A family farm in the US South has spurned a multi-million-dollar AI data center offer to instead save their ancestral land, even as the developer secures neighboring properties ahead of a crucial vote on controversial rezoning that could monopolize scarce water, local media reported.

While this multi-generational farming family in the state of Kentucky stands firm, the project’s future – and the use of precious water resources in a data-hungry age – now rests with the local government.

Critical public hearings this Wednesday and Thursday will determine if these traditional agricultural lands can be rezoned for industrial development.

At the heart of this battle is Maysville, the historic seat of Mason County, where the Joint Planning Commission holds the legal authority to approve a fundamental shift in land use.

According to WKRC-TV, 82-year-old Ida Huddleston and her daughter, Delsia Bare, own 1,200 acres of prime Kentucky farmland.

In April 2025, a major AI firm offered them roughly $60,000 per acre – 10 times the market value – bringing the potential total for their property to tens of millions of dollars.

The family refused the life-changing sum to preserve their agricultural heritage, which dates back to the Great Depression of the 1930s.

Huddleston dismissed the firm's economic promises, citing grave concerns over local food and water security.

The identity of the corporation behind the massive offer remains shrouded in mystery.

Local officials are bound by strict non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), a common practice for tech giants seeking to secure rural land for hyperscale facilities.

Steep environmental cost

These proposed data centers are designed to fuel rapid AI growth, but the environmental cost is steep.

To illustrate the scale of such demand, environmental advocates point to existing facilities like US social media firm Meta’s Georgia site, which uses 500,000 gallons (1.89 million liters) of water daily.

However, reports from similar hyperscale proposals suggest demand could soar to 6 million gallons daily, raising fears of depleting the local aquifers that farmers rely on.

Despite the Huddleston family's refusal, the Fortune 100 firm has moved forward by acquiring land from willing neighbors.

The formal rezoning application was officially submitted last Monday, following months of negotiations with other local landowners.