Town of Vienna rejects $40 million agreement to support data center

TOWN of VIENNA, Wis. (WMDX) – Leaders of a small town have said no to a $40 million agreement to support a data center in their community. 

Tech company QTS wants to build a data center on 1,600 acres of property owned by a trust in the town of Vienna. Originally, QTS was working with Vienna leaders on the proposal. At the last minute, a Vienna town board meeting was canceled. 

Then, QTS leaders approached the village of DeForest saying they’d be petitioning for DeForest to annex that same property from Vienna. That means DeForest gets to decide whether to approve or deny the project, and gets the tax benefits. 

QTS still had a proposal for Vienna: the town would get $40 million over 15 years if they essentially signed off on the project. That’s according to reporting from the Tribune Enterprise. 

Their reporting shows that in order to get that money, the town board would’ve had to support the project, and cooperated in press releases sent out by QTS. 

The Vienna Town Board ultimately rejected that agreement with the company in a unanimous vote. DeForest still holds the power to decide whether or not to annex that property.