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Charlottetown Mayor Philip Brown is attempting to clear the air when it comes to rumours of an AI data centre coming to the city.<\/p>\n
AI data centres have been controversial, facing public pushback in Canada and the United States. Much of that is due to the demand for water and electricity needed to run those centres.<\/p>\n
Several councillors said they had been getting questions about whether a data centre is coming to the city during a regular meeting of council on Tuesday night.<\/p>\n
\u201cI\u2019m just curious, Mayor Brown, as to the context behind that and how do we address that query that we are receiving from residents, and possibly businesses. Because I\u2019m not able to answer it,\u201d Coun. Justin Muttart asked during the council meeting.<\/p>\n
It all stems from comments Brown made at two committee meetings.<\/p>\n
The first was back in March, when he asked about what effect such a centre would have on the electrical grid.<\/p>\n
![\"Construction](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1781094969_549_default.jpg\")
There are currently five hyperscale data centres in the entire country, but there are nearly 100 proposed or under construction, according to a recent York University study. (Patrick Morrell\/CBC)<\/p>\n
Then, at a water and sewer committee meeting last month, he asked what effect it would have on the water supply and suggested tech could be a solution for businesses limited by space because the city does not have the land mass for factories.<\/p>\n
\u201cAn entrepreneur asked me about the possibility, what we are doing as a province, as a municipality principally, about AI and wanted to know about the water capacity,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo, that\u2019s all the question I asked, \u2018do we have the water capacity?\u2019\u201d <\/p>\n
When Brown asked the question, city staff made it clear that Charlottetown would not have the water capacity to support such a project, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey were just questions. There was no implied statement that there was a permit received … to build, or look at, an AI data centre. That was never discussed,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n
\u201cHypothetical questions were asked at two standing committee meetings searching for water and electrical requirements for this type of facility. There was no request on building or looking for a developer for this type of project. None. Zero.\u201d<\/p>\n
WATCH | Why data centre communities worry about water:![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/06\/1781094970_349_default.jpg\")
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Why data centre communities worry about water<\/p>\n
As resistance to AI data centres grows, industry leaders say there are ways to build more community-friendly facilities. For Radio-Canada, Ana\u00efs Elboujda\u00efni examines the water concerns and explores the arguments for a more sustainable approach in Canada.<\/p>\n
A report in a local newspaper was written about the committee meetings where Brown raised the issue, he said, adding that social media amplified the situation and led people to believe an AI data centre would be coming to Charlottetown.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhat transpired from traditional media went to social media and took off. It was only based on inquiry and questions about if it is something we have the infrastructure to do,\u201d Brown said.<\/p>\n
Brown said he has been getting phone calls from people concerned that a data centre could be coming.<\/p>\n
\u201cI received a call the other night at 11:30,\u201d Brown said, recalling someone asking him why the city was building a data centre.<\/p>\n
\u201cThat\u2019s not the case.\u201d<\/p>\n