(KIWA Staff Photo)Northwest Iowa (Sioux County Radio) — Independent Iowa House District 4 candidate Garth Van Donselaar is calling for statewide data-center regulations and raising concerns about PathOne Data Center following the company’s community meeting last week.
Van Donselaar, who is challenging Republican Representative Skyler Wheeler in November, said in a social-media post that he appreciated PathOne holding the meeting and allowing residents a chance to learn more about information technology. However, he said he remains skeptical of the company and its potential plans in Sioux County.
PathOne has advocated for rules governing data-center power and water use, noise and zoning. Van Donselaar said he supports statewide standards in those areas and also wants stronger protections for Iowa farmland. He wrote that safeguarding farmland would be a priority for him if elected.
Questions About PathOne
Van Donselaar said PathOne previously tried to advance a data-center project without enough public awareness. He also pointed to the company’s limited operating history, reported nondisclosure agreements, and use of AI-generated graphics as reasons he questions whether the company would follow through on its commitments.
He wrote that, like other tech companies, he is unsure whether PathOne would keep its promises regarding regulations and future tax obligations.
PathOne has said it wants to develop smaller “edge” data centers rather than the large-scale facilities proposed elsewhere. During an August 10th meeting with the Sioux County Board of Supervisors, the company discussed a potential facility using roughly 10 to 25 megawatts of existing electrical capacity. Representatives also said the intended end user had changed after Sioux County enacted its moratorium.
The county’s one-year moratorium temporarily pauses new data-center and industrial battery-storage projects in unincorporated Sioux County.
At last week’s community meeting in Hull, PathOne said it did not have a specific project to present and was trying to learn more about the computing needs of area businesses. Van Donselaar wrote that this raised questions for him because the company had previously described having an end user.
He also wrote that, in his view, many local businesses may not need additional data-center space because more efficient servers and cloud-based services have reduced the amount of physical hardware companies require.
District 4 Campaign
Van Donselaar grew up in Sioux Center and attended Dordt University. He works as a systems administrator for AmBank Company Incorporated, the holding company for American State Bank, Perspective Insurance, and American State Bank Investment and Trust.
He launched his independent campaign earlier this year. His platform includes farmland protection, preserving Iowa’s education savings account system, protecting libraries and free speech, eliminating Iowa’s beverage-container redemption program, and ending seasonal clock changes.
Wheeler, the Republican incumbent, is seeking another term in the November general election.
