Cans of Corn
Inspired by the upcoming World Series, I’d like to share a baseball phrase for pop-flies a defender can field with ease— “can of corn.” The phrase comes from the idea that catching a lazy pop-fly is as easy as reaching up and grabbing a can of corn at the grocery store.
The recent October 5, 2026 WGN Radio interview of Mayor Craig Johnson, featured on the Village’s website and referenced during the most recent Board Meeting, functioned as more of a promotional segment than a serious journalistic inquiry. It was just one “can of corn” question after another. We’ve heard more difficult questions from child reporters than what was offered by Mr. John Williams.
Frankly, they could’ve just held this interview at Jewel with all the “cans of corn” Mr. Williams offered.
From the top, the interview lacked any disclosure from the host: John Williams is an employee of WGN (which is a subsidiary of Nexstar, a party looking to develop a data center at the WGN site in Elk Grove Village). And the interview ended with "Craig, you're good at what you do," when a simple “thank you for your time” would’ve sufficed. The entire interview was so devoid of any attempt at journalism, one must ask— could it be considered a “donation in kind?”
In any regard, Mr. Williams’ employer (WGN) has an obvious financial interest in promoting a pro-data center viewpoint, especially in Elk Grove Village. This should’ve been disclosed at the top of the interview.
Some may even argue that all coverage of data centers in Elk Grove Village by WGN probably should have been disclosed since 2022 and should be so disclosed going forward. It seems like such disclosures certainly would be consistent with the law.
But, setting aside Mr. Williams’s and WGN’s failure to disclose this obvious apparent conflict of interest, here is a concise analysis of the shortcomings of the interview:
The Trustees approve data center developments for the Village, not the Mayor
As previously detailed, the Trustees are the only ones who vote on data center developments in Elk Grove Village. The Mayor doesn’t vote (and has never voted) on these types of actions; the buck stops with the Trustees.
Mr. Williams asked no questions about the development process, or how or what the Trustees who actually make the decisions about data centers thought about data centers.
Mr. Williams didn’t even have a Trustee call in. And that’s a shame— if the tenor of this interview is any indication, it’s not like any of the Trustees would’ve faced any hard questioning anyway.
The "10-Year" Union Job Myth vs. The Automation Reality
There are claims during the interview that data center construction could keep various union workers at a single location for "up to 10 years." This is a misunderstanding of how those jobs would be sequenced, as well as a dangerous over-promise that ignores the imminent threat of technological displacement for the tradesmen and tradeswomen involved.
The construction industry is already rapidly automating in America (see below):
Similarly, in China, an entirely automated firm utilized AI-driven drones, self-driving pavers, and robotic rollers to resurface nearly 100 miles of expressway with zero human laborers on the ground.
In fact, the Wall Street Journal even reported just last month that there are some data center developers who say they can build a data center in as little as 90 days with their automated technology.
Suffice it to say, data center developers are likely seeking how to adopt these technologies to cut costs and go faster. This looming, very real threat may wipe out or otherwise significantly erode the alleged long-term job security for the tradesmen and tradeswomen related to data center construction.
How valuable to the trades are these developments going to be if the developers are likely looking to limit (or stop) using tradesmen and tradeswomen altogether?
And what is the Village doing or thinking about to protect this implicit promise of “good union jobs”?
It went unaddressed.
Ignoring build-out stresses
To his credit, Mr. Williams attempted to raise the fact that a 10-year construction horizon comes with “as many as a thousand people in the construction business over the course of the years it takes to put these things up, and I think that’s not a small consideration.” Implicit in that question is that there are noises and machinery (and traffic) during that 10-year construction timeframe.
However, Mr. Williams failed to pull on this critical, obvious thread, opting instead for more fluff than substance. Setting aside the automation concerns described above, that’s potentially 10+ years of construction noise and heavy equipment traffic (and maybe or maybe not with humans present) in and around residential areas like the WGN site.
It went unaddressed.
Inflated Operating Job Metrics
It was asserted during the interview that a completed, active data center facility can have "40 people working inside it" on any given day. This contradicts published studies which indicate a 100 MW campus (like what is proposed for Nexstar, per these statements) typically only has 20-30 people working inside it.
Who’s to say the automation being sought in construction won’t also eventually extend to internal day-to-day data center maintenance and operation? They’re already planning for it and testing it.
It went unaddressed.
The 6B Tax Burden Shift
It was explicitly denied that Class 6B tax incentives shift the tax burden onto residential homeowners. The argument was that because a new data center with a 60% tax reduction via Class 6B incentives still pays more than a vacant building, it is a net win.
Yes, as a matter of arithmetic, someone paying something is usually a higher sum than someone paying nothing. But, this explanation ignores the zero-sum reality of Illinois property taxes. When a municipality artificially slashes the assessed value of any industrial property for 12+ years to lure in an industrial entity, the overall local tax levy still does not shrink.
And, coincidentally, the demand on those resources funded by the levy actually grows because of the newly added demand from the new industrial entity. Consequently, the residential tax base is forced to absorb a larger proportional share of that levy for that stretch of time while the increased costs of the subsidy-receiving industrial entity starts hitting the community in the form of increased demand immediately. The Chicago Tribune articulated this forcefully, and the attempted rebuttal did not seem to understand as much.
It went unaddressed.
Water Usage Omissions
One argument posited during the interview was that “modern” data centers rely on "closed-loop cooling" and therefore consume less water than eight (8) single-family homes.
While closed-loop systems may mitigate direct municipal water consumption on-site at a particular moment in time, this position fails to appreciate what is needed to generate the unprecedented, continuous electricity needed to use a “closed loop” system.
Further, this position also fails to acknowledge that these “closed loop” sites still need remediation and purging on regular cycles. And, these purges are not costless or risk-free, as the folks in Cheyenne, Wyoming learned recently.
It went unaddressed.
Overall, this interview left me with far more questions than answers.
We cannot blindly embrace the rosiest, PR-driven dream scenario as the foregone outcomes for our Village's future when it comes to data center policy. We must ask critical questions, demand thoughtful answers, and stop rubber-stamping these projects.
To Exceed Exceptional, we must reject having the only elected official who doesn’t vote on these developments participate in a nearly 20-minute PR stunt with a biased radio host pushing a corporate agenda as the final word on the matter.
When I’m elected Trustee, I’ll be asking the hard questions. I won’t be lobbing “cans of corn.”
