Grimes County residents turn out for a community meeting in early July to discuss Elon Musk's Terafab project.
Courtesy/Marie Egyed
Residents of a rural Texas county say they want more control over the gigantic AI infrastructure projects sprouting in their backyards.Nearly 900 residents of Grimes County, the site of Elon Musk's planned 100-million-square-foot Terafab semiconductor factory, signed a petition calling for more stringent regulations on large infrastructure projects that receive public incentives.The residents leading the call presented the petition to the County Commissioner Court on Wednesday."When a company asks Grimes County for tax abatements, grants, reinvestment zones, development agreements, or other public benefits, the County has leverage," the petition reads. "Public benefits should require public protections."The petition's demands include a local oversight process, measurable commitments for local hiring, and pollution controls, among other asks. About 30,000 people live in Grimes, which is about an hour outside Houston.While the petition doesn't name Terafab directly, it was inspired by recent tax breaks the county granted SpaceX, which is developing the massive factory.SpaceX agreed to pay the county $20 million every year, or about 78% of what it would have paid in property taxes, SpaceX attorney Bucky Brannen said at the meeting.
