LETTER: Data center is a life-changing benefit for this Port worker

To Ozaukee Press:

As a Port Washington resident and a proud member of the Operating Engineers

Local 139, I want to share my perspective on our area’s data center development story, focusing on jobs that are changing lives.

I’ve lived in Port Washington for the last decade. Married last year, my wife and I recently purchased our first home, making Port Washington our permanent home. This was made possible because of the well-paying union job I have constructing the Lighthouse Campus data center.

While critics have claimed the data center provides no local benefits, I’m the face of someone telling you that couldn’t be further from the truth. This project is making life better for me and my family. My paycheck also supports local businesses, which strengthens the community.

And this isn’t a temporary job. I’ll be working on the Lighthouse project for years. Once this project is done, I’ll continue to work as an operating engineer on other local construction projects while maintaining my home in Port Washington, spending my paychecks locally, paying local taxes and, hopefully, someday, sending my children to Port Washington schools.

The Lighthouse data center is changing lives for the better here in Port Washington. Not only because of the thousands of construction jobs being created, but in the hundreds of positions that will staff the facility when it’s fully operational. Change is not always easy, but AI is changing our world for the better and I’m glad to be a part of that change here in Wisconsin.

Logan Maki

Port Washington