The big reason small cities want data centers. Hint: It’s not permanent jobs

The big reason small cities want data centers. Hint: It’s not permanent jobs

Altoona, Iowa Mayor Dean O’Connor was early to the data center trend. O’Connor was a newly-elected city council member when the  Des Moines suburb landed a 1.5 million square-foot Meta campus in 2013.  “This was back when we were all fighting for data centers,” O’Connor told Straight Arrow. “Hindsight is, everybody has a data center now.” When asked by Straight Arrow how Meta has benefited the city, O’Connor highlighted increased government reve…