A massive data center project proposed in Box Elder County is raising questions about how it got this far — and what rules made it possible.
The proposed Stratos project would bring large-scale data centers and energy development to about 40,000 acres in northwest Utah.
But unlike most developments, it’s being reviewed under a different system — one run by the Military Installation Development Authority, or MIDA. The agency was created in 2007 to support development near military bases and protect defense-related jobs in Utah.
“We've had an opportunity to go back to Washington to visit with the Under Secretary of the Air Force to develop what we call an enhanced use lease project on the west side of Hill Air Force Base," bill sponsor Sen. Sheldon Killpack said while introducing the legislation in 2007. "This will allow the state control by establishing a board that will facilitate that particular west side project.”
In recent years, lawmakers have expanded MIDA’s role, allowing it to oversee large economic development projects in designated areas — meaning projects like Stratos can move forward under state-level authority, rather than going through a traditional county-led process.
At the same time, legislation passed earlier this year has reshaped how large projects are reviewed, especially when it comes to how water use is evaluated.
Projects like Stratos would require significant water use — approvals that fall to the state engineer, the official who oversees water rights in the Utah.
During the legislative session, Rep. David Shallenberger proposed a bill he said was intended to clarify the state engineer’s role.
“Her job is to permit and review applications for water applications," he said, "not extraneous — not other stuff that sometimes gets piled on. Her job is to clarify and clearly review water applications.”
But critics of the bill raised concerns at the time, including Caroline Joyce, a Utah resident with a background in public health.
“This bill is not just administrative streamlining, as many of your colleagues have suggested," she said. "It fundamentally narrows the state engineer’s ability to consider whether a proposed water right is detrimental to the public welfare.”
Those same critics now say the combination of expanded state authority and changes to water oversight could make it harder to challenge large-scale projects like Stratos.
“Under this bill, unless you show direct personal injury, your voice might not count," said Davis County resident Travis Padilla. "Water decisions don't affect just water rights holders. They affect air quality, public health, and the future of the state. It's the wrong time to weaken public oversight, narrow definition of the public good.”
Nearly 4,000 formal protests have been filed in opposition to the Stratos project’s original water rights application. But the developer has since withdrawn that application and plans to resubmit — meaning those protests would not carry over.
Meanwhile, both state and county officials say the decision ultimately falls outside their control.
“This is going through MIDA," said Utah Gov. Spencer Cox during a press conference earlier this month. "So it’s not — it’s a quasi state entity — but I don’t have control over that entity.”
Box Elder County Commissioner Lee Perry echoed that sentiment when asked if and how the project would move forward.
“This is the development and MIDA moving forward," he said, "but we have turned that project to MIDA … that’s a question MIDA would have to answer.”
The project will still need to secure water rights and other permits before construction can begin. But growing debate and protests have left critics questioning who has the final say.
