns a 10-acre parcel that fronts on both Wright Road and Federalsburg Bypass. In between the two MIB Federalsburg LLC parcels, another entity, MIB Federalsburg 2 LLC owns a 105-acre parcel, also fronting on both Wright Road and Federalsburg Bypass. During his presentation opening remarks, Wright said Blumenfeld owns the 200 acres of town residents’ “sandbox.” 

Blumenfeld introduced himself and his partner Shlomo Mandelbaum, who was wearing a baseball cap with “Choptank” printed across the front.  

“We've been down here working for about 10 years across the Eastern Shore,” Blumenfeld said. “We really appreciate working with the employees that we work with and all the locals, and when we picked this spot, we felt like Federalsburg would be a great place to build together.” 

Public information participation  increased after social media post 

The Town of Federalsburg posted a public information session notice on its Facebook page June 29. The next day, the location was shifted from Lions Hall to the school “due to the incredible interest we’ve received.” The next update on July 12 announced a food truck would offer free meals to the first 300 attendees “courtesy of the potential developers.” The New Jersey-based food truck offered kosher hotdogs and fries. 

Attending the session were the five Federalsburg council members, Caroline County Commission President Travis Breeding, County Administrator Katheleen Freeman, and State Sen. Johnny Mautz (R-37). Only Mautz had questions and comments. 

'Nothing has been decided, nothing has been signed, nothing has been done' 

Federalsburg Mayor Kim Abner introduced the session, assuring attendees that “nothing has been decided, nothing has been signed, nothing has been done. We're just in conversations, and this is here for you to collect information.” 

Kelly Schultz, chief executive officer of the Maryland Tech Council presented a slide show created by the Data Center Alliance of Maryland which is “powered by the Maryland Tech Council.” It promoted the economic benefits of data centers to municipalities and counties, focusing mainly on a project in Frederick County. 

Almost a half hour into the session, Wright began his presentation, emphasizing that the developers “don’t have an official plan” but wanted “to show you what we’re thinking about conceptually.” He emphasized several times how the project developers valued community feedback and wanted to earn the community’s trust.  

Expectation of job creation 

He said the project “will create jobs, at least 100 permanent jobs via the data center, and another 60 jobs for the energy center. Those will be jobs right here in Federalsburg, and these are good-paying jobs. So permanent jobs: up to 160 construction jobs during the construction period, 400 to 600 phased over the over the time of the project.” Wright estimated that businesses, restaurants and service industries would grow. “So over time, that could be 1,000 jobs here in and around Federalsburg, if not more.” 

Frustrated attendees interrupted Wright despite warnings to hold their comments and questions for the scheduled question-and-answer period. One person shouted, “Where is the nearest small town with infrastructure this bad that you have already done that?”  

Wright emphasized the process was “like a marriage.”  

“We're talking about millions of dollars of capital flowing into Federalsburg that can help you with the things that are most important to you,” Wright said. “Yes, there will be some trade-offs, but I guarantee you those trade-offs will be acceptable because we will have talked about them ahead of time.” 

Questions...and answers 

After nearly a half-hour of Wright’s presentation, moderator John Stichberry opened the question-and-answer period. 

Town Council Member Brandy James asked how the data center project would phase in electric, water and sewer capacity. Wright said, “There will not be any customer or community-related cost associated with supporting the project from a utility standpoint. The design is self-contained so that it doesn't have an impact on you. … We’re not asking Federalsburg or the county to support the project financially.” 

James was also concerned about whether project developers would fund an independent health impact assessment and how protections would be enforced. Wright said impacts would be included in plans submitted to the city and county, with an opportunity for public hearings. 

Water usage concerns 

Concerns about water usage were brought up despite Wright’s describing the “closed loop” water system that, “like a snow globe,” theoretically would not require drawing water from outside the technology center. Council Member Ian Ferguson argued water would need to some from somewhere and asked whether residents would be compensated if wells dried up. 

Farmers who attended wondered about the impact on their crops and irrigation systems. Bob Coleman asked, “What do I do if my well runs dry? I can’t go sue you guys.” He asked if the developers would put an escrow fund in place to compensate property owners, handled by the Town of Federalsburg. A chorus of loud “No’s” was shouted when some objected to the town, plagued by financial pressures the past two years, handling an escrow account. 

Paul Richardson said he did his homework about water usage. “According to the Environmental and Energy Study Institute, which is a bipartisan committee founded by Congress, medium-sized data centers use 110 million of gallons of water each year. That's equivalent to 1,000 households,” he said. “I don't know if you know this, but the town of Federalsburg, according to CensusReporter.org, has 2,800 people in it. I don't think that's 10,000 households.” 

Wright said the concern would require study and an effort to prevent issues like that from developing in the first place. He said he couldn’t speak for the “ultimate operator of the data center, but we’re not going to connect to city water.” 

Natural Gas usage 

The use of the natural gas pipeline that runs through Federalsburg prompted questions and comments. Wright said the developers have already consulted with Eastern Shore Natural Gas, “and what they assured us is that we would not have a negative impact on natural gas,” he said. “If anything, we would lower the cost of natural gas through volumetric pricing.” 

Bruce Willoughby, a resident of 50 years, said the natural gas steel pipeline, built in 1960, “has been maxed out and over-pressurized for years.”  

Environmental and quality of life 

Other questions arose about jobs and housing, fire suppression, back-up power generation, inspections, noise levels (including subsonic sound and infrasound), air quality, and impacts on wildlife, especially the Atlantic sturgeon, a rare and federally protected species that spawns in Marshyhope Creek.  

Heather Harding said she wanted to go back to the question of allowability. “Is this allowable? Do we want this?” she asked. “If we're already to a place that a commitment has been made to have more conversation, I think we need to have more education to have that conversation, and then there needs to be a vote. It needs to be a vote because right now I don't think we have people that want this.”  

Project website 

According to project spokesman Henry Fawell of Campfire Communications, a website for the project is under development. Fawell is also a member of the board of advisors for the Maryland Clean Energy Center.  

Responding to a July 15 request for additional information, Fawell answered, “At this time, the project team is deferring to their comments from Monday as well as (to) the (following) statement”: 

“Fieldstone Technology Center is a proposed technology infrastructure campus in Federalsburg, Maryland. Wright Road LLC is the developer of the project, and Landwright Power Strategies serves as strategic development advisor. The project remains in an early stage and is subject to public review and required approvals. Our goal is to advance a responsible development process that creates economic opportunity while respecting the character of Federalsburg and engaging openly with the community.”  

National hot-button issue 

The country’s need for data centers is a hot-button issue in many jurisdictions. On July 14, New York became the first U.S. state to impose by executive order a one-year moratorium on “hyperscale” data centers, while the state builds a regulatory framework. 

Abner said she and the town were approached in mid-April by the project developers, who then met with town and county officials. She then had what she considered a confidential meeting with the town council. However, she said she later learned that the topic was brought up April 28, when the Eastern Shore delegation met in Federalsburg for their annual update to the public on the recent Maryland General Assembly session.  

Abner said a meeting at the proposed site took place May 12, which she attended. As with the defunct AquaCon project proposal, she said a similar 2-stage process was involved. “There is one, that is legislation that makes something allowable, and then there is two, which is the project itself moving forward. One does not equal the other,” she said. 

Caroline County Commissioners issue a statement 

Caroline County Commissioners issued a statement July 14 announcing the limits on its authority in the Federalsburg data center decision-making process. They also said they are evaluating how to approach “any future data center proposal within the unincorporated areas of the County.” 

The Commissioners will present a draft moratorium on data centers during their 9 a.m. July 21 meeting, according to public information officer Jennifer Reibly. A meeting agenda will be posted on the county's website. 

The PowerPoint presentations about data centers in general and the Fieldstone Technology Center are available to view or download from the town’s website.