"With 14 Schools and 5,000 Households Nearby"... On the Frontline of Resident Opposition [Coexistence in the AIDC Era]②

Ⅰ. Surging Demand for AIDC: The Reality in Korea

[On Site] 80MW Data Center Construction in Michuhol-gu, Incheon

First Public-Private Council Held, but Discord Emerges

Opposing Residents Meet With District Mayor on August 18

Editor's NoteIn the era of artificial intelligence (AI), the government has announced plans to build a total of 18.4GW of data centers as one of the three major mega projects by 2035, aiming to make these facilities a driving force for national future growth. Whereas data centers used to be limited to supporting IT services, web applications, and data storage/sharing, they are now evolving into industrial platforms for the production and supply of AI computing resources. Despite the shared understanding that AI data centers (AIDC) are a core infrastructure determining national industrial competitiveness, many issues remain to be resolved before their widespread expansion. The Asia Business Daily has investigated international cases in Finland, Denmark, Germany, and the Netherlands—countries that have successfully addressed challenges related to power supply, permits, water use, and community conflicts—and seeks to explore solutions for enabling AIDCs in Korea to coexist as assets to local communities.

"There is an elementary school right next to the data center site, and an apartment complex just 150 meters away. Is it right for residents' opinions to be ignored at the very first public-private council meeting?"

On August 4, in front of the main conference room of the Dohwa 2·3-dong Administrative Welfare Center in Michuhol-gu, Incheon, a dispute broke out between residents and district officials. Hyanguk Jung, head of the Dohwa 2·3-dong Residents' Self-Governing Committee, expressed his frustration, saying, "There are 14 schools near the planned data center, and nearly 5,000 households will be directly or indirectly affected if you count all the apartments surrounding the facility. We were only informed about the first public-private council meeting 30 minutes in advance."

A data center with a maximum capacity of 80MW, to be built in Dohwa-dong, Michuhol-gu, Incheon, is about to start construction. Photo by Sojung Seo.

There is growing backlash from local residents as a data center with a maximum capacity of 80MW is about to be built in Dohwa-dong, Michuhol-gu, Incheon. This data center is a project by KB Real Estate Investment Management, to be constructed at 765-18 Dohwa-dong, which received construction permits from Michuhol-gu in April 2023 and is scheduled to begin construction this October. The high-voltage power line buried to supply electricity to the data center will run approximately 4.7 kilometers, passing through the area near Sungui 2-dong, Seonin High School, and Inhwa Girls' Middle School before reaching the Dohwa-dong data center site. Kiyeong Park, head of The Sharp Incheon Sky Tower Complex 1 residents' association, remarked, "While the developer says it will install ultrahigh-voltage cables and set up electromagnetic shielding devices to keep EMF levels below the safety standard, residents still feel uneasy."

Public-Private Council Lacks Resident Voices... Communication Breakdown

Youngsoon Kim, head of the Dohwa 2·3-dong Community Leaders' Council, pointed out, "This is a densely populated residential area with many nearby schools, and we are worried about the potential side effects from electromagnetic fields, as well as various noises and heat. The public-private council that should be listening to residents is operating behind closed doors, which is a problem." Despite the fact that this large-scale AI data center is being built in a residential area, communication to alleviate residents' concerns has been lacking. Kim added, "Coupang and GS logistics centers are both nearby, as is Incheon Metropolitan City Medical Center, so if a fire breaks out at the data center, the damage could be uncontrollable."

Chiguk Moon, head of the Architecture Department at Michuhol-gu, stated, "At the first public-private council meeting, we shared the project's progress and discussed residents' concerns regarding electromagnetic fields, noise, and heat from the data center. Since there are a wide range of opinions among residents, we plan to arrange future meetings to coordinate these views."

Residents of an apartment complex near Dohwa-dong, Michuhol-gu, Incheon, displaying banners opposing the data center. Photo by Sojeong Seo.

The conflict over the Dohwa-dong data center remains unresolved. As opposition from local residents continued, Jungshik Kim, mayor of Michuhol-gu, held a meeting with 20–30 residents on the 18th to listen to their opinions. Kyungsoo Park, chief representative of the "Private Enterprise Dohwa Data Center Cancellation Action Committee," commented, "The developer and supporting residents suggested building a swimming pool as part of a coexistence plan, but the proposal is too small in scale and unlikely to materialize. For the safety of residents, we will continue our movement to stop the data center's construction." Byeongjin Lee, head of the Architecture Permitting Team at Michuhol-gu, said, "Because residents' opposition continued, the meeting was held specifically to hear from those against the data center construction. We plan to continue convening public-private councils moving forward."

In May, at a residents' meeting with about 200 participants, three representatives shaved their heads to demand the cancellation of the construction, and a petition opposing the project was signed by 6,400 residents. One resident commented, "The Dohwa-dong data center is a hot issue in Michuhol-gu. It even seems to have been a major factor in the change of mayor during the recent local elections."

Jinhee Kim, Associate Research Fellow at the Economic and Industrial Research Division, Incheon Institute, emphasized, "Securing resident acceptance is a critical condition to prevent permit delays and local conflicts, and to enable the stable construction and operation of data centers. Data center operators need to establish a system for pre-consultation prior to building permits, where they explain power usage scale, cooling methods, EMF and noise management plans, and community contribution strategies." She continued, "Measures such as information disclosure, resident briefing sessions, expert verification, and post-monitoring systems should be put in place before the project is launched to prevent conflict. Efforts must be made from the initial stages of site selection to sufficiently explain the project to residents, thereby easing negative perceptions of data centers."

This feature was supported by funds from the Korea Press Foundation, financed through government advertising fees.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.