As plans for a potential data center in Wrightstown, Wisconsin, unfold, community members have voiced strong opinions even before a formal proposal has been submitted. The contentious topic drew considerable attention during a recent community meeting.
The second of four scheduled discussions took place at Wrightstown Village Hall, where residents had the chance to express their concerns about potential developments.
The village explained that these sessions are designed to allow community input as a data center development company considers sites in the area.
“There is no proposal in front of us,” stated Village Board President Dean Erickson. “I can guarantee you that we’ll take this into consideration, but, like everything, I will not make a choice until we have a proposal in front of us.”
Despite the absence of an official proposal, emails obtained through an open records request reveal that village officials began discussions with Cloverleaf Infrastructure about a possible project back in January 2026.
Cloverleaf is interested in establishing a hyperscale data center in northeast Wisconsin, similar to its previous project in Port Washington. The company has provided Wrightstown with agreements from that project as potential templates for annexation and zoning.
In a March email, Aaron Bilyeu, Cloverleaf’s chief development officer, informed Village Administrator Travis Coenen that any project in northeast Wisconsin would match the scale of the one underway in Port Washington.
Earlier, on January 12, Cloverleaf’s project development manager, Travis Armistead, mentioned potential leads near Wrightstown.
Communications continued with Coenen writing to Armistead on January 23 about other communities considered for data center sites, noting challenges faced in Greenleaf and Kewaunee.
Bilyeu confirmed to WPR that Cloverleaf is aware of the community sessions being conducted by the village.
“Cloverleaf is continuing to look for opportunities to develop data centers in Northeast Wisconsin,” he wrote. “We have had preliminary conversations with several communities, including the Village of Wrightstown.”
Chris Smith, an attorney engaged by the village, emphasized that these discussions will shape decision-making if a proposal is presented. “If this group that is interested in this area comes forward and says, ‘We want to rezone property or we want to annex property,’ we want to be able to tell the village board what we’ve heard at these sessions,” he explained.
Many residents expressed opposition to the project, citing environmental concerns and potential loss of farmland. Wrightstown resident Roland Schmidt voiced strong opposition, asserting, “Farmland will never go back to farmland. Period.”
Marinette resident Andi Rich expressed concerns about transparency in the village’s dealings with Cloverleaf.
“The stories that we’re hearing from other communities about how it was just bulldozed over them — and everything was already in place, and they didn’t have time to stop it — I think that they were absolutely trying to do that here,” she said.
Village Board Trustee Sue Byers, who spoke at the meeting, acknowledged a developer’s interest in land near Wrightstown. The village has been in discussions with Cloverleaf to learn from other municipalities’ experiences with data centers.
Byers remarked, “The village wanted to know, how best can we write our ordinances to protect us as best we can?” adding that if the project isn’t approved in the village, it might move to the town of Wrightstown, which could have looser zoning rules.
The village board’s agenda for a meeting Tuesday night included an item related to emails the village has received regarding data centers.
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