BRIGHAM CITY – The Box Elder Accountability Referendum (B.E.A.R.) group will hold a celebratory rally on Saturday, June 13 in Brigham City.
That gathering is slated for 3 p.m. at Rotary Constitution Park in Brigham City.
“This will be an opportunity to celebrate what we’ve accomplished together, meet with fellow supporters and talk about the road ahead,” according to B.E.A.R. organizer Brenna Williams.
B.E.A.R. is an ad hoc group opposed to the Stratos Project in the remote Hansel Valley areas of northern Box Elder County. The proposed multi-billion dollar hyper-scale data center, originally intended to occupy some 40,000 acres of barren land, is the brainchild of Canadian billionaire developer Kevin O’Leary.
Since its organization in early May, B.E.A.R. can rightfully claim some victories in the fight against the proposed development.
The vocal opposition by B.E.A.R. and other advocacy groups resulted in more than 1,000 formal complaints to state officials, forcing O’Leary Digital to withdraw two ground water applications for the project during May.
Facing unrelenting political pressure, Gov. Spencer Cox recently issued an executive order creating new guidelines for data center projects in Utah.
Thanks in part to B.E.A.R. efforts, Senate President Stuart Adams (R-Woods Cross) also called for a 75 percent reduction in the proposed data center land area and additional transparency about the development. O’Leary has reportedly responded with a counter-offer to reduce the project area by 50 percent.
Finally, on June 3, attorneys representing B.E.A.R. filed an appeal in First District Court here seeking to overturn Box Elder County’s denial of their applications to put the controversial data center project on the local ballot in the upcoming November election.
Organizers of the celebratory rally say that event will feature community updates, speakers and snacks.
The Rotary Constitution Park is located at 450 East, 700 South in Brigham City.