Oneonta Town Board Demands Clarity as Eco-Yotta Presentation Raises More Questions
By JAQUELYN CARLO
SUNY Institute for Local News
ONEONTA
A proposed Eco-Yotta Inc. data center—the subject of much debate and opposition—will be the focus of a special work session next month between Town of Oneonta and Eco-Yotta officials in order to get more clarity on the project and so that it will stop blocking other town discussions. The Eco-Yotta proposal again dominated the November monthly town board meeting, with around 50 citizens and company officials in attendance and trading perspectives.
Eco-Yotta seeks to convert property at 357 County Highway 9 to a planned development district, or PDD, which can permit broader uses than its current designation as residential agriculture. The idea surfaced this spring as a data center.Then, after residents expressed concerns, the project re-emerged in October as an “agricultural hydroponics research and development hub,” according to the company’s application. Whether or not it should be called an AI center was debated again at the November 12 meeting.
Tirusha Dave, Eco-Yotta’s chief executive officer, along with husband and Chief Technology Officer Prashanth Gorantala, contended it is not a data center. She argued the core function of the project is agricultural.
But Oneonta resident Jacey Chase said Eco-Yotta’s own social media posts used that very AI terminology Dave dismisses.
