JANESVILLE — Amid concerns from area organizers, the developers of proposed data centers in the Rock County area have aimed to lessen the criticisms.

Veridian Partners sent a representative to a local “Data Center Disco” event held at the Woodman’s Sports & Convention Center for those interested in moving forward with the potential data center at the General Motors/JATCO site.

During the Q&A portion of the event, an anti-data center zealot questioned Veridian on the potential ecological or environmental concerns of the project.

“How do you plan to prevent this energy-hogging plant from causing an ecological disaster? Will a disaster like that happen?” asked Melanie Cortie, a Janesville resident.

Jasper Cloos, associate product manager of Veridian Partners, quickly shut down the questions with a simple declaration.

“Probably not,” said Cloos.

The response led to thunderous applause from all of the data center supporters in the building. A few of the data center defenders started chanting “Veridian” and placed Cloos on their shoulders, parading him around the gymnasium.

We’ll continue to monitor the situation here at The Janesville Globe. The best place to stay informed on everything Janesville and the surrounding areas