In all my years living in and representing Colorado Springs, rarely have I seen a business be so transparent, so invested in being a good neighbor and so committed to hearing the concerns of the community; and yet be on the receiving end of so much vitriol and misinformation as the planned data center at Garden of the Gods Road.

Colorado Springs has long been a hub for innovation, thanks in large part to our ability to predict and meet the needs of tomorrow’s economy. As my friends at the Gazette put it, “Colorado Springs is a hotbed of tech because we welcome good businesses and disdain bad ones”.

Data centers such as Project Taurus are invaluable in ensuring not only that our economy is robust and responsive, but that our military has the capability it needs to respond to a rapidly changing landscape.

The national conversation around data centers has reached a fever pitch, and has sparked discussions around their development writ large, especially around their usage of government subsidies, their impact on water and energy usage and concerns around noise pollution.

Every project deserves to be measured against these legitimate concerns. But I have found that none of these hold weight in regard to Project Taurus, which I consider to be a gold standard to which other data centers should be compared: they have gone above and beyond to not only address the concerns of the community, but to provide transparency and measures of accountability that far exceed industry norms.

Project Taurus and RAEDEN, the company behind it, will be repurposing an abandoned Intel chip fabricator turned Bitcoin mine which, when it operated, was a tremendous nuisance to the community. RAEDEN says it plans to transform this unused space, employing industry-leading techniques and monitoring to ensure that water use and noise pollution are kept at a minimum.

I find their proposal for a closed-loop water system for heating and cooling smart and sophisticated, requiring a one-time use of the same amount of water as one municipal pool. This water is then reused, and the system is constantly monitored.

Since they are repurposing a building that already exists and is already zoned for the amount of energy the project requires, utility rates will not need to increase for anyone and any necessary infrastructure upgrades will be covered by the company.

RAEDEN utilizes cutting-edge design to ensure that the center remains quiet throughout the day and night, and is so committed to ensuring that they do not disrupt the community that they are entering into a first-of-its-kind noise pollution agreement with the city.

Their tangible desire to engage with our community and the clear economic benefits Project Taurus will bring to Colorado Springs is why I and so many other business and community leaders, unions, and neighbors are enthusiastic in our support.

In RAEDEN’s projected economic report, released last month and available on their website, the company anticipates generating a total $1.7 billion in total economic impact, including providing over 1,600 temporary jobs and 95 high paid positions at Project Taurus itself. The project, after the first year alone, is anticipated to generate up to $286M in projected sales and use tax revenue. That’s more than half the $426.3M city budget set for this year.

And this is without taking a dime in subsidies from the city, county, or state.

I know that there is a lot of misinformation regarding this project being shared by bad actors. As in all things, there are valid questions to be asked, and room for disagreement; but we all must remember our common thread – that we just want what’s best for Colorado Springs and our neighbors. As this community’s state senator, that’s the central principle for me.

I encourage everyone to read up on the project and see why Project Taurus is a win for Colorado Springs and a model for the rest of the country on how a data center should properly join a community.

Larry Liston is State Senator for Senate District 10.