October 27, 2026
Panel: Trenton Residents Fighting Amazon’s AI Data Center
Class Description
In October, 2025, Trenton, OH, residents were blindsided when they learned that their city council had closed a deal with Prologis to build a data center for Amazon Web Services. The 4-building complex combined would total 888,000 square feet — the area of 5 Walmart super-centers.
In April, 2026, residents then learned that Amazon Web Services was now trying to get approval for a second data center campus comprised of 18 buildings and total 4 million square feet.
Trenton residents Lorie and Barry Blankenship, who live near the data center, mobilized to lead fellow residents to fight the data centers. Their organization — Woodsdale and Trenton Environmental Resistance (W.A.T.E.R.)
We’ll talk with Lorie and Barry about their battle against Amazon and the Trenton city council, how people can support them, and what others can learn from their experience.
Speaker Bio
Trenton residents Lorie and Barry Blankenship co-founded Woodsdale and Trenton Environmental Resistance (W.A.T.E.R.), to fight the insertion of AI data centers into their community. Together they have been the face of citizen opposition in Trenton at both city council meetings and in local news media coverage.