HomeMy WebLinkAbout2026-09-20 Noelle Lindenmann Testimony
From: Noelle Lindenmann
To: Planning LPC Testimony; Villegas, Rebecca
Cc: Kimball, Heather; Inaba, Holeka; Kagiwada, Jennifer; Galimba, Michelle M.; Onishi, Dennis; Hustace, James;
Kierkiewicz, Ashley; Kanealii-Kleinfelder, Matt; Alameda, Christian (Kimo); generalpla@hawaiicounty.gov;
Planning WPC Testimony
Subject: Testimony Bill 170 & Planning Department input
Date: Sunday, September 20, 2026 4:53:49 PM
Aloha Leeward Planning Commission and Planning Department,
My name is Noelle Lindenmann, and I live in Kailua-Kona. I am providing testimony today that addresses both the Leeward Planning Commission and the Planning Department because
both are asking the community for input on the same concerns simultaneously.
I am asking our planning commissioners to reject the Planning Department’s recommendation, which prematurely revises regulations before defining what a data center is. Their proposal
currently lacks substantial safeguards. We must work to clarify definitions before defining regulations.
I support the intent of Bill 170, section 1, and urge the Leeward Planning Commission to
recommend a stronger definition of "data center" that distinguishes data-center processing. The original bill defines a data center using subjective language that a developer's attorney can
easily argue around in court.
I am asking the commission to recommend an objective, airtight definition grounded in what
the facility physically contains and how much power it draws. Specifically, I am asking the
commission to recommend this language: "Data center" means a facility used for the
industrial-scale operation of computer systems and associated equipment [for the processing, computing, transmission, or dissemination of digital data] that requires
supporting infrastructure beyond that typically accessory or incidental to office,
commercial, or public and private institutional uses[.], including a single facility and
any campus of multiple facilities under common ownership or control whose combined electrical demand meets or exceeds 5 megawatts.
Data centers are not in the best interest of our community or our island. They do not
provide long-term jobs, and they take our limited resources. Our electricity is overwhelmingly from fossil fuels and is already the most expensive in the US. We
don't need to add any more load to the grid. Enough of our water is already packaged
for off island consumption and we don't need to take any more away from public use.
Mahalo for your time and service, Noelle Lindenmann Kailua-Kona