January 30, 2026
Meta's mega secret in the Cheese State
Wisconsin communities signed secrecy deals for billion-dollar data centers
Small-town shock: hush-hush Meta build, shell firms, big utility worries
TLDR: Wisconsin towns used secrecy deals and shell firms to greenlight billion‑dollar data centers, including Meta’s in Beaver Dam. Commenters rage over hidden decisions and looming water/power strain, cheering a proposal to ban NDAs while debating jobs vs. transparency.
Wisconsin just found out why its small towns felt blindsided: huge data centers were kept quiet, sometimes with nondisclosure agreements (NDAs) and shell companies like “Balloonist LLC” and “Degas LLC.” In Beaver Dam (population 16,000), Meta is dropping a $1 billion complex as big as 12 football fields, with officials moving pieces for over a year while saying little. Across the state, seven mega projects worth $57 billion are in play, and a new proposal would ban data center NDAs. Cue comment-section fireworks. On Wisconsin Watch, users are demanding sunlight: bell-cot says democracy needs limits on officials acting in secret, while yunohn blasts the “audacity” of calling this transparent. Others shrug: insuranceguru dubs it the standard playbook—hide it to dodge “Not In My Backyard” drama, then sell it as jobs—before warning these centers drink water and power like it’s free refills. DeForest’s $12 billion proposal turned up the heat, with residents fighting back and the “Disney World playbook” meme making rounds. Meanwhile, CodeCompost’s “How is Meta worth a trillion?” became the running gag, with users posting clown emojis at “Balloonist LLC.” The vibe: some want the jobs, but most want honesty, utility answers, and a vote—not a surprise groundbreaking.
Key Points
- •Seven major data center projects in Wisconsin are worth over $57 billion, with secrecy common during planning, including use of NDAs in four cases.
- •Meta is building a $1 billion, 520-acre data center in Beaver Dam, expected to open in 2027, advanced through shell companies and an NDA.
- •Beaver Dam’s development arm signed a Dec. 1, 2023 NDA with shell company Balloonist LLC; later, a July 2024 predevelopment agreement with Degas LLC was approved 12-0 without naming a data center.
- •In November 2024, Beaver Dam created a TIF district to help fund development of the data center.
- •Backlash over secrecy has prompted a new legislative proposal to ban data center NDAs across Wisconsin; DeForest’s proposed $12 billion center also advanced largely out of public view.