An unexpected activist emerged to help block a $5 billion data center in Maryland

NPR News Nov 7, 2026 00:00 1 min read 1 reads

Thousands across the U.S. have gotten involved to oppose data centers. One is a Maryland woman who'd been evicted after a pay cut and became a leader of a community effort that blocked a vast project.

An unexpected activist emerged to help block a $5 billion data center in Maryland November 7, 20265:00 AM ET

From

Jenny Abamu

Taylor Frazier McCollum has been active in the opposition to the possible data center at the site of the demolished Landover Mall in Prince George's County, less than a mile from where she lived. If the project is built, the development could occupy more than 80 acres. Tyrone Turner/WAMU for NPR hide caption

Tyrone Turner/WAMU for NPR

The overgrown grass and weeds seem to stretch into the horizon on nearly 90 acres of empty land in Landover, Md. It used to be Landover Mall, but that closed in 2002, and the site has been mostly vacant since.

An unexpected activist emerged to help block a $5 billion data center in Maryland

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