The City of Lockport hosted its first workshop Tuesday about the possibility of developing a data center in the Star Innovation District property, an idea which has already met with significant resistance from residents.

About 80 people, including some elected officials across Will County, attended a media event and protest an hour before the meeting at Lockport Township High School East Campus on Tuesday began at 7 p.m..

The event was organized by a grassroots group who voiced concerns about using the Star Innovation District property, which was formerly occupied by the Chevron oil refinery, for a data center.

Concerns from residents have also been expressed in a Facebook group, Porters Against Data Centers, which was created in response to the workshops being scheduled.

Those concerns include the same as those of residents in other nearby communities like Joliet and Yorkville where data centers have been approved: property values, noise and air pollution, increased electrical rates, high water usage, impact on wildlife, improper use of personal data, and a lack of an overall benefit to the community.

“We area grassroots group who live in Lockport and saw what happened in Joliet,” said one of the group’s organizers Kara Philip. “We know we had to quickly organize to start the fight here as soon as possible.”

The panel at the Tuesday workshop is including city officials and representatives from the UIC Freshwater Lab, P33, Citizens Utility Board, and the Chicago Metropolitan Agency, according to new release from the city.

While a second workshop has been scheduled for June 4 at the high school to continue the discussion, Mayor Steven Streit and the City Council have repeatedly emphasized that there is no pending deal for a data center to be developed in Lockport.

Rather, they have stated that a land developer they are working with for the property, which due to its history is limited in its potential uses, has asked if they are open to having it pitched for data centers and they are weighing their options.

“We don’t have to sell it,” Streit said on May 6. “But it behooves us as a city to have a good understanding of this issue. This could be a big opportunity. It is a massive paradigm shift in our world.”

Streit also said the city has told the developer that they did not want to commit to developing or ruling out data centers until more discussions had been held with experts and the public.

No decisions are slated to be made at any of the workshop meetings or in imminently scheduled city council meetings.