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Saline Township Treasurer Resigns Due to Data Center Threats
The treasurer of Saline Township, Michigan, publicly resigned last week citing death threats she received related to the construction of an Oracle and OpenAI datacenter. “I’m submitting my resignation effective May 29th. I can’t take it anymore. The threats. The ‘I’m gonna tar and feather you.’ I hope you get bit by ah […] it’s so disgusting,” said the treasurer, Jennifer Zink, between sobs at a two-hour township meeting on May 13.
“The last one was, they hope we step on, I don’t know, some tick nest and ticks get on us and we get Lyme disease and die. Or something to that effect,” explained the township clerk Kelly Marion, who did not resign but described some of the threats. “It’s horrible. I can’t do it anymore,” Zink continued. “I have two boys. I don’t need to deal with this. I have my personal stuff at home to deal with. I don’t need […] my life threatened or to be told ‘I hope you die a premature death.’ What the hell’s wrong with people?”
Audio of Threats and Remarks
Saline Township Treasurer resigning after death threats. Full video on YouTube.
The township, a rural farming community with a population of around about 2,300 people, had previously denied zoning changes that would have stopped the data center from proceeding. Instead of looking elsewhere, Related Digital, the construction company behind the project, sued Saline Township. The township board looked at its options and decided it couldn’t fight the massive corporation. They settled the lawsuit by providing $14 million to local fire departments as a part of the settlement.
Residents pushed for three members of the board to be recalled due to their stance on the data center. At the meeting, emotions ran high with residents and the township board discussing the proposed data center. Some still opposed it and blamed the board for allowing it to happen while others claimed the construction was inevitable. The treasurer defended the board and highlighted how farming communities were struggling to keep up with modern demands.
“I have two words that I’d like to offer up to everyone tonight and those words are grace and revenge,” said Kathy, a woman who had lived in the township for more than 30 years. “My voice is shaking because I’m angry at the narrow-mindedness that’s being represented in this room tonight.” She defended the board and painted the grim reality of how farming communities were struggling to keep up with modern demands.
“I understand what’s happening to our farming community: their children don’t want to farm anymore. So what do they do? They sell the property for you $50,000 an acre when they could sell it for $100,000 an acre? Ain’t gonna happen,” she said. “Are the taxpayers going to pay to keep the farmers from selling out? They’re not.” Kathy also pointed out that Governor Gretchen Whitmer probably knew what was coming and how much money the township had.
At the end of the night, before Zink’s resignation, clerk Marion said she didn’t fault anyone but was tired of misinformation and hateful comments directed at her and other board members. “It’s very clear: no one wanted the data center,” she said. “I don’t fault anybody. I’m the one that voted ‘no’ against the board, but I did not see Related going away.” Marion also shared a rough estimate of what losing the lawsuit would have cost each township resident every year for the next decade.
Key Takeaways
- The treasurer resigned due to death threats related to an Oracle and OpenAI data center project in Saline Township, Michigan.
- Residents pushed for three board members to be recalled over their stance on the proposed data center.
- Taxpayers would have had to pay $29,000 per household annually if they had fought and lost the lawsuit against Related Digital.
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