OPENPUBLICA · PUBLIC MEETING RECORD
Record of Proceedings

Topeka City Council Special Meeting and Work Session on Data Centers - August 20, 2026

Governing Body — Thursday, August 20, 2026
BodyTopeka, Kansas
SessionGoverning Body
DateThursday, August 20, 2026
StatusFILED
Video Record
0:00 / 2:37:48

Transcript — Verbatim
0:09

Good evening.

0:10

Welcome to this August 19th, 2026 special meeting and work session of the Topeka City Council governing body.

0:16

I'm going to ask the clerk to take the roll, please.

0:21

Mayor Duncan.

0:22

Here.

0:22

Council members.

0:23

Hiller.

0:24

Here.

0:25

Dal DL Alcala.

0:26

Hair.

0:27

Ortice.

0:28

Banks.

0:29

Here.

0:30

Cal?

0:31

Here.

0:31

Miller.

0:33

Bradbury.

0:34

Pierre.

0:34

Mickey.

0:35

Here.

0:36

And Hofer.

0:37

Here.

0:39

We have nine yes.

0:41

Or nine present.

0:42

Thank you.

0:43

All right.

0:44

The purpose of this evening's meeting is to talk about issues surrounding data centers and Topeka in the surrounding community.

0:50

Remind everybody, as we've said before, this will be, I'm sure the first of numerous meetings at this governing body and the committee of the whole that was created a few weeks ago to discuss this issue as we work through it in this community.

1:01

So this is this is just one of what is to come.

1:04

With that, we're going to jump right into it this evening.

1:07

We have representatives to start this off from CUMPASS Data Centers this evening.

1:10

I'm going to turn it over to them to introduce themselves, present us with whatever material you've brought here to present us with, and then we're going to open it up to questions from the city council.

1:18

So with that, welcome.

1:20

Appreciate you being here this evening, and the floor is yours.

1:23

Good evening.

1:24

Thank you, Mayor Duncan, members of council and staff for making time for us this evening.

1:29

Ms.

1:29

Mayor, you recently said that if a company cannot come into a community and explain who they are and what they do, that is going to be a tough sell.

1:37

I want you to know off the bat that we're not here to sell you anything.

1:41

I am Brett Collard, the Senior Vice President of Land Development with Compass Data Centers, and together with my colleagues present.

1:48

We appreciate the time you have offered us tonight.

1:50

I want to use this time to tell you more about COMPASS, what we are proposing, what it would mean for Topeka and Shawnee County, and to answer any questions you have.

2:01

Compass builds Class A community first data center campuses for cloud and hyperscale providers supporting online banking, electronic payments, digital health records, shipping, logistics, email, photo sharing, and streaming people use every day.

2:16

Our buildings house the servers and equipment our customers operate to make those things possible.

2:21

It's the business we support in every one of our campuses, the same business we would bring to Shawnee County and the City of Topeka.

2:29

Compass Data Centers was founded in 2011.

2:32

For 15 years we have built, owned, and operated hyperscale campuses across North America and Europe.

2:38

Including Red Oak, Texas, Goodyear in El Mirage, Arizona, Statesville, North Carolina, Hoffman Estates, Illinois, Columbus, Ohio, Leesburg, Virginia, Meridian, Mississippi, Toronto, Ontario, and Milan, Italy.

2:53

We are backed by Brookfield Asset Management, the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan, and KKR.

2:59

Three of the largest infrastructure investors in the world.

3:02

That ownership structure matters, and here is why.

3:06

We do not buy land and entitlements to resell them.

3:10

We do not build on speculation and exit in three years.

3:14

We own, operate every campus we build.

3:16

We design what we call a hundred-year campus.

3:19

The mechanical electrical equipment sits on the outside of the buildings, so it can be replaced as technology changes without tearing anything down.

3:27

We expect to be operating in Topeka for decades.

3:31

Being a Class A community first developer means the highest standards in how we build and operate matched by meaningful lasting investments in the places we call home.

3:41

Those of you who came to the open house may have seen the Class A checklist we publish that any community can use to hold developers, including COMPASS to that standard.

3:51

Across our portfolio to date, being that kind of developer has meant $300 million paid by COMPASS for substation, transmission, and grid improvements, funded fully by COMPASS, not added to anyone's utility bill.

Discussion Breakdown — Share of Meeting
Technology and Innovation███████████████████████████27%
Energy Management█████████████████████21%
Economic Development█████████████13%
Environmental Protection███████████11%
Community Engagement███████7%
Water And Wastewater Management█████5%
Public Safety█████5%
Public Engagement█████5%
Workforce Development███3%
Summary of Proceedings

Topeka City Council Special Meeting and Work Session on Data Centers - August 20, 2026

The Topeka City Council held a special meeting and work session on August 20, 2026 (note: the transcript indicates August 19, 2026) to discuss the proposed Compass Data Centers campus and related issues. The meeting featured presentations from Compass Data Centers and Evergy, followed by extensive Q&A with council members. No formal votes were taken; the session served as an informational forum.

Discussion Items

  • Compass Data Centers Presentation: Brett Collard (SVP Land Development), Eric Williams (SVP Solutions Engineering), Cliff Pompey (VP Power and Emissions), and Janice Murphy (Community Communications) presented the company's proposal for a $4.5 billion, 10-building hyperscale data center campus near SW 85th Street and Waukarusa, within the South Topeka Economic Growth Corridor. They emphasized Compass's "Class A community first" approach, including zero municipal water use for cooling, 55 dBA noise boundary, waterless cooling, and $277 million in community investments across other campuses. The project is estimated to generate $55 million in annual property taxes for Shawnee County, $42 million if annexed into Topeka, over 700 permanent jobs (300 on-site), and 1,700 construction jobs per year from 2028-2031. They highlighted commitments to grid improvements paid by Compass, not ratepayers, and a 17-year contract with Evergy under the Large Load Power Service tariff. They also addressed concerns about water, noise, environment, and jobs.

  • Council Q&A with Compass: Council members raised questions on:

    • Rainwater collection (Deputy Mayor)
    • Heat dissipation and cooling technology (Councilmember Hiller)
    • Local labor hiring specifics and union involvement (Councilmember Baudaviacola)
    • Franchise fees and grid capacity (Councilmember Ortiz)
    • Environmental impact studies (Councilmember Banks)
    • Lack of response to email (Councilmember Kell)
    • Water chemistry and disposal (Councilmember Kell)
    • Property tax reduction claims (Councilmember Miller)
    • Legally enforceable commitments (Councilmember Bradbury)
    • EPA violations in Virginia (Councilmember Bradbury)
    • Water trucking and disposal (Councilmember McGee)
    • Speculative building without client (Councilmember McGee)
    • Emergency plans (Councilmember Ortiz)
    • Community assurances (Councilmember Banks)
    • Non-disclosure agreements (Councilmember Kell)
    • Property value and wildlife effects (Councilmember Kell)
    • Surveillance and AI concerns (Councilmember Miller)
    • Sales tax exemption under Senate Bill 98 (Councilmember Bradbury)
    • Relationship with Israeli military surveillance (Councilmember Kell)
    • Lobbying for tax breaks after construction (Councilmember Kell)

    Compass representatives responded to each, often noting that detailed information is available on their website or that they would follow up.

  • Evergy Presentation: Chuck Casey, Chief Customer Officer and Head of Utility Operations, presented on grid reliability, affordability, and the Large Load Power Service tariff. He explained that Evergy does not actively recruit data centers but ensures they are a net benefit. The tariff, approved by the Kansas Corporation Commission, requires data centers to pay for infrastructure upgrades, sign 17-year minimum contracts, post collateral (letters of credit or parent company guarantees), and pay a premium rate 15-20% above other industrial customers. The tariff includes an 80% minimum monthly bill to protect existing customers. He stated that Compass is one of the most solid groups they have seen. He also discussed demand response capabilities, grid resilience, and the benefits of data centers in lowering rate increases for residential customers.

  • Council Q&A with Evergy: Questions included:

    • Building substations on speculation (Councilmember Kell)
    • Bankruptcy protections (Councilmember Kell)
    • Impact of coal plant Iatan (Councilmember Kell)
    • Public meetings during moratorium (Councilmember Baudaviacola)
    • Current load capacity and KCC approval for new generation (Councilmember McGee)
    • Guarantees on power priority during outages (Councilmember McGee)
    • Voluntary vs. mandatory load curtailment (Councilmember Miller)
    • Franchise fee details (Councilmember Ortiz)
    • Grid condition in Oakland/East Topeka (Councilmember Ortiz)
    • Number of data centers in service area (Councilmember Miller)

    Evergy responded, noting that the grid is improving and that data centers can help fund upgrades.

Key Outcomes

  • This was an informational work session; no votes were taken.
  • The council agreed to postpone the discussion on annexation to a regular council meeting.
  • The Mayor emphasized the need for continued community engagement and trust-building, encouraging Compass to hold more public meetings.
  • Compass committed to providing additional information, including responses to EPA violation questions and details on local labor.
  • Evergy offered to make redacted contracts available for public reference.

Note: The transcript indicates the meeting was held on August 19, 2026, but the system-provided date is August 20, 2026.

Meeting Transcript

Good evening. Welcome to this August 19th, 2026 special meeting and work session of the Topeka City Council governing body. I'm going to ask the clerk to take the roll, please. Mayor Duncan. Here. Council members. Hiller. Here. Dal DL Alcala. Hair. Ortice. Banks. Here. Cal? Here. Miller. Bradbury. Pierre. Mickey. Here. And Hofer. Here. We have nine yes. Or nine present. Thank you. All right. The purpose of this evening's meeting is to talk about issues surrounding data centers and Topeka in the surrounding community. Remind everybody, as we've said before, this will be, I'm sure the first of numerous meetings at this governing body and the committee of the whole that was created a few weeks ago to discuss this issue as we work through it in this community. So this is this is just one of what is to come. With that, we're going to jump right into it this evening. We have representatives to start this off from CUMPASS Data Centers this evening. I'm going to turn it over to them to introduce themselves, present us with whatever material you've brought here to present us with, and then we're going to open it up to questions from the city council. So with that, welcome. Appreciate you being here this evening, and the floor is yours. Good evening. Thank you, Mayor Duncan, members of council and staff for making time for us this evening. Ms. Mayor, you recently said that if a company cannot come into a community and explain who they are and what they do, that is going to be a tough sell. I want you to know off the bat that we're not here to sell you anything. I am Brett Collard, the Senior Vice President of Land Development with Compass Data Centers, and together with my colleagues present. We appreciate the time you have offered us tonight. I want to use this time to tell you more about COMPASS, what we are proposing, what it would mean for Topeka and Shawnee County, and to answer any questions you have. Compass builds Class A community first data center campuses for cloud and hyperscale providers supporting online banking, electronic payments, digital health records, shipping, logistics, email, photo sharing, and streaming people use every day. Our buildings house the servers and equipment our customers operate to make those things possible. It's the business we support in every one of our campuses, the same business we would bring to Shawnee County and the City of Topeka. Compass Data Centers was founded in 2011. For 15 years we have built, owned, and operated hyperscale campuses across North America and Europe. Including Red Oak, Texas, Goodyear in El Mirage, Arizona, Statesville, North Carolina, Hoffman Estates, Illinois, Columbus, Ohio, Leesburg, Virginia, Meridian, Mississippi, Toronto, Ontario, and Milan, Italy. We are backed by Brookfield Asset Management, the Ontario Teachers Pension Plan, and KKR. Three of the largest infrastructure investors in the world.

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