News 12 received exclusive access to DataBank’s data center in Orangeburg, New York, for an on-air segment and written report examining the company’s proposed facility expansion and the community opposition it has generated. The segment includes a 45-second video tour of the facility and an interview with DataBank VP of Marketing JP Laqueur.

The Orangeburg facility supports healthcare, banking, and other digital services, and is one of several data centers located in the town. DataBank is seeking to expand the existing site, a proposal that has drawn protests from nearby residents concerned about noise, pollution, and the growth of AI infrastructure in the community. The project is currently undergoing a full environmental impact study before it can advance to the Orangetown Planning Board, and no vote has been scheduled.

“A lot of the fear and pushback around data centers is really a fear of AI because this is an industry that’s been around for 30 years and has powered our increasingly digital lives.”
— JP Laqueur, Vice President of Marketing, DataBank

Laqueur, head of enterprise sales Dan Fuentes, and head of solutions engineering John Solensky used the tour to draw a distinction between the broad range of applications and industries data centers serve and the narrower AI concerns driving much of the public debate. The facility quietly supports the kind of everyday digital activity — banking, healthcare systems, online services — that most people rely on without thinking about the infrastructure behind it.

Watch the full segment and read the complete article at News 12.