SpaceX is buying out 418 homes near its flagship AI data center, but only if the owners drop their participation in a lawsuit; the properties would house SpaceXSI staff while also giving residents who do not want to live near the data center a chance to sell.
SpaceXSI, Elon Musk's data center business that powers Grok, is reportedly buying 418 properties in Colonial Hills, Southaven, about half a mile from the powerplant the company will use to power its data centers in the area. According to The Guardian, real estate agents have been going door to door offering owners deals on the company's behalf, provided they do not join a class-action lawsuit over the noise pollution coming from the gas turbines that power its GPUs.
MZX, the SpaceXSI subsidiary that operates the Colossus II site, circulated an open letter to nearby residents saying that it "requires property for its business purposes." Southaven mayor Darren Musselwhite said the properties will be used to house SpaceXSI staff the company will need as it expands operations. Musk is reportedly staying in the area in an Airstream trailer four nights per week to personally oversee the data center build-out needed to power Grok AI.
The bigger issue, however, is the requirement that sellers sign an agreement preventing them from joining the ongoing case against the company over noise pollution. The Colossus 1 and 2 sites have been in hot water since they began operating, primarily over their use of unpermitted turbines and the air pollution they produce. SpaceXSI has since promised to remove all its unpermitted turbines within a year, especially as its 1.2-gigawatt powerplant comes online. However, this apparently has not resolved the noise pollution that the community has been complaining about.
"It sounds like an airplane engine but it's continuous, it's incredibly loud. I've been woken up at 2am by it, I've been woken up at 3am by it. I sometimes have to just get away from it because it makes me so angry," said piano teacher Elizabeth Rose, who lives a couple of miles from the site.
Jason Haley, one of the plaintiffs in the class action, also told The Guardian: "There's a high-pitched hum and then another sound like an airplane over your house. It's been so torturous I can't sleep; I just leave the house or turn on some music until I fall asleep completely exhausted. It drives you insane. You also lose hope because you're being ignored or dismissed. There's no escape."
The company has denied all the allegations against it, saying it has adjusted its power output and installed sound-dampening walls to reduce the impact on the neighborhood. Musselwhite said city monitors have not detected the site breaching the local ordinance limit of 70 decibels, although some experts say persistent noise as low as 50 decibels could have adverse health impacts.
Opposition to the noise pollution and Musk's purchases is not unanimous. Some residents are not as affected by the noise, and local businesses are seeing increased activity. Others have agreed to sell simply to get away from the noise.
The mayor says the buyout is not intended to turn Colonial Hills into a company town. "The buyout has multiple purposes which are to provide homes for some employees and a goodwill gesture from a good corporate citizen for those who perceive the industrial development near them as negative," Musselwhite said.