Leaders in Colorado county grant $19 million tax break to controversial data center; "The math doesn't make sense."

Douglas County leaders have granted a $19 million tax break to a new data center being built in Parker that's expected to open in 2027.

It concerns something called business personal property tax. Flexential will now be off the hook for those dollars owed to Douglas County for the next 35 years. The data center will still pay traditional property tax, as well as the business personal property tax to other taxing entities.

"This has become a huge national issue, and honestly, it's like one of the only bipartisan issues across the country," Parker resident Joe Lugo said. "Then suddenly we find out, 'Oh, it's in our backyard.'"

Parker is the latest community where neighbors are speaking out against data centers.

"Its water usage, about its noise, about its potential pollution. So you just kind of wonder why is it going in here?" Lugo said.

A near 250,000-square-foot data center is currently under construction near C-470 and Chambers Road in Parker. It will be the latest out of four Flexential data centers in the Denver area.

Flexential says the facility will run on a closed-loop water system, and use less than 600,000 gallons of water a year. It is expected to be CORE Electric Cooperative's largest customer, drawing up to 22.5 megawatts. Flexential says the company will pay for electric substation upgrades.

The data center has already been approved by Parker Town Council, but now Douglas County is greenlighting a major tax break: It's a 100% rebate on the county's portion of business personal property tax over 35 years, totaling more than $19 million.

In Colorado, business personal property tax is levied on a business's assets if it exceeds $56,000. Douglas County Board of County Commissioners says the tax is "immoral and wrong" and that it will credit 100% of those dollars back to any business in the county who asks.

"It's a terrible tax. It does cripple businesses, and it makes it harder to do business in the state of Colorado," Commissioner Abe Laydon said.

"It is incredibly regressive. It's perpetual double taxation," Commissioner Kevin Van Winkle said.

"I do not like these taxes on businesses to begin with." Lugo said, "That being said, why on earth are we doing 35 years? Why isn't this five years, 10 years max? And then we revisit it down the road."

County commissioners say the town of Parker asked them to incentive Flexential to choose Parker.

The data center is expected to create only 16 new jobs.

"When I hear $19 million for 16 jobs, the math doesn't make sense," Lugo said.

All public commenters in Tuesday's meeting opposed the idea.

"These people are in business. They make plenty of money, and I'm not against that, but we shouldn't be subsidizing it. So, please, I respectfully ask you to vote against this," one commenter said.

"I say no to the data center. It should pay their own taxes," another stated.

But the board approved the $19 million tax break unanimously.

Irene Bonham, a Democrat running for the Douglas County commissioners board, said in a statement to CBS Colorado, "A 35-year, multimillion dollar tax rebate should never be treated like routine business, especially when residents haven't had a meaningful opportunity to weigh in. Before Douglas County gives away decades of future tax revenue, we deserve to know exactly what we're getting in return. That includes whether the 16 jobs are good-paying professional careers, hourly wage jobs, or something else. And what will the long-term impacts be on our water, energy, infrastructure, home values and taxpayers? Our residents deserve better. That's why I'm calling for a pause on new large-scale data center approvals and incentives until clear, responsible standards are in place."

Parker neighbors can learn more about the project on the town's FAQ and Active Development pages.