Preserve Montgomery County, LLC, a group of local residents and property owners, filed suit yesterday in Cole County Circuit Court asking a judge to void Montgomery County's approvals for a proposed Amazon data center and its related incentive package, which some reports put at roughly $35 billion. The 35-page complaint accuses county officials of hiding deliberations, holding improper closed-door meetings and charging residents hundreds of dollars to obtain public records. The suit names Montgomery County and the Missouri Department of Economic Development and asks the court to block any further county action on the plan.
What the deal would mean
According to the St. Louis Business Journal, the package tied to the project has been described as roughly $35 billion, and county leaders had approved billions in incentives to attract a major cloud operator. Supporters say the buildout could bring significant investment and jobs, while opponents argue the sheer scale threatens farmland, local services and long-term tax revenues.
What the lawsuit alleges
The complaint brings 10 counts under Missouri's Sunshine Law, alleging commissioners failed to provide accessible public notices, met in unlawful closed sessions and charged requesters between $200 and $700 for records, ABC17 reported. The suit asks a Cole County judge to void the county's plan, bond order and development agreement, and also asks the state to revoke a $5 million planning grant tied to the project, KXEO reported.
Local pushback
Opposition has swelled at town-hall meetings and public hearings, with hundreds of residents raising concerns about groundwater use, higher utility costs and the loss of agricultural land, KBIA reported. Groups such as Preserve Montgomery County have pushed for moratoriums and land studies, saying the public was not adequately consulted on a proposed multi-thousand-acre site near the I-70/Highway 19 interchange.
Numbers and incentives
Local reporting puts potential tax breaks in the hundreds of millions. One outlet said the county had approved roughly $245 million in tax breaks tied to the plan and that the overall project could reach about $35 billion, KXEO reported. Critics argue that the incentives would steer long-term tax relief to a corporate cloud operator while increasing demands on local infrastructure and emergency services.
What officials have said
County commissioners have defended the proposed site, pointing to rail access, major roads and existing power infrastructure as reasons the area is attractive for large tech projects, Commissioner Doug Lensing told Missourinet. The Missouri Department of Economic Development, which provided planning grants, is named in the complaint and is accused of not properly monitoring the grant agreement.
Legal path ahead
The case has been filed in Cole County Circuit Court, and plaintiffs want a judge to invalidate the county's approvals and halt any further implementation of the plan. Local outlets say it is not yet clear when the court will take up the matter, ABC17 reported. If the court finds violations of Missouri's open-meetings rules, the county's development agreement and related incentive actions could be rescinded, forcing a renegotiation or pause to the project while officials defend their process.
Whatever the timeline, the suit highlights growing scrutiny in rural communities over hyperscale data centers and how local governments negotiate high-dollar, secrecy-heavy deals with big tech. For Montgomery County, the litigation will decide whether the controversial plan moves forward or whether leaders have to head back to the public table.
