Pocatello AI Data Center Hearing Draws Overflow Crowd, Decision Delayed
Hundreds Pack City Hall as Hoku Site Conversion Proposal Takes Center Stage
POCATELLO — A proposal to transform the long-dormant former Hoku polysilicon plant into a large-scale artificial intelligence data center campus brought one of the largest public turnouts Pocatello’s City Hall has seen in recent memory Thursday evening, with residents filling every available seat, lining the chamber walls, and spilling into the foyer well before the 5:30 p.m. hearing began.
Council Chambers, which carries a posted occupancy limit of 296, strained under the weight of hundreds of attendees. The 100 chairs arranged for the public were claimed before the meeting started. More than 100 people ultimately stepped to the podium during the four-plus-hour session, compressing their testimony into three-minute windows before being asked to exit to allow others waiting in the foyer their turn. Speakers ranged from high school students and senior citizens to college educators and blue-collar workers, representing a broad cross-section of Pocatello’s community.
Hearing Examiner Kathleen Lewis opened the proceedings by making clear to those assembled that no decision would be issued Thursday night. All written comments — 92 of which were submitted prior to the hearing — along with Thursday’s public testimony, will be entered into the official record. Lewis will then consider whether to approve, deny, or conditionally approve the conditional use permit application submitted by Gilbert, Arizona-based Lex Developments.
One attendee was escorted from the chambers by a Pocatello police officer after interjecting from the floor during testimony, drawing a sharp rebuke from Lewis. The woman departed the building voluntarily.
Developer Outlines Plans, but Unanswered Questions Draw Scrutiny
Gus Schultz, representing Lex Developments, opened the company’s case by framing the proposal as a chance to bring productive use to a site that has sat vacant for years. The plan calls for constructing seven individual buildings on the property — now referred to as the River Park Complex on the city’s northwest side — while leveraging existing infrastructure from the Hoku era, including water lines, gas lines, electrical infrastructure, and fiber optic data lines already running south to Salt Lake City.
Schultz told the hearing that the facility’s closed-loop cooling system would require only a one-time water fill during construction, with ongoing consumption he likened to the usage of a small number of households. However, his responses to several technical questions left much of the audience unsatisfied.
When Lewis pressed on the final size and design of the proposed buildings, Schultz acknowledged the scope would depend heavily on the results of a power study currently underway with Idaho Power. Lewis asked directly: “Until you know how much power is able to be supplied, you will not be able to do design. Am I understanding that correctly?” Schultz confirmed that was the case.
Assistant City Planner Jennifer Flynn informed the hearing examiner that Idaho Power submitted a letter to the city on Thursday indicating its preliminary analysis suggests the utility could supply the requested power without disrupting service to existing customers. The letter, attributed to Idaho Power representatives Matthew Stucki and Nathan Murray, specified that Lex Developments would be responsible for funding all necessary upgrades to transmission, substation, distribution, and generating resources required to support the load.
Flynn described the utility’s position as consistent with a “growth pays for growth” principle — meaning new large-scale customers bear the full infrastructure cost of connecting to the grid, rather than passing those expenses to ratepayers.
Flynn also noted that water and sewer utility capacity questions remain in the preliminary stages of review, adding another layer of unresolved detail to a project that opponents in the foyer characterized as insufficiently vetted. Several signs held by project critics referenced water concerns and drew comparisons to data center proposals that have been rejected in other communities.
What Comes Next
Hearing Examiner Kathleen Lewis has not set a public timeline for issuing her ruling on the conditional use permit. All testimony and written comments from Thursday’s hearing will be incorporated into her deliberation record before she issues a decision to approve, deny, or approve with conditions Lex Developments’ application. The outcome will determine whether the former Hoku site moves forward as a major AI data center campus or remains in its current state.
Pocatello residents looking to stay engaged with local government proceedings and community developments can also follow coverage of broader community traditions and civic events across Bannock County, as well as other local initiatives making an impact, such as recent food donation drives supporting area families.